Technical Architect (Ruby On Rails, AWS)

Description du poste:

We're looking for a hands-on Technical Architect to join our Sage HR organisation and play a key role in shaping the technical direction of one of Sage's most strategic growth products. Sage HR sits at the centre of our HR and payroll ecosystem, already supporting over 4 million employees globally and continuing to scale rapidly as we invest in its future.

This role is deeply embedded with our engineering teams - working alongside product managers, engineers, and technical leaders to define architectural direction, establish patterns, and guide teams. You'll act as a technical authority, coach, and consultant: setting direction where needed, rolling up your sleeves to solve complex problems, and helping teams navigate scale, technical debt, and an increasingly service- and event-driven architecture.

*** Please note: This is a hybrid role requiring 3 days per week in our Newcastle office ***
In this role you'll:

* Act as the architectural authority for Sage HR, defining and evolving the technical architecture as the product continues to scale from a high-growth platform into an enterprise-grade solution.
* Work closely with engineering teams, product managers, and engineering leaders to translate product strategy and commercial priorities into clear architectural direction, patterns, and technical approaches.
* Provide hands-on architectural leadership, staying close to delivery by guiding teams through complex technical decisions, problem-solving alongside engineers, and shaping solutions as work progresses.
* Establish and embed architectural standards, patterns, and best practices (including service-based and event-driven architectures) to address scale, integration, and long-term maintainability.
* Coach and mentor engineers, helping raise technical maturity and architectural capability across teams - particularly in a context with varying seniority and a high proportion of contingent labour.
* Lead architectural thinking around integrations and platform connectivity, working across HR and payroll products and supporting an increasingly API- and event-driven ecosystem.
* Tackle technical debt and legacy challenges, guiding the evolution of existing systems towards more modern, scalable architectures.
* Partner closely with other architects and senior technical leaders across Sage to ensure local decisions align with wider organisational standards while remaining pragmatic and delivery-focused.
* Champion modern engineering practices and AI-assisted development approaches, helping teams adopt and use tools such as GitHub Copilot and similar technologies where appropriate

Skills, Knowledge & Experience (Requirements)

Must Have:

* Significant experience working as a Technical Architect or Senior Engineering Leader within product-led software teams, with a strong focus on architecture that supports real delivery.
* Deep hands-on technical expertise with Ruby on Rails and strong experience designing and operating systems on AWS (experience with Azure transferable).
* Proven experience designing and evolving service-based and/or event-driven architectures, including APIs and integrations between complex systems.
* Strong background in scaling software products, including refactoring existing codebases, evolving monolithic systems, and supporting vertical or horizontal growth.
* Excellent problem-solving skills, with the ability to balance architectural direction and pragmatic delivery.
* Experience working closely with engineering teams as a coach and consultant, not just a reviewer - able to guide, challenge, and, when needed, roll up sleeves and contribute directly.
* Strong communication skills, with the confidence to defend architectural decisions, influence senior stakeholders, and work collaboratively across disciplines.

Nice to Have

* Experience working on HR, payroll, or compliance-sensitive products (not essential).
* Exposure to AI-assisted development tooling (e.g. GitHub Copilot, Claude Code) and interest in applying AI to improve engineering productivity and quality.
* Familiarity with multiple database technologies (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server) and data-centric architectural challenges.
* Experience working in distributed or hybrid teams and navigating complex organisational environments.

Benefits? We have plenty...
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCMtTYUUiuU
* Generous bonuses and pension scheme: Up to 8% matched pension contribution plus 2% top-up by Sage.
* 25 days of paid annual leave with the option to buy up to another 5 days.
* 8 bank holiday days.
* Paid 5 days yearly to volunteer through our Sage Foundation.
* 50% income protection.
* Holiday buy + sell.
* Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage.
* Work away scheme for up to 10 weeks a year.
* Ongoing training and professional development.
* Hybrid working.
* Healthy Mind app membership
* Access to various helpful memberships for finances, health and wellbeing.

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