What are the responsibilities and job description for the Director of Architecture -ST position at Desert Financial Credit Union?
The Director of Architecture & Engineering provides leadership and direction for technology architecture and engineering across SwitchThink Solutions, ensuring technology platforms and solutions are intentionally designed, engineered, standardized, and delivered in alignment with business objectives and client needs. This role is responsible for establishing architectural direction, guiding solution design, overseeing engineering execution, and ensuring solutions are fully built and aligned with approved architectural and engineering standards prior to transition into operational support models.
Operating within a managed services provider environment serving regulated credit union clients, the Director of Architecture & Engineering partners closely with the Chief Technology Officer and peer technology leaders to balance innovation, risk management, scalability, security, and operational sustainability across shared platforms and client environments.
What you will do here:
Architecture & Engineering Strategy and Direction
Define and maintain enterprise and domain architecture and engineering roadmaps aligned to business strategy, client requirements, and regulatory considerations. Translate technology strategy into architectural principles, engineering standards, and target state designs. Provide architectural input into long-term technology planning, platform modernization, and new service offerings.
Plan and Build Delivery Leadership
Own the end-to-end Plan and Build lifecycle for new technologies, platforms, and major initiatives. Provide architectural leadership and engineering execution to ensure solutions are designed, built, tested, and production-ready. Review and approve solution designs and engineering approaches across infrastructure, cloud, application, data, and integration domains. Partner with delivery teams to address architectural risks, design gaps, implementation challenges, and technical tradeoffs prior to operational transition.teams to address architectural risks, design gaps, and tradeoffs.
Architecture & Engineering Governance and Standards
Establish, maintain, and enforce architectural & engineering standards, patterns, and design guidelines. Provide final approval for solution designs, engineering approaches and platform changes. Partner with security and risk teams to ensure architectural designs align with regulatory, audit, and compliance expectations while supporting secure and resilient service delivery for our clients. Ensure architecture governance enables efficient delivery while managing technical risk and complexity.
Leadership and Team Management
Lead and develop the Architecture & Engineering team through coaching, mentoring, and performance management. Set clear priorities and expectations across planning, design, and delivery functions. Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Cross-Functional Collaboration and Advisory
Partner with Infrastructure, IT Service Operations, Engineering, Security, Product, and Account Management leaders to ensure architectural alignment. Ensure clean handoff of fully aligned engineered solutions into Operations. Serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and support client-facing architectural needs as required.
What you will need:
Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field preferred.
Equivalent combination of education and experience required.
8 years progressive experience in technology or architecture roles across infrastructure, cloud, application, and integration domains required.
5 years leadership experience guiding senior technical professionals or architecture teams required.
Experience leading architecture within complex, multi-platform or multi-client environments required.
Experience in financial services, credit union, or other regulated industries preferred.
Enterprise and solution architecture expertise across infrastructure, cloud, platform, application, and integration domains required.
Strong understanding of resiliency, security, disaster recovery, and regulatory requirements in financial services required.
Demonstrated ability to lead through influence and make sound architectural decisions required.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills required.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including executive-level communication required.
Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, client-focused MSP environment required.
We are proud to be an EEO/AA employer M/F/D/V. We maintain a drug-free workplace and perform pre-employment substance abuse testing.
For additional information about our organization, careers, and benefits visit: http://www.desertfinancial.com/careers.