Solution Architect - Engine by Starling - London

At Engine by Starling , we are on a mission to find and work with leading banks all around the world who have the ambition to build rapid growth businesses, on our technology.

Engine is Starling's software-as-a-service (SaaS) business, the technology that was built to power Starling Bank, and two years ago we split out as a separate business. 

Starling has seen exceptional growth and success, and a large part of that is down to the fact that we have built our own modern technology from the ground up. This SaaS technology platform is now available to banks and financial institutions all around the world, enabling them to benefit from the innovative digital features, and efficient back-office processes that has helped achieve Starling's success.

We draw upon our experience as knowledgeable bankers, and best in class technologists to become the chosen option for these banks, and preferred partners for leading consultancies.

As a company, everyone is expected to roll up their sleeves to help deliver great outcomes for our clients. We are an engineering led company and we’re looking for someone who will be excited by the potential for Engine’s technology to transform banking in different markets around the world.

Hybrid Working

We have a Hybrid approach to working here at Engine - our preference is that you're located within a commutable distance of one of our offices so that we're able to interact and collaborate in person. Some travel (including international) will be necessary, depending on the client and nature of the engagement.

Engine by Starling engineers are excited about helping us deliver new features, regardless of what their primary tech stack may be. Hear from the team in our latest Blog or our case studies with Women in Tech .

About the role

As a Solution Architect (SA) you will use your understanding of the Engine technology and architecture to explain the Engine product, uncover client requirements and support the design of client solutions. You will be involved in both the sales and delivery phases of a project as well as ongoing client success, working across Engine, collaborating with Engineering, Delivery, Product, Client Success and Business Development teams. Supporting these activities on client sites means the role will require travel around the UK, Europe, the Middle East and occasional further travel. There are also opportunities for 6-month international secondments and/or relocation to support client delivery.

What you'll get to do:

This role blends deep technical expertise with strong communication and collaboration skills. You'll become an Engine expert, understanding its architecture, technology, and functionality, allowing you to effectively communicate its capabilities and value to both technical and non-technical audiences, including prospective clients. You'll act as a trusted advisor to clients during implementation, guiding them on integration, best practices, and platform workflows. Collaborating closely with Engine Engineering and Product teams, you'll help design, build, and deliver new features – from initial concept to deployed APIs, mobile journeys, and Management Portal enhancements. Your contributions will also extend to shaping Engine's product roadmap and supporting sales efforts through technical demos and client workshops.

You’ll lead on technical topics during Engine Discovery phases with prospective clients. You'll communicate Engine's current and future capabilities to diverse stakeholders, ensuring alignment between technical possibilities and business needs. A key focus is understanding target country banking regulations, and defining necessary localisations. You'll collaborate with clients and System Integrator (SI) partners to design solutions, outlining the target architecture and integration landscape. This includes helping our partners design & build their integration environment (Integration & Orchestration Layer), identifying third-party dependencies, and meticulously documenting scope and roadmap decisions to guide subsequent delivery waves. Throughout, you'll leverage your knowledge of Engine's product capabilities to address client inquiries and bring in relevant Product Owners when specialized expertise is required.

You will also be a technical champion for our existing clients, ensuring their ongoing success. This includes taking ownership of the technical aspects of client deliveries, collaborating closely with our SI partners to overcome challenges and achieve seamless integrations. You'll provide expert guidance to client engineering teams, using documentation, API specifications, and sequence diagrams to foster a deep understanding of Engine's architecture and functionalities. Additionally, you will collaborate closely with our Client Success team to troubleshoot technical issues, translate client needs into new technical requirements, and architect innovative solutions that enhance the Engine platform.

Requirements

Must Have

• Experience of end-to-end software engineering / solution architecture across the software delivery lifecycle
• Experience with software service design and integration, such as RESTful APIs, OpenAPI specification and sequence diagrams
• Experience working in a client-facing role and building relationships with stakeholders
• Strong interpersonal communication and collaboration skills. Experience delivering complex messaging to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Nice to Have

• Experience relating to retail or business banking, core banking, card processing or payments.
• Knowledge of cloud infrastructure and large-scale cloud applications
• Experience of delivery and implementation of core banking or large-scale digital transformation programmes, application migration and solution integration
• Experience of rapidly understanding client problems and presenting technical solutions in a structured and informative manner
• Experience with AWS or GCP, Microservices, RESTful APIs, Java & PostgreSQL

About yo u

• You are collaborative and self motivated
• You have a focus on delivery and getting things done for a client
• You have the ability to work well with people from a variety of levels, roles and technical backgrounds
• You’re able to communicate clearly about technical subjects
• You’re comfortable working in a varied role, collaboratively in a team, with a flat structure
• You’re comfortable travelling nationally to our London office (initial upskilling will require a period of time working with our Engineers & Product team in London)
• You’re comfortable travelling internationally

Interview process

Interviewing is a two way process and we want you to have the time and opportunity to get to know us, as much as we are getting to know you! Our interviews are conversational and we want to get the best from you, so come with questions and be curious. In general you can expect the below, following a ~25 minute chat with one of our Talent Team:

• First interview (30/45/60 mins) - Phone. This stage will be made up of either 1 45 minute interview or 2 30 minute interviews with existing Engine team members.
• Second Architecture interview, including small presentation/system design (90 mins)
• Final interview (30 mins)

Benefits

• 33 days holiday (including public holidays, which you can take when it works best for you)

• An extra day’s holiday for your birthday
• Annual leave is increased with length of service, and you can choose to buy or sell up to five extra days off
• 16 hours paid volunteering time a year
• Salary sacrifice, company enhanced pension scheme
• Life insurance at 4x your salary & group income protection
• Private Medical Insurance with VitalityHealth including mental health support and cancer care. Partner benefits include discounts with Waitrose, Mr&Mrs Smith and Peloton
• Generous family-friendly policies
• Incentives refer a friend scheme
• Perkbox membership giving access to retail discounts, a wellness platform for physical and mental health, and weekly free and boosted perks
• Access to initiatives like Cycle to Work, Salary Sacrificed Gym partnerships and Electric Vehicle (EV) leasing

About us

You may be put off applying for a role because you don't tick every box. Forget that! While we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we're always open to discussion. So, if you're excited about working with us, but aren’t sure if you're 100% there yet, get in touch anyway. We’re on a mission to radically reshape banking – and that starts with our brilliant team. Whatever came before, we’re proud to bring together people of all backgrounds and experiences who love working together to solve problems.

Engine by Starling is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud of our ongoing efforts to foster diversity & inclusion in the workplace. Individuals seeking employment at Engine by Starling are considered without regard to race, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. 

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