Principal Technical Architect

Job summary

Principal Technical Architect
£100,000 per annum
Bedford
Permanent
Hybrid Working

Join us at the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) as a Principal Technical Architect.
As a Principal Technical Architect, you will define and champion the technical strategy for services that support a diverse set of users, including citizens, financial institutions, debt
advice providers, and pension providers. You will lead architectural decisions that shape
digital services, ensuring they are user-centred, scalable, and aligned with organisational and
government standards.

Job description

Key Responsibilities:

Set technical direction and Strategy making enterprise-level decisions on digital
technologies and product selections to align with architectural vision and business
needs.

Plan and deliver a prioritised schedule of work, securing stakeholder agreement and
maintaining technical artefacts in relevant repositories.

Act as a Service Assessor, ensuring compliance with the Government Service
Standard and architectural principles.

Promote reuse and scalability across services, reducing duplication and driving
integration by default.

Lead and inspire a team of Technical Architects to deliver high-quality outputs
aligned with strategic priorities.

Define how we build and operate user-centred, open-source digital systems in an agile
environment.

Communicate technical vision across multi-disciplinary teams and influence decision-
makers to drive digital transformation.

Shape Technical governance and assurance across Digital, Data and Technology
(DDaT), ensuring compliance with frameworks and standards.

Lead the Technical Architecture community, setting standards for tools, techniques,
and fostering an inclusive culture.

Person specification

Essential Skills and Experience:

Proven experience leading technical teams and delivering user-centred services in an
agile environment.

Expertise in shaping and influencing technical strategies, standards, patterns, and
policies.

Strong knowledge of cloud-first architectures and building applications that leverage
cloud capabilities.

Ability to build consensus among diverse stakeholders and communicate complex
technical concepts clearly.

Broad technical knowledge across the web stack, from front-end development to
infrastructure and networking.

Experience introducing practices such as Test-Driven Development (TDD), CI/CD
pipelines, version control with Git, and DevOps.

Desirable Skills:

Experience applying the UK Government Service Standard and conducting service
assessments.

Experience mentoring and supporting colleagues in multi-disciplinary teams.

Benefits

About Us
The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) is based in Bedford, in a recently renovated modern office. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to become an integral part of a dynamic organisation, working to help people across the UK.

At the heart of the Money and Pensions Service are our values – caring, connecting, and transforming, which are the foundation of our success. They permeate every area of our work and define all our business relationships and the way we work with each other. We’re not only looking for the best people to come and work for us, but we need people who align themselves with our values:

• Caring
  We care about our colleagues and the people whose lives we are here to transform.
• Connecting
  We will transform lives through our ability to make positive connections.
• Transforming
  We are committed to transforming lives and making a positive societal impact.

Our Inclusive Working Environment
By fostering our values, we are immensely proud of the inclusive working environment that we have created. The diversity of our people is a strength that we embrace and wish to build upon, so we are committed to attracting people of all backgrounds. We work hard to ensure that we have a progressive approach to inclusion, equity, and belonging. We really do want our colleagues to “bring their whole selves to work.”

Our colleague and ally networks encompass LGBTQ+, neurodiversity, women’s health, men’s health, ethnicity, and diversity.

What We Offer

• Generous Annual Leave – 30 days plus Bank Holidays
• Pension scheme – contributions matched 2 to 1 (employer contribution up to 10% of your salary)
• Interest-free loan for season tickets for buses and trains
• Cycle to work Scheme
• Subsidised eye tests & flu jabs
• Life assurance scheme
• Give as you earn scheme
• Employee assistance programme (EAP)
• PAM Assist and PAM Life scheme (Wellbeing)
• Enhanced family and sick pay
• Paid volunteering (2 days a year)
• Recognition Scheme
• Discounts portal to numerous retailers

Flexible Working
At MaPS, we take pride in our flexible approach to work. As standard, we work on a hybrid basis with a minimum of 2 days in the office per month. Hybrid working is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and our headquarters in Bedford will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business needs, but personal and other relevant circumstances will also be considered. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

Recruitment Process:

1. Initial Review: Our recruiter will review your CV. If it looks like a good fit, they'll reach out to arrange a call.
2. Hiring Manager Review: If the recruiter thinks you're suitable, your CV will be passed to the hiring manager, who will decide whether to invite you for an interview.
3. Interview: If selected, you'll participate in a virtual interview. This single-stage process allows you to demonstrate your skills and experience through competency-based questions. This will also require you to deliver a short presentation.

Career Development
In MaPS, we take career development seriously. We actively encourage and support applications from our existing MaPS colleagues. However, we do follow the Civil Service Commissioner recruitment principles, which means that you will be required to participate in a full, open, and fair process.

Reserve List
If you are successful at interview, we operate a reserve list where your details will be held for up to 6 months. Should a vacancy come available in that time with the same essential criteria, reserve list candidates will be offered that position with no further assessment re