Technical Architect

Job summary

The Cabinet Office is modernising the platform used by over 10,000 civil servants each day, replacing Google Workspace with Microsoft 365 and provisioning access via a resilient zero-trust network. If you are a self-motivated Technical Architect who can help this project, we would like to hear from you.

The Cabinet Office is at the centre of government. Its purpose is: to maintain the integrity of the Union, co-ordinate the security of the realm and sustain a flourishing democracy; to support the design and implementation of HM Government’s policies and the Prime Minister’s priorities; and to ensure the delivery of the finest public services by attracting and developing the best public servants and improving the efficiency of government.

Falcon is being run by Cabinet Office Digital, in collaboration with the DESNZ Integrated Corporate Services (ICS) team.

The work pattern is Hybrid with a mixture of home working and collaboration sessions based in London and Bristol.

Job description

What you’ll do

• write and own high level and detailed designs and specifications for the platform
• create/maintain core architecture artefacts including data/identity flows, and security controls
• produce option appraisals with clear trade-offs (cost, risk, resilience, performance, operability)
• drive and own governance and compliance to standards set by the Cabinet Office
• collaborate with ICS on delivery, champion our requirements, review the output and test the solutions
• champion best practice and quality delivery
• balance trade-offs of cost, quality and risk, with a particular focus on Cyber security and incremental delivery
• excite and energise the team, bringing people together and fostering collaboration
• be an early adopter and evaluator of the platform
• engage in cyber risk reduction through Cyber Threat Modelling and collaborating with the Cyber Defence team
• provide support and knowledge to assurance teams focused on Information Assurance, Data Protection and AI Policy
• define technical standards and guardrails for the zero-trust/SASE platform, ensuring alignment with enterprise architecture, information security policies, and legal compliance (e.g. UK GDPR/Data Protection Act)

Person specification

Who you are

• a hands on Technical Architect with an eye for the big picture, who can drill into detail as required
• a collaborative person who is excited about working within a team as part of a wider network of teams
• self motivated and resilient with a track record of delivery in complex and highly regulated organisation
• a problem solver who is able to leverage the people, process and technology to get the job done

Requirements

• passionate and knowledgeable about Cloud Architecture
• familiar with zero-trust network concepts and identity centric designs
• significant experience as a Technical/Cloud/Enterprise Architect or equivalent, delivering large-scale cloud-first end-user compute and identity solutions
• experience of developing designs for Microsoft Cloud Architecture (M365, Azure, Power Platform and EntraID)
• experienced with mobile divide management solutions for Laptops (Windows & IOS) and mobile devices (Android & IOS)
• experience of engaging with business analysts and tailoring product offering to their needs
• familiar with Google Workspace (AKA Google Suite)
• strong analytical skills, able to drill to detail when problem solving
• strong strategic thinking and ability to analyse and interpret data

It’s desirable that you have:

• worked with Okta identity management and SSO
• worked with Zscaler Zero-Trust Exchange platform
• familiarity of the public sector and government processes,

Additional information:

Cabinet Office policy is that a minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. For some roles, due to their nature and the business need, this may be up to 100%. Requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Curious about Government Digital and Data? Dive into the Candidate Pack to learn more.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Working Together
• Changing and Improving

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Cloud awareness
• Identity management and zero-trust networking
• Designing solutions

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £59,207, Cabinet Office contributes £17,152 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

• Learning and development tailored to your role.
• An environment with flexible working options.
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity.
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and employer contributions of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30.

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

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

Application process

As part of the application process, you will be asked to provide:

1. A CV

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Applications will be sifted on the CV.

Selection process

We will assess you against the following Behaviours and Technical skills:

• Seeing The Big Picture
• Working Together
• Changing and Improving

We will assess you against these Technical Skills during the selection process. These are aligned with the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework of Technical Architect role family:

• Cloud awareness
• Identity management & zero-trust networking
• Designing solutions

The format of the interview will be questions on the behaviours and technical skills listed above, as well as a pre