Cloud Architect

Overview Location: Hybrid (Up to 3 Days Per Week Onsite) | Bloomington, MN Employment Type: Contract-to-Hire / Staff Augmentation Opportunity Client: Trissential Client Partner Team Are you an experienced Cloud Architect who can bridge enterprise strategy with hands-on cloud modernization? Trissential is hiring a Cloud Architect to join our client's team and help shape the future of a secure, scalable, and cost-conscious hybrid-cloud environment. This is a highly visible enterprise architecture role where you'll influence cloud strategy, governance, modernization roadmaps, and executive decision-making while helping the organization balance innovation, compliance, operational resilience, and business outcomes. As the organization accelerates Azure adoption while maintaining critical on-premises and co-location environments, you'll provide the architectural leadership needed to establish consistency, governance, security, and long-term cloud sustainability across the enterprise. What's In It for You? Influence enterprise-wide cloud strategy across infrastructure, applications, data, security, and digital platforms Serve as a trusted advisor to directors, vice presidents, and senior technology leaders Help define modernization roadmaps that impact multiple business units Drive Azure adoption while ensuring governance, compliance, reliability, and cost optimization remain priorities Build reusable architectural standards and frameworks that delivery teams can leverage across the enterprise Collaborate with cloud, infrastructure, cybersecurity, application, and business stakeholders in a highly strategic environment Shape cloud governance, FinOps, migration strategies, and modernization initiatives that will have lasting organizational impact Your Role & Responsibilities Enterprise Cloud Architecture Establish and maintain hybrid-cloud reference architectures spanning Azure, on-premises, and co-location environments Define enterprise standards for networking, identity, observability, resilience, workload placement, hosting, and connectivity Guide solution teams toward approved architecture patterns and cloud adoption best practices Ensure cloud architecture decisions align with business objectives, operational requirements, and long-term technology strategy Cloud Governance & FinOps Develop and mature cloud governance frameworks that support accountability, consistency, and cost management Establish tagging strategies, budget alerts, policy controls, reservations, and rightsizing practices Partner with finance and technology leaders to improve cloud cost transparency and investment decision-making Conduct total cost of ownership (TCO) evaluations and provide recommendations for optimization Architecture Assessments & Risk Management Perform architecture reviews using Azure Well-Architected Framework principles Identify security, reliability, integration, scalability, operational, and cost-related risks Develop remediation strategies and prioritized modernization recommendations Create architecture decision records and maintain governance documentation Data Center Modernization & Migration Lead the development of cloud migration and modernization roadmaps Assess current-state infrastructure landscapes and future-state cloud architectures Help rationalize applications, platforms, and infrastructure workloads for cloud readiness Guide migration sequencing, dependency identification, and transition planning Stakeholder Engagement & Leadership Partner with enterprise architecture leadership to establish cloud strategy and standards Influence cloud-related investment decisions and modernization priorities Collaborate with infrastructure, cybersecurity, application, digital, platform, and data teams Present architectural recommendations to executive and governance forums Translate complex technical concepts into business-focused discussions around cost, risk, compliance, and value Skills & Experience You Should Possess 10+ years of experience in enterprise architecture, cloud architecture, infrastructure architecture, or related technical leadership roles Deep expertise designing and governing Azure and hybrid-cloud environments Strong understanding of cloud networking, identity, security, governance, and operational excellence Experience developing enterprise cloud standards, architecture patterns, and governance frameworks Hands-on knowledge of Azure landing zones, cloud migration strategies, and workload modernization Strong architecture review experience aligned to Azure Well-Architected Framework principles Experience balancing business priorities, technical requirements, risk mitigation, and cost optimization Ability to influence senior stakeholders without direct reporting authority Proven success leading architectural initiatives across multiple teams and technology domains Strong communication skills with the ability to present to executive leadership audiences Bonus Points If You Have Healthcare industry experience Experience supporting HIPAA and HITRUST compliance environments FinOps, cloud financial management, and cloud economics expertise Experience with VMware, Hyper-V, storage, networking, and hybrid infrastructure modernization Azure-native platform design experience involving PaaS, containerization, serverless, and event-driven architectures Experience supporting AI-enabled platforms and responsible AI adoption TOGAF, Azure Architecture, FinOps, or Cloud Security certifications Experience leading enterprise cloud transformation programs within highly regulated industries Education & Certifications You Need Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related technical discipline preferred Equivalent combination of education and relevant architecture experience will be considered Microsoft Azure certifications highly preferred TOGAF certification strongly preferred FinOps Certified Practitioner, CISSP, Azure Solutions Architect Expert, or related certifications are highly desirable Key Success Factors The ideal candidate will demonstrate success in the following areas: Azure Hybrid Architecture Leadership Designed and governed enterprise Azure architectures across multiple workload types Established landing zones, governance frameworks, enterprise connectivity strategies, and cloud operational standards Cloud Security & Regulated Environments Implemented identity, data protection, security segmentation, monitoring, and compliance controls Experience supporting HIPAA, HITRUST, or similarly regulated environments preferred Enterprise Influence & Business Alignment Advised directors and executives on architecture, investment, modernization, and technology strategy decisions Successfully translated technical complexity into measurable business value Cloud Economics & FinOps Governance Implemented tagging standards, reservations, rightsizing initiatives, budget controls, and cost optimization programs Demonstrated measurable cost savings or cost avoidance outcomes Data Center Modernization & Practical AI Adoption Led migration initiatives across Azure and traditional infrastructure platforms Supported enterprise modernization through practical use of AI-enabled tools and capabilities What We Offer At Trissential, we value strategic thinking, innovation, and technical leadership. By joining our client's team, you'll work on enterprise-scale cloud transformation initiatives while collaborating with highly skilled technology and business leaders. Competitive Compensation – You choose the model that works best for you, both with company-sponsored benefits! $167,000–$177,000 annually or $100–$110 per hour. Final compensation is determined based on skill alignment, years of experience, and fair, market-based rates by geography. Comprehensive Benefits for you and your dependents – Extensive Medical Plans, Dental, Vision, HSA with company contribution, company sponsored Life Insurance and Short / Long term disability insurance, a host of voluntary plans including legal, hospital, accident, pet wellness, and 401k with matching Paid Holidays and Paid Time Off Career Development and Advancement – Expleo is a global company in 29 Countries worldwide with a high focus on development Strong Team Culture – Collaborate with experienced professionals who value precision, performance, and teamwork Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship now or in the future. Ready to be part of something exciting? If you're passionate about cloud strategy, enterprise modernization, Azure architecture, and helping organizations navigate complex technology transformations, this is an opportunity to make a lasting impact. Apply today and help shape the future state cloud architecture strategy for our client through Trissential