Senior Technology Architect

You’ll be a Senior Architect working within the Core Banking CIO team. We’re responsible for the systems of record for our retail current account and savings, unsecured lending and business banking accounts. The team is responsible for defining the Core Banking technical roadmap based on business strategy: shaping solution options and design, and ensuring deliveries align to the agreed strategies, roadmaps, enterprise guardrails and relevant industry standards. You’ll be responsible for supporting Core Banking CIO strategic programmes and value stream initiatives to shape and assure the technical direction for Nationwide’s Core Banking systems.

The core banking team is at the heart of the change portfolio here at Nationwide. We’re in a period of significant change as we progress our simplification and modernisation roadmap within the existing estate to drive resilience and security. We’re exploiting new technology like artificial intelligence to improve customer experience and improved, more efficient ways of working. We’re preparing for further change including the technical integration between Nationwide and Virgin Money, while responding to industry and regulatory demands as they emerge. This creates a strong pipeline of meaningful work, with opportunities to transform how Nationwide serves its 24 million customers.

We’re looking for someone who brings thought leadership and strategic vision combined with practical delivery judgement and the confidence to influence senior business and technology stakeholders through clear architecture narratives, data-led insight, and well-structured recommendations. The successful candidate will balance innovation and fast-paced delivery with strong governance, helping us exploit emerging technology safely and pragmatically.

This is an excellent opportunity to join the Core Banking Architecture team at a time of meaningful change, helping to shape practical, resilient and future-ready solutions. The successful candidate will bring a broad base of senior architecture experience, together with hands-on understanding of customer and colleague experience, operational processes, data, logical modelling, setting design standards and patterns and championing emerging technologies.

At Nationwide we offer hybrid working wherever possible. More rewarding relationships are supported through our hybrid approach, bringing colleagues together across our UK wide estate, whilst also supporting generous access to home working. We value our time in the office to solve problems, to learn, and to feel connected.

For this job you'll spend at least two days per week, or if part time you'll spend 40% of your working time, based at either our Swindon, London or Bournemouth office. If your application is successful, your hiring manager will provide further details on how this works. You can also find out more about our approach to hybrid working here.

If we receive a high volume of relevant applications, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so please apply as soon as you can.

What you’ll be doing

You’ll be a key part of the core banking architecture team, supporting both our own change portfolio, and that of other teams across Nationwide. You’ll work with product owners, engineers, suppliers, partners and other architects to shape and define direction, and to ensure delivery stays on track.

You’ll provide thought leadership for core banking, helping the portfolio make confident technology choices that balance innovation, member and colleague outcomes, resilience, cost, risk and governance.

You’ll shape, lead and track the plan for architectural deliverables to define target states and transition states for applications across core banking. You’ll create high-quality architecture artefacts and outputs that influence senior business and technology stakeholders to enable timely, well-informed decisions that lead to strategic and tangible technology outcomes. You’ll ensure designs are secure, resilient, supportable and aligned to relevant governance, patterns, standards and guardrails.

You’ll lead and coach Solution Architects and engineers across the portfolio to produce high-quality design artefacts and deliver within governance. You’ll provide clear direction, practical assurance and constructive coaching so quality improves, rework is minimised and escalations are managed effectively.

You’ll actively support architecture practice improvements, contributing tangible actions that improve productivity, consistency, communication and quality of output across the team.

About you

Core experience for this role includes:

• You’ll have a background of experience working with SAP and SAP Fioneer technologies and applications.
• You’ll have worked in a regulated environment, specifically UK financial services.
• Leading complex portfolios of change, defining direction and providing thought leadership on complex architectural topics, creating clarity where there are competing priorities, incomplete information or differing stakeholder views.
• Using data, insight and structured storytelling to influence senior stakeholders, secure buy-in and enable timely architecture and technology decisions.

• Producing high-quality architecture artefacts, including logical architecture, integration views, data flows, non-functional requirements, options analysis, decision papers, governance submissions and senior stakeholder papers.

Our customer first behaviours put customers and members at the heart of how we work together. They are the set of behaviours that every colleague needs to display, in every role:

• Feel what customers feel - We step into our customers’ shoes, using their feedback and insights to empathise with them and to understand their needs, so that every decision we make starts and finishes with our customers in mind

• Say it straight - We are brave in speaking out and saying what we think – we’re honest and direct with good intent, openly sharing diverse perspectives to reach the best conclusions and using language everyone can understand

• Push for better - We don’t settle for mediocrity, we challenge the status quo, taking responsibility for continuous improvement and personal development

• Get it done - We prioritise what will have the greatest impact, we are decisive, and we take accountability for delivering brilliant customer outcomes

You can strengthen your application by showing how our customer first behaviours resonate with you, and where you may have already demonstrated these.

The extras you’ll get

There are all sorts of employee benefits available at Nationwide, including:

• 30 days holiday, pro rata

• Private medical insurance

• A highly competitive pension to help you build a strong foundation for retirement

• Access to an annual performance-related bonus

• Training and development to help you progress your career

• A great selection of additional benefits through our salary sacrifice scheme

• Life assurance to provide peace of mind for you and your loved ones in the event of your death

• Wellhub – access to a range of free and paid options for health and wellness

• Up to 2 days of paid volunteering a year

Banking – but fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society

We forge our own path at Nationwide.

As a mutual, we’re owned by our members - those customers who bank, save or have a mortgage with us. We challenge the financial sector status quo. We don’t see customers as the engine of our own profit. We share our profits with them and put their needs first. Always there when they need us. Supporting them and their lives.

If you’re inspired by fairer finances, passionate about making a meaningful impact, and truly care about our customers, you’re one of us.

At Nationwide, you are challenged to grow and rewarded for doing so. Valued. Recognised. Inspired to be your best. As a community, we want our working lives to count. As a team, we celebrate what we achieve. As a standard-setter, we work for the good of customers, communities, and broader society.

We are purpose-driven. Uncompromisingly customer. Unstoppably Nationwide.

What to do next

If this role is for you, please click the ‘Apply Now’ button. You’ll need to attach your up-to-date CV and answer a few quick questions for us.

We respond to everyone, so we will be in contact shortly after the closing date to let you know the outcome of your application.

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If you want to find out more about using AI in our recruitment process, please read more here.

Disability Confident

We’re not just guided by data, we’re driven by the real experiences of our people. We’re a Disability Confident Level 3 Leader, the highest level.

That’s why we’re constantly evolving our policies and practices to make sure everyone feels genuinely supported, valued, and empowered to champion inclusion. Whatever your needs, we’re here to support you. If you need any additional support throughout your application journey, email our team at Recruitment Support.

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