Deal Architect
The Deal Architect plays a pivotal role in the competitive sales cycle, designing and delivering high-quality solutions that address customer business challenges. This position requires expertise in managed services and a broad technical background, including compute and storage infrastructure, digital workplace, cloud, security, networking, data, and applications.
As a Deal Architect, you will lead a team of subject matter experts (SMEs) to develop secure, cost-competitive, and innovative solutions aligned with customer needs, budgets, and business strategies. This role involves close collaboration with internal teams, stakeholders, and partners to create compelling proposals that maximize business success.
Key Responsibilities:
Requirements Analysis & Understanding:
Engage with customers directly or through provided documentation to understand business and technical requirements.Conduct thorough needs assessments, identifying key success factors, technical risks, and optimal approaches.Translate requirements into a structured solution blueprint for SMEs to refine and develop.Guide SMEs through customer engagement where requirements are not clearly defined.
Solution Design and Leadership:
Lead a cross-functional team of SMEs and partners in various technical areas such as infrastructure, cloud, security, networking, data, and applications.Drive the end-to-end solution design process, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and interoperability.Adopt cost-optimized approaches while maintaining solution robustness.Develop a comprehensive managed service framework for IT service lifecycle integration.
Collaboration and Team Leadership:
Ensure a cohesive approach across SME contributions, maintaining alignment with solution strategy.Foster innovation and encourage problem-solving within the team.Track progress and ensure all solution components meet deadlines.
Solution Selling and Competitive Strategy:
Apply pre-sales solution selling techniques to develop competitive, differentiated solutions.Work under tight deadlines while ensuring high-quality, winning responses.Ensure solutions align with internal governance and compliance requirements.
Bid Collaboration:
Partner with the Bid Manager to create high-quality, well-scored, and compliant tender responses.Work with the Commercial Manager to align financial and technical models.Ensure the solution supports the overall bid strategy and maximizes success potential.Engage with legal, finance, HR, and ESG teams to ensure a well-rounded proposal.
Solution Presentation:
Clearly articulate value propositions, architecture, features, and benefits to customers and stakeholders.Deliver compelling presentations and detailed, high-quality written responses aligned with win themes.
Quality Assurance:
Review and refine bid responses to enhance clarity, consistency, and competitiveness.Ensure solution compliance with internal and external standards.Stay up to date on industry trends, emerging technologies, and best practices.
Essential Skills, Qualifications & Experience:
8-10 years of experience in enterprise IT solution development for deals over £3M TCV, with a strong pre-sales background.Proven leadership in delivering successful, winning solutions across enterprise sectors such as healthcare, government, and manufacturing.Experience in designing managed services solutions based on ITIL principles.Strong knowledge of competitive solution selling in high-pressure environments.Awareness of Shipley methodology for structuring and enhancing bid responses.
Technical & Service Expertise:
Broad technical knowledge with deep expertise in at least two areas: Cloud, Workplace Services, Security, Infrastructure, Networking, Data Management, or Applications.Experience with IT service management tools like ServiceNow.
Collaboration & Compliance:
Strong experience working within bid teams and collaborating with key stakeholders.Ability to ensure solutions are compliant, financially viable, and meet governance standards.
Leadership & Communication:
Ability to lead, mentor, and manage a virtual team of SMEs.Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
Personal Attributes:
Self-motivated, disciplined, and able to perform under pressure.Strong leadership and problem-solving skills.Effective communicator with the ability to influence key stakeholders.
Preferred Qualifications:
Certifications in relevant technical fields (e.g., Azure Solutions Architect, AWS Certified Solutions Architect, CISSP, ITIL, TOGAF).Experience in managed services or consulting environments.Familiarity with enterprise-grade IT solutions and architectures.
Salary:
Up to £115,000