Enterprise / Solution Architect - Senior Developer

SUMMARY:
**Please note the following information below:
This position is based in Western Cape (Stellenbosch | Cape Town). This is a hybrid position with regular time on the school campuses.
This is a fixed-term contract position for 12 to 18 months, reviewed at 12 months. Open to moving to a fractional basis once the core architecture is in place.

Our client, a South African organisation operating within the education and training sector, committed to empowering individuals through quality education, skills development and innovative learning solutions, is urgently seeking an experienced Enterprise and Solution Architect to play a pivotal role in designing and building the technology platform supporting a growing network of schools, transforming educational opportunities and shaping a brighter future for children.

This is not a traditional enterprise architecture role. Our client is looking for a hands-on, forward-thinking architect who can translate complex business and technology requirements into practical, scalable and innovative solutions. You will be expected to design and articulate architectural strategies, confidently defend technical decisions, develop prototypes and provide development teams with clear direction to bring solutions to life.

POSITION INFO:
In order to be considered the following is required: Around 10 years in technology, with at least 5 in solution or enterprise architecture, built on a hands-on engineering background (Read code and build a prototype) Strong cloud architecture experience, ideally on AWS, including cost management Solid data and integration skills: data modelling, APIs, identity and single sign-on and data migration A track record of build-versus-buy decisions where you modelled total cost of ownership and lived with the outcome AI fluency: Use AI tools every day, understand LLM patterns such as retrieval, agents, evaluation and guardrails, and have shipped at least one AI feature into real use Working knowledge of POPIA and security fundamentals The ability to explain technical choices to principals, executives and funders in plain language Advantageous requirement: Edtech experience, especially Moodle, school administration systems, SA-SAMS or LURITS Multi-tenant or multi-site platforms, or low-connectivity and offline-first design ERP integration experience, ideally with Sage Intacct Standing up a technology function in a startup, scale-up or non-profit AWS Solutions Architect Professional or TOGAF (nice to see, but never more than real experience) Responsibilities: Own the target architecture across learning, school administration, finance, data, identity, integration and AI and turn their IT strategy into a clear roadmap Shape the architecture for whichever school information system route is approved, off-the-shelf or custom and give business owners the technical input they need for future build, buy or partner decisions Land multi-tenancy position early, before it's too late to change Produce designs teams can build from, including data models, integration patterns, security and non-functional requirements, and prototype when that's the fastest way to learn Prove their LMS under load and design one trusted record of every learner, staff member and guardian across their SIS, LMS, ERP and national reporting (SA-SAMS and LURITS) Review our Sage Intacct integrations, including feeds into the Apex Intelligence Platform, before they go live Design a repeatable, governed path for AI from prototype to production within their fixed constraints (Zero Data Retention and South African hosting), starting with our AI marking tool pilot Build privacy and security in by design, including consent, retention and de-identification for children's personal information under POPIA Provide design assurance on vendor and partner work, making sure the orgainisation always owns and can reach its code, data and documentation Coach the Application Product Owner \/ Development Lead so architecture thinking lives in the organization Combining both enterprise and solution architecture responsibilities, you will leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools and emerging technologies to accelerate delivery, streamline processes and achieve outcomes that would traditionally require significantly larger teams. This is an exciting opportunity for a technically accomplished architect who thrives on innovation, takes ownership from concept through execution and is passionate about using technology to make a meaningful impact in education. If you meet the above requirements, please URGENTLY email us your CV. Information displayed above not limited to advertisement Please consider your application as unsuccessful if you have not received a response within 14 days of submitting your application.