Solutions Architect DirectorLocation: Hybrid, Columbus, OH metro area Department: Engineering Reports To: VP of Technology Direct Reports: Software Architects, Staff Engineers Employment Type: Full-Time, ExemptAbout the RoleA growing fintech company is looking for a Solutions Architect Director to run the day-to-day of its engineering organization. This is the senior execution seat: while the VP of Technology owns strategy and outcomes, you own how the work actually gets done. That means leading the team, keeping the platform reliable, moving delivery forward, and holding the bar on architecture across every system.
You are the operational hub that turns leadership's priorities into shipped, measurable results, and the connective tissue that keeps a distributed engineering group pulling in one direction.What You'll Be Measured OnPlatform Reliability (99.9% uptime): You own the operational side of keeping systems up, monitoring, alerting, incident response, root-cause work, and the follow-through that stops repeats. Tracked by uptime, mean time to resolution, and incident trends.Delivery Predictability: Get the team to a steady, reliable delivery rhythm. Tracked by sprint commitment rates, defect escape rate, cycle time, and hitting roadmap dates.Distributed Team Effectiveness: Make the broader engineering group, wherever team members sit, function as one unit.
Tracked by knowledge transfer, documentation depth, and each group's contribution to delivery.Architecture Standards: Set the architectural guardrails and make sure they're followed. Tracked by design review coverage, architecture debt retired, and security and scalability compliance on new builds.Intake-to-Delivery Efficiency: Run a clean project intake process so work starts with clarity. Tracked by intake-to-kickoff time, requirements clarity, and how often scope shifts mid-project.What You'll DoLeading the TeamRun day-to-day management of the engineering team end to end: performance, hiring, onboarding, and growthBuild a culture that takes ownership, values craft, and keeps improvingCoach senior engineers, architects, and leads on where they're headed in their careersShape team structure, role expectations, and advancement paths together with the VPKeep the VP current on team performance, delivery, SLA health, and where the org needs helpOwning ArchitectureHold the architectural vision for the company's systems and set the standards for design, scalability, security, and reliabilityRun solution design reviews and act as the final technical call when escalations landMake sure architecture choices weigh reliability, scalability, flexibility, and security every timePut complex technical tradeoffs into plain terms business partners can act onKeeping the Platform UpOwn uptime and SLA performance day to day, with the monitoring, alerting, and incident processes behind themLead post-incident reviews and remediation so the same thing doesn't break twiceGet ahead of technical debt, infrastructure gaps, and scaling risks before they biteFlag resourcing or investment needs to the VP when targets are at riskConnecting a Distributed TeamMaintain the working interface that keeps all engineering groups alignedKeep knowledge transfer, documentation standards, and communication protocols healthy across locationsSet clear scope, deliverables, and quality expectations for every group's contributionsGive the VP a straight read on how well the distributed team is integratingDriving DeliveryHelp run project intake and champion a consistent Agile/Scrum approach across the teamWork with the TPM lead on sprint planning, grooming, and reviews, and keep status clear for the VP and business partnersTranslate business needs into engineering work and set realistic expectations on timelinesBudget and VendorsTake part in annual technology budgeting and present operating and capital proposalsWatch departmental spend and report variances against planManage the vendor and contractor relationships tied to engineering workWhat You BringRequired15+ years across software engineering and/or solution architecture, with a real track record of shipping modern systems to production at scale5+ years leading engineering teams at a Director level or equivalentSharp architectural judgment for systems that have to be scalable, secure, and resilientStrong Agile/Scrum command and experience running sprint-based teamsA knack for making technical strategy clear to people who aren't technicalA hands-on coding background you can still bring to design and code reviewsComfort folding AI and GenAI tools into how engineering gets donePreferredBackground in fintech or financial technology platformsExperience leading distributed or multi-site engineering teamsWork with mobile or web SaaS productsA history of standing up SLA frameworks and pushing reliability upwardBachelor's or advanced degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field