Domain Architect - Analytics at Shoprite Group of Companies

Purpose of the Job    
Become part of an innovative, forward-thinking and strategic IT architecture team.

Our mature architecture team is based in Brackenfell (strategically placed close to the sea and the Cape winelands) and includes experts in enterprise architecture, solution architecture and data architecture. We operate in an agile retail environment of Africa’s largest retailer that utilizes industry leading IT technologies which run on-premise and in multiple cloud platforms.

As a recognized authority of Analytics Systems, the Domain Architect strategically advises on and drives the Analytics Solution strategy that underpins all business solutions, creates the architecture for these platforms and leads the realization of the architecture roadmap into the target state. Deep subject matter knowledge of Data Warehousing, Data Engineering, Big Data and Data Science Systems as applicable to the retail industry is essential.

Job Objectives    

• Consult on the Analytics Business strategy, develop Analytics Systems roadmaps and reference architectures, and governance technology selection in support thereof: Develop and maintain an understanding of the technology strategy and business priorities for Analytics in the enterprise. Develop Shoprite’s Analytics landscape roadmap and blueprints in line with the strategic business direction Maintain, socialize and enforce Analytics System standards, keeping technology stakeholders up to date with changes in the technology standards highlighting potential impact to the enterprise. Be clearly identified as the Analytics Systems authority for all technologies and provide technical guidance and leadership in Analytics technology proposals, RFIs, RFPs, and project teams. Keep abreast of the latest Analytics technology trends and emerging technologies, determine the potential impact on the enterprise, and drive adoption as deemed appropriate. Create and present reference architectures as advice on the Analytics architecture strategy for the organization.
• Serve as the Analytics domain architecture and design authority for all project and operational stakeholders, and ensure architecture quality across all solution platforms enabled by Analytics technologies: Be clearly identified as the senior design authority as it relates to the Analytics domain and provide technical guidance and leadership in solution proposals, RFIs, RFPs, and project teams. Partner with the Enterprise Architect and other Solution Architects in support of the definition and development of the overall enterprise solution landscape. Detect critical deficiencies in Analytics architectures and recommend improvements. Work with external service providers to drive projects to successful implementation. Review external and internal designs for Analytics systems from a risk and technology perspective Ensure applicable Architecture and Design reviews are conducted for Analytics solutions in line with the defined IT governance and processes. Provide architectural oversight and guidance to development teams to ensure high-quality technical solution designs during the detailed design, build, test and deploy phases that conforms to architecture principles and standards. Mentor solution architect / senior developers / designers / business analysts.
• Provide expert Analytics guidance, ensure solution architectures and designs are in line with the media strategy and technology standards and conduct architecture and design reviews as part of the Architecture Review Committee: Define and develop the overall analytics architecture landscape in partnership with other Domain Architects and Solution Architects. Review proposed solution architectures ensuring alignment with architecture principles, the architecture framework, Analytics reference architectures, set technology standards and identify critical gaps, and recommend improvements. Give guidance and advice to peers in respect to Analytics solution designs ensuring the designs conform to industry best practices and standards. Engage all stakeholders to obtain agreement on proposed Analytics solutions and work closely with business stakeholders, Business Analysts, System Analysts and Project Managers to architect and implement media solutions.
• Contribute to solution architecture and design standards and SDLC governance requirements: Define a framework for Solution Architecture and develop the policies and procedures and templates to guide and govern the Solution Architecture processes. Develop and maintain solution architecture principles and quality compliance criteria to guide technology decisions. Develop and set solution modeling standards and guidelines. Define a set of metrics to measure and report on the performance of the various solution architecture processes.

Qualifications    

• Degree in Information Systems / BSc Computer Science (or similar).

Experience    

• 10 - 15 years Working experience within the IT industry.
• 5 - 10 years Experience with data warehousing, data engineering, data science, big data and data visualization solutions
• 5 years Experience Retail industry experience with an understanding of retail business processes.
• 8+ years Experience in architecting IT Technology programs with detailed understanding of the Analytics Systems and Frameworks.
• 5 - 10 years Experience with data lakes, data vaults and data marts
• 5+ years Experience with all aspects of IT projects from business analysis, architectures, system analysis and design through development, testing, implementation, and production support (SDLC).
• 5+ years Excellent design and architecture skills and proven track record delivering well designed complex enterprise class systems.
• 3+ years Excellent technical development and be able to mentor others to improve their design and development skills.
• 5+ years Identification and formulation of solution architecture and solution alternatives and their assessment.
• 5+ years Demonstrated expertise in a variety of application development methodologies and practices.
• 2 - 3 years Lead a team through an architectural development process and collaborate with application development teams, architects and other members of the software development team.
• 2 - 3 years Experience with current research and standards in Solution Architecture.
• 5+ years Experience in high volume data and files processing, in a batch and real time, integration environment. (Desirable)
• 2 - 3 years Project management experience of mid-sized projects. (Desirable)

Knowledge and Skills    

• 10 years Architecture and design of Analytics Solutions (Cloud, APIs, micro-services, self-service, etc.) and integration to other solutions. 10 years Understanding of the broader Analytics industry
• 5 years Knowledge and experience in the design and use of (multi-dimensional) Data Warehouses, and the use of ETL software to provide these with information
• 5 years Experience using BI solutions, decision support systems, OLAP technology, and multi-dimensional data
• 3 - 5 years Experience with AWS BI-related technologies (e.g., Talend, EMR, Kinesis, Selinium, Athena, Redshift, etc.)
• 5 years Experience with modern data warehousing technologies such as Snowflake, Teradata, Oracle 12c, Informatica, Cloudera, Alteryx, etc.
• 3 - 5 years Experience in architecting big data solutions
• 3 - 5 years Proven experience creating data engineering solutions, building and maintaining reliable and scalable ETL on big data platforms as well as experience working with varied forms of data infrastructures
• 3 - 5 years Software development frameworks and methodologies (Agile, Scrum, TOGAF, etc.)
• 3- 5 years Experience in various data modeling paradigms (dimensional, data vault, normalized, NoSQL) (Desirable)
• 1 - 3 years Experience with data monetization business models (Desirable)
• 10 years Strong analytical, problem-solving and logical skills
• 5 years Excellent team-working, interpersonal skills
• 5 years Develop of proposals and excellent written communication & presentation skills
• 5 years Excellent organisation and facilitation skills
• 5 years Strong conflict management skills

Closing Date: 30th, April 2022