Cloud Architect

Job Title: Cloud Architect

Office Location: Dublin 2 Ireland (Hybrid Minimum one day per week onsite (Thursday preferred))

Contract Start Date: Early Jan 2027

Contract: 12 Months with further extensions anticipated to go upto 3 years.

Organisation Overview

The organisation supports six independent statutory bodies that share centralised Corporate Services including ICT support.

Its IT environment is built around a Microsoft Azure cloud ecosystem supporting key applications such as Dynamics 365 SharePoint Online and bespoke business applications. The environment leverages Microsoft 365 security services including Defender for Office 365 Defender for Cloud and Defender for Endpoint.

The organisation is seeking Cloud Architect to support the ongoing development management and security of its Azure environment. Responsibilities include optimising existing cloud infrastructure implementing best-practice architecture strengthening security controls and ensuring alignment with NIS2 Irish NCSC guidance and public sector cybersecurity requirements.

The scope covers the organisations Azure cloud environment with coordination required with external ICT providers where cross-tenant integrations or dependencies arise.

Nature of the Services Required:

The Cloud Architect will assist the Office through services not limited to;

Responsible for aligning the organisation Cloud strategy with its business strategy.

Creation maintenance and management of Cloud architecture models and their components.

Developing Infrastructure network and security designs for new and existing solutions.

Devising code release management and process improvements

Maintaining and creating CI/CD pipelines

Improving performance management and monitoring of applications and resources as needed

Deploying guard-rails and security ring-fencing for artificial intelligence agents and /or agentic solutions in accordance with best practices and Office policy.

Participating in data solution design discussions

Key Responsibilities:

Minimum Requirements (Mandatory)

It is a mandatory requirement that the Resource proposed must have:

at minimum of seven (7) years experience as a qualified Azure Cloud Solutions Architect on Microsoft technologies providing clear evidence of supporting similar scale Microsoft cloud ecosystems

skillsets in Microsoft Azure cloud solutions development and deployment with secure access over Office 365 Exchange Online Azure Entra ID MS Defender and integrations with PowerPlatform / Dynamics 365 application stack.

Experience of working in conjunction with and/or as part of public/civil service ICT cloud systems development and deployment teams.

Experience of delivering Cloud Architecture services and solutions using architecture/SDLC methodologies

Qualifications

It is a mandatory requirement that the Resource proposed hold the following qualifications or equivalents:

Certified Computer Science or associated technology qualification

Microsoft Certified Professional (Expert) or more recent equivalent

Microsoft Azure Security Architect or more recent equivalent

Microsoft Azure Security Engineer or more recent equivalent

Microsoft Certified DevOps Solution Specialist

Microsoft Certified: Cybersecurity Architect Expert or more recent equivalent

Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect or more recent equivalent

Language Requirements

Fluent English language skills (C2 Proficient)

Key Deliverables

The following non-exhaustive list of Key Deliverables are applicable to this Role.

Performing Security assessments and design for Cloud native security products

Performing Cloud adoption assessment and well architected assessment for existing environment for gap analysis

Performing feasibility assessments with the Office and developing proposals / statements of work against business requirements

Clear in communication customer facing roles

Experience in managing Microsoft Technologies implementation/migration projects for both cloud and on-premises

Working in multi-vendor and multi-business unit environments

Experience in design development and implementation of Client Dashboards

Design deploy maintain and support of Hybrid Infrastructure estate across Azure Cloud Office 365 and OGCIO-BTS federated services.

Ensure ICT ecosystem and environment aligned with OMB-ICT and OGCIO-BTS security strategies and policies.

Clear in communication customer facing roles.

Experience in managing Microsoft Azure ecosystem technologies and co-ordination in cloud-native implementation / migration projects.

Working in multi-vendor and cross-business unit environments.

Key Experience/Competencies/Skillsets

The following Experience/Competencies/Skillsets are applicable to this Role.

Microsoft Azure - Successfully completed Azure exams and certifications around Azure Infrastructure services Azure Data Service and Azure Security and compliance

o Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Architect

o Microsoft Certified: Azure Architect

o Microsoft Certified: Designing and Implementing Microsoft DevOps Solutions

o Microsoft Certified: Data Engineer

Experience public/civil service environment

Delivering digital services transformation projects / programs.

Leading design workshops and ROI analysis for enterprise architecture development

Leading and implementing end-to-end solutions for secure applications and cloud portal platforms

Understanding business requirements perform gap analysis problem solving requirement mapping solution designing implementing and customizing the product/solutions as per business requirements.

Strong knowledge of Azure and AWS Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and Platform as a service (PaaS).

Strong Knowledge of Microsoft security stack implementations and design

Experience in designing available cost-efficient fault-tolerant and scalable distributed systems on MS Azure ecosystem

Experience with designing public cloud landing-zones for public-sector specific customer bases.

Capability to provide best practices for building secure and reliable applications on the MS Azure platform.

Identifying appropriate use of Azure and possibly AWS architectural best practices especially in failover / resilience scenarios.

Responsible for the architecture and automation of the CI/CD platform and cloud infrastructure and review of cloud efficiencies (reporting).

Maintaining consistent DevOps approach tools and standards ensuring the Offices DevOps strategy is implemented at every stage of the end-to-end development

Assist in building version-control systems branching strategies and have implemented same across life cycle of products/solutions.

Expert at automation for cloud infrastructure from automating machine images to setting up of immutable instances and promoting code from dev to QA to Production.

Experience with deploying and managing applications and infrastructure with scripting and infrastructure as a code on public cloud.

Estimating Azure/AWS costs and identifying cost control mechanisms in the context of cloud-based solutions.