Technical architect
Find out what a technical architect in government does and the skills you need to do the role at each level.
Last updated 31 May 2024 — See all updates
Contents
- — What a technical architect does
- — Technical architect role levels
- — 1. Associate technical architect
- — 2. Technical architect
- — 3. Senior technical architect
- — 4. Lead technical architect
- — 5. Principal technical architect
- — Roles that share technical architect skills
- — Senior Civil Service roles that technical architect could lead to
What a technical architect does
A technical architect provides technical leadership and architectural design.
Technical architect role levels
There are 5 technical architect role levels, from associate technical architect to principal technical architect.
The typical responsibilities and skills for each role level are described in the sections below. You can use this to identify the skills you need to progress in your career, or simply to learn more about each role in the Government Digital and Data profession.
1. Associate technical architect
An associate technical architect supports technical architects in putting forward designs as solutions to technology challenges, usually under supervision.
At this role level, you will:
- work closely with developers when designing appropriate solutions
- have an understanding of the overall strategy and how your work supports it
This role level is often performed at the Civil Service job grade of:
- HEO (Higher Executive Officer)
- SEO (Senior Executive Officer)
Skill | Description |
---|---|
Architect for the whole context Level: awareness Awareness is the first of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: awareness Awareness is the first of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: awareness Awareness is the first of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Making architectural decisions Level: awareness Awareness is the first of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: awareness Awareness is the first of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Technical design throughout the life cycle Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
2. Technical architect
A technical architect is responsible for the design and build of technical architecture.
At this role level, you will:
- undertake structured analysis of technical issues, translating this analysis into technical designs that describe a solution
- be consulted about design and provide design patterns
- identify deeper issues that need fixing
- look for opportunities to collaborate and reuse components, communicating with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
This role level is often performed at the Civil Service job grade of:
- SEO (Senior Executive Officer)
- G7 (Grade 7)
Skill | Description |
---|---|
Architect for the whole context Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Making architectural decisions Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Technical design throughout the life cycle Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
3. Senior technical architect
A senior technical architect works on large or multiple pieces of work that are complex or risky.
At this role level, you will:
- define strategy and be central to assuring services
- regularly collaborate and find agreement with senior stakeholders, providing direction and challenge
- be proactive in identifying problems and translating these into non-technical descriptions that can be widely understood
- mentor and coach junior colleagues
This role level is often performed at the Civil Service job grade of:
- G7 (Grade 7)
Skill | Description |
---|---|
Architect for the whole context Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Making architectural decisions Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: working Working is the second of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Technical design throughout the life cycle Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
4. Lead technical architect
A lead technical architect works with multiple projects or teams on problems that require broad architectural thinking.
At this role level, you will:
- be responsible for leading the technical design of systems and services, justifying and communicating design decisions
- assure other services and system quality, ensuring the technical work fits into the broader strategy for government
- explore the benefits of cross-government alignment
- provide mentoring within teams
- provide leadership to other architects
This role level is often performed at the Civil Service job grade of:
- G7 (Grade 7)
- G6 (Grade 6)
Skill | Description |
---|---|
Architect for the whole context Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Making architectural decisions Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Technical design throughout the life cycle Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
5. Principal technical architect
A principal technical architect leads at the highest level and is responsible for making sure the strategy is agreed and followed.
At this role level, you will:
- network and communicate with senior stakeholders across organisations
- proactively seek opportunities for digital transformation
- support multiple teams, finding and using best practice and emerging technologies
- inspire other architects and help them understand how to deliver the goals of the organisation
- be responsible for governance, solving complex and high risk issues or delivering architecture design
This role level is often performed at the Civil Service job grade of:
- G6 (Grade 6)
Skill | Description |
---|---|
Architect for the whole context Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: practitioner Practitioner is the third of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Making architectural decisions Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Technical design throughout the life cycle Level: expert Expert is the fourth of 4 ascending skill levels |
You can:
|
Roles that share technical architect skills
Senior Civil Service roles that technical architect could lead to
Updates
Published 7 January 2020
Last updated 31 May 2024
31 May 2024
- Technical architect now includes the skills 'architect for the whole context', 'architecture communication', 'community collaboration', 'making architectural decisions', 'strategy design', and 'technical design throughout the life cycle'.
- The skills 'communicating between the technical and non-technical (technical architect)', 'governance and assurance', 'making and guiding decisions', 'strategy', 'turning business problems into technical design' and 'understanding the whole context' have been removed from the role.
31 July 2023
- Technical architect was moved to the new architecture role group.
7 January 2020
- First published.