Principal Solutions Architect — Executive Technical Interface

We’re hiring a Principal Solutions Architect to serve as the executive-facing technical interface for a high-stakes program. You’ll be the trusted counterpart to a client CTO—translating complex engineering reality into clear decisions, crisp plans, and predictable delivery. This is a “trust + clarity + orchestration” role for someone with real executive presence who can align distributed engineering teams and keep stakeholders confident.

What You’ll Do

• Act as the primary technical partner to senior client leadership (CTO/VP Eng), running weekly 1:1s and key technical meetings.
• Turn ambiguity into decision-ready artifacts: 1-page weekly status, risk register, decision log, roadmap milestones.
• Translate deep technical work into executive language: tradeoffs, priorities, timelines, and risk containment.
• Improve release/demo readiness with lightweight governance: acceptance criteria, readiness checks, rollback plans.
• Coordinate across distributed teams (and multi-vendor environments when needed) with an evidence-based, unbiased posture.

What Success Looks Like (30–90 Days)

• Stakeholder trust restored and cadence established (weekly exec updates + decision discipline).
• Risks and tech debt visible, prioritized, and actively reduced.
• Demos/releases become predictable, with fewer surprises and tighter communication.

Required

• 10+ years in engineering/architecture/solutions roles, with CTO/VP-level client-facing experience.
• Strong cloud/platform fundamentals (Azure; services; data pipelines).
• Exceptional written + verbal communication—able to produce crisp 1–2 page executive updates.
• Calm under pressure, structured thinker, low-ego leader, bias for evidence.

Nice to Have

• Experience in regulated environments (healthcare/life sciences/security-focused SaaS).
• Familiarity with ML/AI delivery considerations (MLOps concepts).
• Track record in stabilization/rescue engagements after failed demos/releases.