Principal technical architect

Band 8c · Technical architect · 662 job evaluation points

UK GDaD PCF level: Principal technical architect

Most often performed at Civil Service grade G6.

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

Contains public sector information from the UK Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework (https://understand-digital-data-roles-skills.service.gov.uk/), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.

Responsibilities

Set the organisation's technical architecture strategy, principles, and standards.
Govern technical design across the organisation, including the technical design authority.
Advise the executive team on major technology decisions, such as hosting strategy and platform consolidation.
Represent the organisation in cross-organisation technical and standards communities.
Inspire and develop architects across the organisation.

Skills

Skill	Expected level	What this level means
Architect for the whole contextUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: work to support wider organisational objectives beyond your immediate goals track emerging internal and external issues over time that could affect the work of teams across the organisation take action to solve or mitigate problems by influencing colleagues across the organisation
Architecture communicationUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: communicate with technical and non-technical stakeholders at all levels, and across organisations, using architecture communication techniques mediate between people in difficult architectural discussions gain support from business and technical stakeholders for architectural initiatives with high levels of risk, impact and complexity coach and support others in architecture communication
Community collaborationUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: work collaboratively in a group, actively networking with others adapt feedback to ensure it’s effective and lasting use your initiative to identify problems or issues in the team dynamic and rectify them identify issues through Agile ‘health checks’ with the team, and help to stimulate the right responses
Making architectural decisionsUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: make and guide architectural design decisions characterised by high levels of risk and complexity identify and address architectural risks across the organisation or wider government lead and evolve architectural governance and assurance represent architectural governance as part of wider governance, for example, legal or commercial
Strategy designUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: define and connect strategies or visions across the organisation or wider government enable the implementation of strategies or visions across the organisation or wider government, for example, by advocating for resources and removing blockers
Technical design throughout the life cycleUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: create technical designs characterised by high risk, impact, and complexity lead and guide others in creating technical designs that achieve organisational objectives use feedback to optimise and refine standards for technical designs throughout the life cycle
Understanding health and care servicesThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: analyse how a service fits into care pathways across organisations work with clinicians, care staff, and patients to shape digital services explain the effect of digital decisions on care, safety, and staff workload
Health data interoperabilityThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: set interoperability standards and strategy for the organisation lead national or cross-organisation standards work assure the design of critical integrations across many systems
Information governance and data protectionThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead data protection impact assessments and information sharing agreements advise teams on lawful basis, consent, confidentiality, and retention investigate incidents and recommend improvements
Clinical risk managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead hazard identification and risk assessment for a product or change write and maintain hazard logs and clinical safety case reports agree risk controls with product teams and check that they work advise teams on applying clinical risk management standards
Identity and access managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: design and run identity and access services review access regularly and fix problems
Organisational risk managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: run the risk process for a directorate or programme assess risks against the risk appetite and escalate them report on risks to committees
People managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: line manage a team, setting objectives and running appraisals support wellbeing and manage attendance, performance, and conduct plan the team's development and succession

Typical qualifications and experience

Extensive experience of leading technical architecture across multiple teams or organisations.

Band 8c outline

Knowledge: Expert knowledge, and wide organisational and sector understanding.
Autonomy: Sets strategy for a function; accountable to a director.
Scope: A function or department.
Leadership: Leads a function through several management layers.
Accountability: A function's performance, workforce, and budget.

Job evaluation (illustrative)

Factor	Level	Level summary	Points
Communication and relationship skills	6	Gives highly complex, highly contentious information where there are significant barriers to acceptance, using the highest level of communication skills.	60
Knowledge, training, and experience	8	Advanced knowledge (doctorate plus further training or equivalent), or specialist knowledge across more than one discipline built over a long period.	240
Analytical and judgemental skills	5	Judgements on highly complex facts or situations needing analysis, interpretation, and comparison of options.	60
Planning and organisational skills	5	Forms long-term strategic plans, with uncertainty and effects across the organisation.	60
Physical skills	2	Skills gained through practice, such as standard keyboard use or driving.	15
Responsibility for patient and client care	1	Helps patients, clients, or relatives during incidental contact.	4
Responsibility for policy and service development	5	Implements and develops a range of policies or services for a directorate.	45
Responsibility for financial and physical resources	3	Authorises payments, buys some assets or supplies, monitors or holds a delegated budget, or maintains assets.	21
Responsibility for people	3	Manages a group of staff day to day, teaches core or specialist training, or gives core HR advice.	21
Responsibility for information resources	6	Manages and develops information systems across the organisation as the main duty.	46
Responsibility for research and development	2	Regularly does research, development, trials, or equipment and system testing as part of the job.	12
Freedom to act	5	Works within general policies, and in most cases decides how to interpret them.	45
Physical effort	1	Sitting, standing, and walking, with little physical effort.	3
Mental effort	4	Frequent prolonged concentration, or occasional intense concentration.	18
Emotional effort	1	Rare exposure, or occasional indirect exposure, to distressing circumstances.	5
Working conditions	2	Occasional unpleasant conditions, frequent travel or outdoor work, or near-continuous screen use on most days.	7
Total (Band 8c: 630 to 674)			662