Lead Solution Architect

About Us:

Network International is the largest Financial Technology company in Middle East and Africa. Payments is our core business where we provide services in more than 50 countries – UAE, Jordan, South Africa, Egypt are some of our key markets. Apart from payments, we provide services on Data and Insights, Lending, Insurance, Risk Solutions, etc. Our core customers are businesses at every scale and segment, though recently we are growing in direct to consumer card segment as well.

Our EVP:

At Network International, we always stay ahead. . In the fast-paced world of financial services, we thrive on innovation, agility, and purposeful collaboration. We invest first in our people, empowering you to make bold decisions, learn fast, and grow your expertise alongside industry leaders. Here, solving complex problems means more than using cutting-edge technology; it’s about creating meaningful value for our customers, together. We foster a culture where trust, accountability, and achievement go hand in hand—because success isn’t just a goal; it’s how we work, every day, as one team.

About The Role:

The Lead Solution Architect will lead the architecture practice across the Payfast by Network Platforms. This role is responsible for defining, governing, and evolving the technology architecture landscape while ensuring alignment with business objectives, product strategy, security requirements, and operational excellence. The successful candidate will lead a team of domain architects and serve as a trusted advisor to technology and business stakeholders. 

The incumbent will be responsible for architecture governance, enterprise integration, technology strategy, and the design of scalable, secure, and resilient solutions that support Payfast’s continued growth and innovation. The role requires a strong blend of leadership, enterprise thinking, technical depth, stakeholder management, and fintech/payments domain expertise.

• This role is based in South Africa, Cape Town.
• This is a Hybrid role that will require the designate to be in the office 4 days a week.

Key Responsibilities:

Architecture Leadership & Strategy

• Lead and mentor a team of domain Architects.
• Define and maintain architecture principles, standards, patterns, and reference architectures.
• Develop and maintain the enterprise technology roadmap aligned to business priorities.
• Drive architecture maturity and establish architecture best practices across the organization.
• Promote architecture awareness and adoption throughout the business and technology teams.

Solution Design & Governance

• Provide architectural oversight and governance for strategic technology initiatives.
• Review and approve solution designs to ensure alignment with enterprise standards and business objectives.
• Translate complex business requirements into scalable and cost-effective technology solutions.
• Ensure consistency of technical solutions across platforms, products, and delivery teams.
• Balance technical excellence with business priorities, risk appetite, timelines, and financial considerations.

Integration & Technology Architecture

• Define enterprise integration strategies and API standards.
• Oversee architecture across digital platforms, payment systems, core business applications, cloud platforms, and third-party integrations.
• Ensure interoperability, scalability, resilience, and maintainability across all technology ecosystems.
• Maintain the Architecture Repository and technology asset inventory.

Security, Risk & Compliance

• Embed security-by-design principles into all solution architectures.
• Ensure solutions comply with PCI-DSS, POPIA, cybersecurity standards, and relevant regulatory requirements.
• Identify technology risks and provide mitigation strategies.
• Collaborate closely with Information Security and Risk teams on architecture decisions.

Stakeholder Management

• Build strong relationships with executive leaders, product teams, engineering teams, and business stakeholders.
• Facilitate architecture review boards and technical design forums.
• Communicate complex technical concepts effectively to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Influence strategic technology decisions across the organization.

Key Requirements & Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software Engineering, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, systems architecture, or enterprise architecture.
• 5+ years leading architecture teams or senior technical teams.
• Proven experience in fintech, payments, banking, e-commerce, or highly regulated industries.
• Demonstrated experience defining architecture strategy and governance frameworks.
• Strong experience designing enterprise-scale distributed systems and integrations.
• Experience leading large digital transformation and cloud modernization initiatives.
• Strong technical expertise in:
  • Enterprise Architecture frameworks (TOGAF preferred).
  • Solution Architecture and Systems Design.
  • API Management and Integration Architecture.
  • Microservices and Event-Driven Architecture.
  • Cloud Platforms (AWS preferred, Azure advantageous)
  • Security Architecture and Identity Management.
  • Data Architecture and Data Governance.
  • DevOps, CI/CD and Modern Engineering Practices.
  • Platform and Application Modernization.
  • Architecture Modeling Tools (ArchiMate, Sparx EA, Visio, etc.)