Cloud Architect

Welcome to an exciting opportunity where ambitious individuals are invited to join a team of inquisitive minds and supportive peers, all driven by a shared passion and diverse skills aimed at creating value for businesses through data.   

 
About Us  

We are Ascent! and we help our customers solve problems, elevate, and do existing things better. We are on a mission to help our customers connect data, software, and purpose to create extraordinary outcomes. You could say we are a digital transformation business.  

We specialize in software product development, analytics, data science, IoT solutions, machine learning, DevOps optimization, and modernization of applications, data, and platforms.  

We work with incredible clients in all types of industries such as smart home devices, space exploration, beer manufacturing, finance, ecology, and logistics. We work with some of the sharpest minds in the brightest businesses and we employ the sharpest minds too!  

At Ascent, we also believe in fostering a vibrant office community where collaboration thrives and connections flourish. With our hybrid approach, we prioritize hiring individuals who reside in close proximity to our central offices in London. 
 
Step into a role where your architectural vision, leadership, and ability to drive strategic cloud transformation will be recognised, valued, and amplified. 
 
Collaborate and Innovate: 
Work closely with business and technical teams—internally and with our clients—to understand strategic needs and craft tailored, future-proof cloud architecture solutions aligned with Microsoft’s Cloud Adoption and Well-Architected Frameworks. 

Lead with Expertise: 
Own the early phases of cloud engagements, from shaping solution architectures to setting technical direction and governance models, ensuring smooth transitions into delivery and long-term success. You’ll also contribute directly to project engineering efforts where appropriate, offering hands-on support during key phases. 

Balance and Excel: 
Split your time between driving client success and actively contributing to presales and proposition development. Support RFPs, run architecture workshops, and share insights through blogs, thought leadership, and internal coaching. 

Grow and Support the Team: 
As the team scales, you will take on line-management responsibilities—supporting hiring, mentoring, and the professional development of engineers and architects under your guidance. 

Be at the Forefront: 
Engage with clients weekly in a hybrid role that combines remote flexibility with in-person collaboration. Join a vibrant team in our London or Bristol offices—where innovation and community thrive. 

What you will do: 

• Partner with Sales, Technical Leads, and Delivery Managers to shape, articulate, and deliver Azure-based cloud solutions that are scalable, secure, and aligned to client goals. 
• Lead architectural discussions and define cloud strategies that leverage frameworks like Azure CAF and the Well-Architected Framework. 
• Design and document end-to-end architectures across cloud infrastructure, security, data, integration, and application layers. 
• Provide technical oversight throughout the delivery lifecycle, ensuring that implemented solutions reflect the approved design and governance principles. 
• Step into project teams as needed to provide hands-on engineering expertise—particularly during critical architecture implementation or troubleshooting phases. 
• Support presales engagements: run technical discovery sessions, create solution blueprints, and contribute to compelling proposals that articulate ROI and business value. 
• Evaluate emerging technologies (e.g., Azure Kubernetes Service, Databricks, Serverless) and contribute to the evolution of Ascent’s cloud reference architectures and reusable accelerators. 
• Build and maintain strong relationships with client stakeholders—ranging from architects to C-suite—providing trusted, strategic guidance. 
• Contribute to internal development through line management, mentoring junior architects/engineers, and fostering knowledge sharing across teams. 
• Ensure client expectations are well managed, and delivery outcomes consistently exceed expectations. 

 
Required Skills and Qualifications 

• Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305), Azure DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400). 
• Bonus: Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), HashiCorp Terraform Associate. 
• Hands-on experience applying the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF) and Azure Well-Architected Framework (WAF) to guide cloud design decisions, ensure architectural alignment, and embed operational excellence across workloads. 
• Excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts into business-aligned narratives. Comfortable leading architecture sessions, stakeholder briefings, and technical workshops. 
• Proven experience in pre-sales and consulting roles, including shaping cloud strategies, crafting architecture roadmaps, and supporting proposals and RFP responses with compelling technical content. 
• Experience designing and implementing scalable, secure solutions on Azure, spanning PaaS services like App Services, Azure Functions, Key Vault, Azure SQL, and Azure Networking components like Virtual Networks, ExpressRoute, and Private Link. 
• Experience using tools like Terraform, Bicep, or Pulumi to provision infrastructure in a repeatable, secure, and version-controlled manner. Strong grasp of CI/CD automation via Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions. 
• Experience designing, deploying, or integrating Kubernetes-based solutions (AKS or Azure Container Apps), along with supporting technologies like Helm, Kustomize, or service mesh components. 
• Deep understanding of Azure-native identity, security controls, role-based access, and policy-based governance. Familiar with enterprise risk and compliance drivers for cloud environments. 
• Demonstrated ability to lead small teams or line-manage engineers. Experience providing mentoring, setting architectural direction, and supporting team development. 

Desirable/Bonus Experience 

• Familiarity with data platforms such as Azure Synapse, Databricks, and Azure Data Factory. 
• Awareness of architectural frameworks such as TOGAF or industry standards like ISO 27001, NIST, etc. 
• Understanding of FinOps practices and approaches to optimize cloud cost and resource efficiency. 

Working at Ascent 

At Ascent we promote a healthy work-life balance by offering flexibility in where you work.  We also promote well-being and provide access to Well Being Coaches.  
 
Your development and learning will be taken seriously, and we'll support your professional development with training and certification, with regular feedback and review. It is a fun, supportive and modern workplace where we really live by our company values of Empathy, Energy and Audacity! Ascent also offers a variety of benefits in each of our countries. 
 
Ascent is an equal opportunities employer. We take intentional steps to ensure inclusion and belonging are something real here, not just something we talk about. No person will be treated less favorably because of their gender, pregnancy, and maternity status, marital or civil partnership status, sexual orientation, race, nationality, ethnic origin, age, religion or belief, or disability status. If you require any reasonable accommodation, please let us know when you apply.