Principal Software Architect
Position Summary
As a Principal Architect, you will play a key role in bringing innovative ideas to life and driving the adoption of emerging technologies across the enterprise. This role provides architectural leadership, governance, and oversight at both the business platform and technical platform levels. You will partner with cross functional teams, including business leaders, product managers, software engineers, cybersecurity professionals, and senior executives to design scalable, secure, and high performing solutions that align with enterprise standards and strategic objectives.
The Principal Architect will present architecture strategies, designs, and recommendations to Architecture Review Boards, technology leadership, and business stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities
• Participate in architecture, design, and code reviews to ensure solutions align with enterprise standards, security requirements, and best practices.
• Design and develop reusable frameworks, services, interfaces, and platforms that support scalability and consistency across the enterprise.
• Collaborate with engineering teams and technology leaders to define technical direction and drive architectural alignment.
• Influence solution design and implementation to achieve measurable business outcomes.
• Provide post implementation support, including troubleshooting, coaching, and stakeholder enablement.
• Conduct research and technical analysis to evaluate technologies and recommend solutions.
• Perform long term technology trend analysis and provide recommendations for future investments.
• Analyze system performance, operational metrics, and control reports to identify improvement opportunities.
• Drive innovation through the evaluation, adoption, and implementation of new technologies.
• Ensure cybersecurity principles and controls are incorporated into all solution designs.
Required Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in software development, engineering, or solution architecture.
• Hands on experience delivering end to end software solutions for complex, multi tier applications.
• Strong understanding of enterprise architecture concepts, patterns, and best practices.
• Experience with systems analysis, process analysis, and solution design.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate technical concepts to non technical audiences.
• Experience working with relational and non relational database technologies, including RDBMS and NoSQL platforms.
• Experience designing and building highly available, resilient, customer facing applications.
• Experience building cloud native applications and distributed systems.
• Experience designing, developing, and integrating APIs.
• Experience modernizing monolithic applications into microservices based architectures.
• Experience identifying automation opportunities and improving application performance and operational efficiency.
• Experience implementing large scale technology transformations, platform modernization initiatives, or strategic technology migrations.
• Expertise in at least two of the following areas: • Infrastructure • Cybersecurity • DevOps • Application Development • Database Technologies • Cloud Platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
Preferred Qualifications
• Experience in the financial services or banking industry.
• Understanding of consumer banking, commercial banking, or custodial banking environments.
• Experience working with sensitive financial data and regulated environments.
• Strong business analysis, stakeholder management, and presentation skills.
• Experience incorporating cybersecurity principles into application and platform architecture.
• Knowledge of multiple programming languages and frameworks, such as: • Java • JavaScript • Python • Golang • Ruby • C/C++ • Angular • React • Vue.js
• Understanding of UI/UX principles and application design best practices.
Education
• Required: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Pay Transparency
• The salary range for this position is $150,000 to $190,000 per year, plus an opportunity to earn additional incentive earnings. Actual pay is based on various factors including, but not limited to, the budget, work location, and relevant skills and experience.
Benefits
Comprehensive benefits include medical, dental, and vision coverage, retirement plans, parental leave, flexible work arrangements, education reimbursement, wellness programs, and generous paid time off exceeding local requirements.
Citizens Benefits Overview
For an overview of our benefits, visit our Careers site - https://jobs.citizensbank.com/benefits.
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Equal Employment Opportunity
Citizens, its parent, subsidiaries, and related companies (Citizens) provide equal employment and advancement opportunities to all colleagues and applicants for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, citizenship, physical or mental disability, perceived disability or history or record of a disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, genetic characteristic, marital or domestic partner status, victim of domestic violence, family status/parenthood, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, pregnancy/childbirth/lactation, colleague’s or a dependent’s reproductive health decision making, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or any other category protected by federal, state and/or local laws. At Citizens, we are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that enables all colleagues to bring their best selves to work every day and everyone is expected to be treated with respect and professionalism. Employment decisions are based solely on merit, qualifications, performance and capability.
Equal Employment and Opportunity Employer
Job Applicant Data Privacy Policy
Background Check
Any offer of employment is conditioned upon the candidate successfully passing a background check, which may include initial credit, motor vehicle record, public record, prior employment verification, and criminal background checks. Results of the background check are individually reviewed based upon legal requirements imposed by our regulators and with consideration of the nature and gravity of the background history and the job offered. Any offer of employment will include further information.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technology, a related field, or equivalent education and experience
- 10+ years of experience in software development, engineering, or solution architecture
- Hands-on experience delivering end-to-end software solutions for complex, multi-tier applications
- Strong understanding of enterprise architecture concepts, patterns, and best practices
- Experience with systems analysis, process analysis, and solution design
- Strong verbal and written communication skills, including communicating technical concepts to nontechnical audiences
- Experience with relational and nonrelational database technologies, including RDBMS and NoSQL platforms
- Experience designing and building highly available, resilient, customer-facing applications
- Experience building cloud-native applications and distributed systems
- Experience designing, developing, and integrating APIs
- Experience modernizing monolithic applications into microservices-based architectures
- Experience identifying automation opportunities and improving application performance and operational efficiency
- Experience implementing large-scale technology transformations, platform modernization initiatives, or strategic technology migrations
- Expertise in at least two of infrastructure, cybersecurity, DevOps, application development, database technologies, or cloud platforms
- Experience in the financial services or banking industry
- Understanding of consumer, commercial, or custodial banking environments
- Experience working with sensitive financial data and regulated environments
- Strong business analysis, stakeholder management, and presentation skills
- Experience incorporating cybersecurity principles into application and platform architecture
- Knowledge of multiple programming languages and frameworks, including Java, JavaScript, Python, Golang, Ruby, C/C++, Angular, React, or Vue.js
- Understanding of UI/UX principles and application design best practices
Citizens Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Citizens and has not been reviewed or approved by Citizens.
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Parental & Family Support — Policies include six weeks of fully paid parental leave for all parents, up to 16 weeks for birthing parents, 10 days of emergency back‑up care, and adoption assistance of more than $25,000. Recognition for adoption support underscores a strong family‑friendly posture.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time off includes 11 paid holidays and up to 27 PTO days. The breadth of leave is presented as generous versus many peers.
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Healthcare Strength — Medical, dental, and vision options pair with an HSA that includes a company contribution, plus mental‑health access via Spring Health (eight no‑cost sessions), Hinge Health, wellness programs, and discounted gyms. Eligibility at 20+ hours per week broadens access to these resources.
Citizens Insights
What We Do
As one of the oldest and largest financial services firms in the United States with a history dating back to 1828, we’re committed to providing solutions and expertise that support our customers, clients, colleagues, and communities in what’s next on their own unique journey. We invest in the humans who build the logic, ideas, and innovations that bring new technologies to life. Investments in AI, cloud computing, machine learning and automation provide our engineers the tools that enable us to remain competitive and win in today’s environment. At Citizens, we recognize that the journey to accomplishment is no longer linear and that individuals are made of all they have done and all they are going to do. Whether you’re considering banking with us or looking to work with us, you’ll find a customer-centric culture and a supportive, collaborative workforce at Citizens. You’re made ready and so are we. If you're ready to advance your career in technology and security, learn more about opportunity's Citizens offers here: https://jobs.citizensbank.com/digital-transformation
Why Work With Us
We empower the colleagues that power our tech. With growth & upskilling opportunities and sought-after benefits, plus a diverse culture of people and perspectives, we help our colleagues achieve career goals. Because innovation can’t happen without the minds and hearts of our people. Technology is constantly evolving, and we believe you can too.
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