Solution Architect - Workplace Services at Costco in Issaquah, WA

Costco IT is responsible for the technical future of Costco Wholesale, the third largest retailer in the world with wholesale operations in fourteen countries. Despite our size and explosive international expansion, we continue to provide a family, employee centric atmosphere in which our employees thrive and succeed.

This is an environment unlike anything in the high-tech world and the secret of Costco’s success is its culture. The value Costco puts on its employees is well documented in articles from a variety of publishers including Bloomberg and Forbes. Our employees and our members come FIRST. Costco is well known for its generosity and community service and has won many awards for its philanthropy. The company joins with its employees to take an active role in volunteering by sponsoring many opportunities to help others.

Come join the Costco Wholesale IT family. Costco IT is a dynamic, fast-paced environment, working through exciting transformation efforts. We are building the next generation retail environment where you will be surrounded by dedicated and highly professional employees.

Solution Architects create IT architecture & design solutions based on business requirements, industry trends, and technology options. Solution Architects are responsible and accountable for the solution architecture in partnership with Enterprise Architects, Domain Architects, and Engineering teams. Solution Architects partner with the delivery team for solution planning, delivery, detailed design, and implemented solutions. Solution Architects ensure the implemented solutions are consistent with the approved architecture. Solution Architects communicate, mentor, and lead teams based on program or project needs for solution delivery.

The Workplace Services team is responsible for the design, administration, and operations of enterprise-wide platforms used for core workplace technologies. These technologies include critical platforms for business areas related to the end-user digital experience. The Solution Architect for Workplace Services will play a pivotal role in shaping and executing innovative workplace solutions related to end-point devices, virtualized services, unified communications, collaborative platforms, and related digital experience technologies. The candidate that fills this Solution Architect role will be a key member of the Workplace Services team responsible for the design, development, configuration, and delivery of technology-driven solutions that enhance the employee experience and optimize workplace operations. Additionally, the Solution Architect will engage with appropriate teams to ensure that ongoing operations and sustained engineering of the team meet the needs of Costco’s evolving technology landscape. The ideal candidate will possess a combination of technical expertise, business acumen, and a passion for driving transformative change.

If you want to be a part of one of the worldwide BEST companies “to work for”, simply apply and let your career be reimagined.

ROLE

● Designs, develops, and ensures compliance to architectural standards throughout the lifecycle.

● Analyzes the Business-IT environment (run, grow, and transform the business) to detect critical deficiencies, and recommend solutions for improvement (systems of record, differentiation, and innovation).

● Identifies aging technology issues, or misalignment, with business requirements, and proposes solutions.

● Partners with Enterprise Architects for domain roadmaps and reference architecture.

● Executes projects and initiatives on the domain roadmap in partnership with Enterprise Architects.

● Consults with application and infrastructure development projects, and identifies when it is necessary to modify projects to accommodate the solution architecture.

● Ensures cohesiveness of solution designs across various projects/solutions.

● Collaborates with Enterprise Architects to balance needs between Solution Architectural Guardrails.

● Designs, develops, and directs solution architectures, design exceptions, and governance activities in compliance with target states, reference architectures, architecture standards, technology guardrails, and security and operational guidelines.

● Identifies the organizational impact (Skills, processes, structures, or culture) and financial impact of the solutions architecture.

● Creates non-functional specs for operational agility, disaster recovery, and support.

● Establishes solution delivery flow for continuous integration, testing and delivery, and operational deployment in partnership with project managers, solution leads, and other stakeholders.

● Conducts design reviews to validate alignment with architecture.

● Modifies solution architecture to support changing business or technology requirements.

● Documents solutions architecture design and analysis work, and communicates architectural decisions that impact solution.

● Defines the principles, guidelines, standards, and solution patterns to ensure decisions are aligned with the enterprise's future-state architecture vision.

● Communicates infrastructure, software, information, and/solution concepts to all levels of management.

● Designs methodology that consistently yields the right level of technical design documentation and develops technical solutions that conform both to customer requirements and information development standards.

● Adheres to Costco’s Architectural Framework and Governance model.

● Partners with Enterprise Architecture to develop strategies and standards for Workplace Services solutions.

● Researches and collaborates with stakeholders to understand technical requirements, trends, and strategies as it relates to digital workplace experience.

● Designs and develops innovative solutions that address employee productivity, collaboration, communication, and standardized tool utilization.

● Leads the implementation and integration of Workplace Services solutions, ensuring seamless functionality with existing systems and infrastructure.

● Expresses technical strategy through creation and management of architectural documentation including deliverables such as reference architectures and execution roadmap.

● Assesses all project information to understand the scope, the current IT and business environment, objectives, and priorities.

● Translates business requirements into technical solutions that leverage fit-for-purpose, standardized workplace technologies.

● Defines and documents the proposed, high-level solution, including the use of Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) packages to create digital workplace solutions.

● Monitors, partners with technology peers, and evaluates the performance and effectiveness of Workplace Services solutions, recommending enhancements and improvements.

● Builds capabilities for thorough testing and quality assurance procedures to ensure solutions are robust, reliable, and user-friendly.

● Provides architectural guidance and support for Workplace Services teams; addressing questions and resolving issues promptly.

● Collaborates with cross-functional teams to ensure Workplace Services solutions align with the organization's strategic goals and objectives.

● Creates high-level models that guide solution architecture, including component, context, data-flow security, data, services, infrastructure, deployment, and integration points.

● Consults, runs proof of concepts, and advises the best use of cloud and on-premise services to solve current end-user challenges.

● Stays abreast of emerging Workplace Services technologies and trends, incorporating them into solution designs.

● Facilitates business improvement through adoption of modernized architecture.

● Maintains and fosters a sense of urgency within the team and the organization.

● Elevates and upskills team, as required, to support modernized systems and processes.

● This is a full-time management/leadership position (45+ hours per week).

REQUIRED

● 8+ years of professional Information Technology experience in solutioning, designing, development, and delivering computer systems.

● 5+ years of hands-on experience in designing, implementing, and supporting digital end-user solutions.

● 3+ years of technical team leadership experience.

● 3+ years of hands-on solutions architecture experience with COTS and/or SaaS package integration experience.

● In-depth understanding of workplace experience technologies such as unified communications, collaborative platforms, virtualized services, end-point management, and associated tooling analytics.

● Strong proficiency in solution architecture principles, best practices, and methodologies.

● Strong understanding of emerging technologies to support the development of new solutions.

● Demonstrated logical and structured approach to time management and task prioritization.

● Experience creating long and short-term plans, including setting targets for milestones and driving team deadlines and goals.

● Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills to effectively engage with stakeholders and convey technical concepts clearly with attention to detail.

● Proven skills in leadership, relationship building, negotiation, collaboration, advocacy, governance, and consensus building.

● Proven ability to work independently and as part of a collaborative team; with a focus on driving technology evolution with engineers and domain experts.

● Knowledge of application architecture and design methodologies across multiple platforms.

● Demonstrated experience designing solutions for multiple SDLC methods (waterfall, SCRUM, Kanban, etc).

● Team player with proven ability to work effectively within a large organization that operates using a matrix organization.

● Proficient in communicating trade-offs and functional advancements to technical and business teams.

● Skilled in adapting architectural solutions within a dynamic and evolving technological environment.

● HIPAA Training and Supervisors Orientation (within 30 days of hire).

● Available to work nights/weekends, travel as required, and perform 24x7 on-call support as scheduled.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, health benefits - medical/dental/vision/hearing aid/pharmacy/behavioral health/employee assistance, health care reimbursement account, dependent care assistance plan, short-term disability and long-term disability insurance, AD&D insurance, life insurance, 401(k), stock purchase plan to eligible employees.

Costco is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. Costco is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or any other legally protected status. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request to IT-Recruiting@costco.com

If hired, you will be required to provide proof of authorization to work in the United States. In some cases, applicants and employees for selected positions will not be sponsored for work authorization, including, but not limited to H1-B visas.

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