Director, Enterprise Architect

JOB SUMMARY

GBU is building out its Technology Target State Architecture (TSA) across three peer towers, Technology Services, Digital, and Data and has already established an initial target state architecture and early capability maps. GBU now needs a senior architect to own, manage, mature, govern, and extend the TSA across the organization’s technology ecosystem, ensuring technology investments and decisions remain aligned to GBU’s current and future business and technology direction.

This is a net new, high visibility role reporting to the Head of Technology and serves as GBU’s single point of accountability for enterprise architecture as the technology function continues to mature. The Enterprise Architect will maintain and evolve current and target state architecture, establish architectural standards and roadmaps, and provide governance across technology investments, integrations, modernization, consolidation, and retirement of technology assets.

The role will operate at approximately a 60/40 split between business architecture and technical architecture. Business architecture responsibilities will include capability mapping, process architecture, and operating model alignment, while technical architecture responsibilities will focus on solution and integration architecture across GBU’s broader platform ecosystem.

The Enterprise Architect will bridge how the business operates with how technology is designed and integrated to support business capabilities and strategic priorities. This is an individual contributor position at the Director level, reflecting the seniority, enterprise wide accountability, and cross functional influence required, not the size of a team.

The role is expected to operate across business and technology functions and influence decisions at the enterprise level, with team growth anticipated as GBU reaches greater organizational scale. The Enterprise Architect will also serve as a voting member of the Security and Architecture Review Board (SARB), providing direct architectural governance and influence over technology decisions, solution designs, and investments that move forward across the organization.

Given GBU’s business as a life and annuity carrier, this role requires extensive Life and Annuity technology experience. This is not a generalist architecture position and is not intended for candidates whose insurance experience is limited to benefits administration or vendor/consulting engagements without meaningful carrier side technology depth.

The successful candidate will bring a strong understanding of Life and Annuity business capabilities, processes, platforms, integrations, and technology ecosystems, along with the ability to translate that knowledge into an actionable enterprise architecture.

DUTIES and RESPONSIBILITIES

Business Architecture (60%):

• Maintain, extend, and mature GBU's existing business capability maps, deepening current state and target state views across underwriting, policy administration, claims, distribution, and member services as the organization evolves.
• Validate and refine the existing target state architecture against emerging business needs, closing gaps and resolving inconsistencies as new initiatives surface them.
• Document and rationalize core business processes, identifying redundancy, gaps, and opportunities for simplification ahead of technology investment.
• Partner with Digital and Business leadership to translate business strategy and product roadmaps into architecture that Technology Services can plan against.
• Support the ongoing Technology Target State Architecture (TSA) effort by clarifying capability ownership for the enterprise architecture and stewardship of the TSA and boundaries across the Technology Services, Digital, Data, Security, and business.
• Act as a trusted advisor to business unit leaders on how proposed initiatives align (or conflict) with GBU's target capability roadmap. Technical Architecture (40%):
• Own and evolve GBU's enterprise architecture standards and existing target state reference architecture across its core platforms (AWS, Life. Pro, Pega, Sureify, Snowflake, M365, Smart. Comm, Open. Text, and related systems), extending them as new capabilities and initiatives emerge.
• Evaluate proposed solutions and integrations for architectural fit, scalability, and alignment to target state architecture.
• Serve as a voting member of the Security and Architecture Review Board (SARB), reviewing and approving significant technology and vendor decisions.
• Partner with the Data tower on data architecture decisions that intersect with business capabilities (Snowflake data warehouse, Life. Pro sourced data flows)
• Provide architectural guidance to delivery partners to ensure solution designs conform to GBU's architecture standards.
• Partner directly with the Digital team throughout software development to ensure systems and integrations are well designed, well integrated, and built to GBU's architecture standards reviewing designs and integration patterns before and during build, not just at governance checkpoints. Cross Functional Leadership:
• Present architecture recommendations and trade offs to executive stakeholders in clear, business relevant terms.
• Contribute architecture perspective to governance bodies and policy work as GBU's broader governance framework matures.
• Work closely with Digital and Business teams as a standing architectural partner engaged throughout the software development lifecycle on design and integration, but not accountable for project execution or delivery timelines. Properly Adheres to Company Risk Management Principles:
• Adhering and supporting GBU’s Enterprise Risk Management Framework.
• Understanding and complying with applicable laws, regulations, policies and procedures; completing all required training; executing and monitoring controls effectively (as applicable); appropriately identifying, assessing, escalating and remediating risks, potential issues and control failures (as applicable); and reporting compliance or regulatory concerns to management.
• Understanding and conducting oneself in accordance with the Employee Handbook and preserving GBU’s brand and reputation.
• Performs other related duties as assigned by management.

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10+ years of progressive experience in enterprise, business, or solution architecture, with demonstrated ability to work across both business and technical domains.
• Extensive experience in Life and Annuity insurance technology, on the carrier side (required), deep familiarity with core carrier processes such as new business/underwriting, policy administration, illustrations, in force servicing, claims, and distribution/agent management.
• Hands on experience with policy administration systems (Life. Pro experience a strong plus) and the broader carrier technology ecosystem (illustration systems, agent/producer portals, correspondence/Smart. Comm type platforms, in force data flows).
• Proven experience building business capability maps and process architecture within a life/annuity or broader insurance carrier environment.
• Solid grounding in technical/solution architecture cloud platforms (AWS preferred), core administration systems, CRM/workflow platforms, and data architecture concepts.
• Experience operating in or building toward a target operating model, including capability based org design.
• Comfort operating as a senior individual contributor with high autonomy, this role carries architect level authority without direct reports,
• Strong stakeholder management skills; ability to translate between business language and technical language fluently.
• Familiarity with regulatory considerations relevant to a national Life and Annuity carrier.
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field (Business, Information Systems, Computer Science) or equivalent experience; enterprise architecture certification (TOGAF) a plus. OUR BENEFITS:
• Medical, Dental Vision
• Company paid HRA
• 401(k) + match
• Pension Plan
• Long Term and Short Term Disability
• Paid FLMA
• Life Insurance and ADD
• PTO and VTO (Volunteer Time Off)