Lead Data Architect - 12-Month Contract - London(Hybrid) - Inside IR35

We’re recruiting for a Lead Data Architect to provide overall technology leadership for a data transformation programme for a leading financial services organisation, with accountability for data architecture, Data Mesh implementation, and end-to-end delivery of data products - working with client leadership, domain teams, architects, analysts, modellers, platform teams, and engineers to translate business priorities into scalable data products and reusable enterprise capabilities., * Define and govern the overall data architecture, Data Mesh implementation approach, and data product delivery principles for the programme

• Act as overall programme technology lead, ensuring alignment across business priorities, domain architecture, data modelling, platform capabilities, engineering, governance, and consumption requirements
• Work with client management to support strategy definition, delivery planning, implementation oversight, and architectural decision-making
• Collaborate with domain consultants and business stakeholders to identify, define, decompose, and prioritise data products
• Establish architecture standards and decision frameworks for data product boundaries, domain ownership, interoperability, sharing, discoverability, quality, security, and lifecycle management
• Lead design of reusable frameworks, foundational capabilities, templates, and components accelerating the data product lifecycle

• Strong experience leading enterprise data architecture and large-scale data transformation programmes
• Deep understanding of Data Mesh, data products, domain-driven design, federated governance, and data-as-a-product principles
• Experience defining enterprise, domain, conceptual, logical, and physical data architectures
• Strong understanding of end-to-end data lifecycle management
• Experience designing reusable data platform capabilities, engineering frameworks, and delivery accelerators
• Ability to translate business strategy into pragmatic architecture and executable delivery plans
• Experience leading POCs, technology evaluations, and executive-level presentations
• Strong understanding of modern data platforms such as Databricks