Rowden

Edge computing for defence and security

Solution Architect

Pre-Sales Solution EngineeringUpdated on Nov 13

Full-timeLondon, UK£65k - £75k

About the Job

Requirements

Demonstrable experience operating as a Senior Solution Architect, Chief Engineer, or equivalent in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.
Broad technical understanding across systems architecture, hosting, integration, networking, and service design, with the ability to integrate specialist input while retaining ownership of the overall solution. The posting also welcomes applicants with specialized depth in artificial intelligence, data science, or machine learning.
Ability to engage clearly and confidently with customers, partners, or programme stakeholders.
Experience shaping viable technical and delivery approaches, defining solutions that can be costed, planned, and delivered.
Experience identifying and managing technical risks across the solution and programme lifecycle.
Ability to communicate complex technical ideas, risks, and trade-offs to engineers, commercial teams, and senior stakeholders.
Eligibility for SC clearance.
Confidence setting technical direction and making decisions that shape long-term outcomes.
Ability to bring clarity and structure to complex problems and help teams move forward.
Technical credibility with engineers, customers, and partners.
Ability to revise positions when better evidence emerges.
Understanding of end-to-end systems, including integration, failure modes, and operational impact.
Comfort with ambiguity, ability to shape a credible initial position, and ability to involve appropriate specialists as understanding develops.
Ability to balance rigour and pragmatism, upholding standards without slowing progress unnecessarily.
Ability to build trust with engineers, commercial colleagues, customers, and partners.

Responsibilities

Shape credible technical and delivery solutions for major bids and pre-sales opportunities, translating complex and ambiguous customer problems into coherent engineering approaches that can be costed, planned, and delivered.
Provide senior architectural oversight and assurance of solution designs, hold delivery partners accountable for technical decisions, and ensure alignment with agreed architectural principles and integration requirements.
Engage with customers, partners, and senior stakeholders by providing technical direction, resolving architectural challenges, and representing the organisation's technical authority in external conversations.
Produce technical content for bids, proposals, white papers, and presentations.
Interpret user requirements and translate them into architectural solutions that balance performance, risk, and delivery constraints.
Investigate and assess hosting, integration, and platform options, including constraints, capabilities, and trade-offs across complex environments.
Identify, assess, and manage technical risks, ensuring they are understood, communicated, and mitigated.
Work with technical subject-matter experts and principal engineers to bring in specialist input while maintaining ownership of solution coherence and delivery approach.
Support early contract mobilisation and help delivery teams translate bid-stage solution intent into executable engineering plans.
Support development of governance frameworks, standards, and assurance artefacts to enable consistent and repeatable delivery.

Desired Qualifications

Experience in pre-sales, bid environments, or capture activity.
Experience operating in a client-side assurance or governance role.
Experience in secure, regulated, or government environments.
Familiarity with service governance and live service assurance models.
Experience working alongside data, security, or platform architects, artificial intelligence engineers, or machine learning engineers.
Knowledge of common architecture frameworks and patterns used in large-scale systems.

We're building the UK's next generation engineering powerhouse, providing critical technology that strengthens national security and resilience.

We specialise in turning advances in sensing, AI, and communications into operational capability for the edge, where connectivity may be degraded or denied. Our work focuses on accelerating the deployment of technology, improving decision-making for frontline teams, and protecting people and critical assets in demanding environments.

Headquartered in Bristol, Rowden employs around 160 people and operates over 20,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing facilities. We have a growing international footprint and are one of Europe's fastest-growing engineering businesses.

About the role

As Rowden continues to grow, we are looking to bring on multiple Solution Architects at all levels to contribute across a range of projects at Rowden. You will be providing technical leadership, architectural direction, and engineering credibility across a range of complex programme and pre-sales environments.

Depending on where the business need is greatest, this role may involve shaping technical solutions for major bids and pre-sales engagements - translating ambiguous customer problems into technically credible, commercially viable and deliverable engineering approaches, or providing client-side architectural oversight and assurance on supplier-led programme delivery. In practice, the role may span both.

You will operate at an enterprise level, engaging confidently with customers, partners, and internal teams. Whether leading solution development in pre-sales or assuring early technical delivery, you will bring authoritative technical judgement, structured thinking, and the ability to own coherent solutions end-to-end.

Candidates must be eligible for SC clearance.

More information about security clearance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels

Salary ranges

For transparency and to help candidates make informed decisions, these are the salary ranges for the different levels we are hiring across Solutions Architecture (DOE):

Mid-Level: £65,000 - £75,000
Senior: For Senior roles, compensation is tailored to the scope of the role and the specific experience a candidate brings. We will discuss compensation openly at the first stage of the process and can share an indicative range before either side invests significant time.

This role is hybrid, based in London with frequent travel to Bristol.

Shape credible technical and delivery solutions for major bids and pre-sales opportunities, translating complex and often ambiguous customer problems into coherent engineering approaches that can be costed, planned and delivered.
Provide senior architectural oversight and assurance of solution designs, holding delivery partners to account for technical decisions and ensuring alignment with agreed architectural principles and integration requirements.
Engage confidently with customers, partners, and senior stakeholders - providing clear technical direction, resolving complex architectural challenges, and representing Rowden's technical authority in external conversations.
Produce high-quality technical content for bids, proposals, white papers, and presentations.
Interpret user requirements and translate them into architectural solutions that balance performance, risk, and delivery constraints.
Investigate and assess hosting, integration, and platform options, understanding constraints, capabilities and trade-offs across complex environments.
Identify, assess, and manage technical risks, ensuring they are clearly understood, communicated, and mitigated.
Work with technical SMEs and principal engineers to draw in specialist input while maintaining overall ownership of solution coherence and delivery approach.
Support early contract mobilisation, helping delivery teams translate bid-stage solution intent into executable engineering plans.
Support the development of governance frameworks, standards, and assurance artefacts to enable consistent and repeatable delivery.

We are looking for a senior architect who can set direction, provide authoritative technical leadership, and operate confidently at enterprise level across complex and evolving environments.

Essential

Demonstrable experience operating as a Senior Solution Architect, Chief Engineer, or equivalent in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.
Broad technical understanding across systems architecture, hosting, integration, networking, and service design, with the ability to integrate specialist input without losing ownership of the overall solution. However, we’d welcome applications from those with more specialised depth in AI, Data Science or Machine Learning.
Proven ability to engage externally with customers, partners, or programme stakeholders with clarity and confidence.
Experience shaping viable technical and delivery approaches - not just describing technical concepts, but defining solutions that can be costed, planned, and delivered.
Experience identifying and managing technical risks across the solution and programme lifecycle.
Strong communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical ideas, risks, and trade-offs to mixed audiences including engineers, commercial teams, and senior stakeholders.
Eligibility for SC clearance.

Desirable (not essential)

Experience in pre-sales, bid environments, or capture activity.
Experience operating in a client-side assurance or governance role.
Experience working in secure, regulated, or government environments.
Familiarity with service governance and live service assurance models.
Experience working alongside data, security, or platform architects, AI engineers or Machine Learning Engineers
Knowledge of common architecture frameworks and patterns used in large-scale systems.

About you

You are confident setting technical direction and making decisions that shape long-term outcomes.
You bring clarity and structure to complex problems, helping teams move forward with confidence.
You are technically credible with engineers, customers, and partners without being arrogant.
You are opinionated but adapt when better evidence emerges.
You understand how systems operate end-to-end, and consider integration, failure modes, and operational impact in your decisions.
You are comfortable with ambiguity, able to shape a credible first position and bring in the right specialists as understanding develops.
You balance rigour with pragmatism - upholding standards without slowing progress unnecessarily.
You build trust quickly with engineers, commercial colleagues, customers, and partners.

About the Company

Rowden

Edge computing for defence and security

Rowden Technologies designs and delivers mission-critical edge computing and distributed sensor systems for environments with limited or unreliable connectivity. It handles end-to-end design, integration, sovereign manufacturing, and long-term managed services to support defence, national security, and emergency services. Its products include Trove for frontline generative AI, Magos for cost-effective signal processing and communications production, and Dovetail for modular edge-system integration, enabling rapid, secure decision-making even in denied environments. The company differentiates itself by prioritizing edge solutions with low connectivity, acting as a prime systems integrator for large programmes, offering sovereign manufacturing and lifecycle support, and pursuing projects like automated ML deployment to UAS for AUKUS Pillar II to reduce dependence on traditional defence contractors.

Company size: 51-200
Company stage: Grant
Total funding: $33.7M
Headquarters: Filton, United Kingdom
Founded: 2017

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