Lead/Principal Enterprise Architect

About Four Seasons:

Four Seasons is powered by our people. We are a collective of individuals who crave to become better, to push ourselves to new heights and to treat each other as we wish to be treated in return. Our team members around the world create amazing experiences for our guests, residents, and partners through a commitment to luxury with genuine heart. We know that the best way to enable our people to deliver these exceptional guest experiences is through a world-class employee experience and company culture.

At Four Seasons, we believe in recognizing a familiar face, welcoming a new one and treating everyone we meet the way we would want to be treated ourselves. Whether you work with us, stay with us, live with us or discover with us, we believe our purpose is to create impressions that will stay with you for a lifetime. It comes from our belief that life is richer when we truly connect to the people and the world around us.

About the location:

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is a global, luxury hotel management company. We manage over 130 hotels and resorts and 50 private residences in 47 countries around the world and growing. Central to Four Seasons employee experience and social impact programming is the company’s commitment to supporting cancer research, and the advancement of diversity, inclusion, equality and belonging at Four Seasons corporate offices and properties worldwide. At Four Seasons, we are powered by people and our culture enables everything we do.

Lead/Principal Enterprise Architect

The Enterprise Architect is pivotal in shaping and executing the Technology Roadmap in support of Four Seasons’ strategic plan. We are in search of an accomplished Enterprise Architect to join our diverse and dynamic team. Ensuring seamless alignment with diverse business goals and objectives across borders, you will be instrumental in designing and overseeing the implementation of cutting-edge, enterprise-wide technologies that cater to current and future global needs. This includes leading the integration of AI-drive capabilities and intelligent automation into the enterprise architecture, ensuring responsible, scalable and business-aligned adoption of AI. You will be at the forefront of forward-looking road mapping and innovation initiatives designed to evolve Four Seasons’ legendary, industry-leading guest service.

The Global Enterprise Architect possesses a strategic mindset appreciating the intricacies of delivering technology globally. The successful candidate will possess a passion for innovation, a proven track record of designing and implementing successful enterprise technology architectures and the ability to incorporate emerging technologies in a proactive yet practical fashion. Finally, these skills will be complemented by exceptional communication and strong business acumen.

This role is based in our temporary location of 20 York Mills Rd, then the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Toronto Corporate Office, reporting to the Senior Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer. This role involves interactions with both internal and external stakeholders at various levels.

What You’ll Be Doing:

Strategic Global Planning and Architecture Design 

• Collaborate with cross functional stakeholders to appreciate business requirements, operational challenges and evolving guest service demands.
• Develop a comprehensive 5-8 year Enterprise Architecture and Technology Reference Architecture ensuring scalability, adaptability and efficiency. 
• Ensure alignment to strategic plan initiatives, evolving guest demands and ensure technical currency.
• Define AI reference architectures, guardrails, and patterns to enable scalable, secure and responsible AI adoption across the organization.
• Communicate architecture and guidelines to Solution, Platform, Data and Security Architecture teams.
• Enhance innovation processes to incorporate emerging technologies or evolving regional requirements.

Global Risk Management

• Incorporate data protection, privacy, accessibility and other emerging regional requirements into the enterprise architecture.
• Incorporate Responsible AI principles, including model transparency, bias mitigation, data governance, and regulatory compliance into enterprise architecture and governance processes.
• Maintain a risk register and measurement framework and continuously reassess.  Report findings Governance committees and/or CISO.

Documentation and Architectural Standards 

• Create and maintain comprehensive documentation of the global Enterprise Technology Architecture including design principles, guidelines and standards.
• Effectively communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders globally.
• Lead Technology Architecture function and ensure alignment with Solution, Platform, Data and Security Architects.
• Manage and maintain Enterprise Architecture dispensation process.
• Participate as a member of the Technology Leadership Team.

Vendor Alignment

• In partnership with Technology Leadership, ensure partner and vendor ecosystems are educated on Four Seasons enterprise technology architecture.
• Establish strong relationships with vendor Product Management leadership and strive to influence product roadmap based upon Four Seasons’ requirements.

Industry Leadership

• Keep abreast of industry technology trends but strive to apply best practice capabilities from organizations servicing a similar customer demographic.

What You Bring:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 5+ years of proven experience as an Enterprise Architect or in a similar international role.
• 10+ years of experience in roles similar to Solution or Platform Architect.
• 3-5 years of hands-on software development/engineering experience.
• 5+ years of experience presenting to Executive leadership.
• Strong understanding of AI/ML architecture patterns, data requirements, and integration approaches within enterprise ecosystems.
• Strong understanding of global business processes and the ability to translate international business needs into technology solutions.
• In-depth knowledge of enterprise-level systems on a global scale, including applications, data, infrastructure, and security.
• Strong understanding of Architecture frameworks (e.g., TOGAF, Zachman), certifications are preferred.
• Enterprise Architecture design and governance.
• Appreciation of modern software development processes.
• Strong understanding of modern digital technology stacks.
• Understanding of AI/ML frameworks, patterns and associated methods of integration into enterprise environments.
• Experience with contemporary Integration methodologies and toolsets.
• Strong understanding Infrastructure-As-A-Service and Platform-As-A-Service solutions.
• Experiencing with and appreciation of legacy application architectures (client/service, middleware, traditional high volume relational databases.

Who You Are:

• Highly critical and analytical disposition.
• High attention to detail and strong listening skills.
• Natural curiosity and an ability to undertake creative exploration.
• Great communication skills especially with senior executives.
• Passion for Enterprise Architecture and Technology Innovation to achieve Business Outcomes and Business Alignment.
• Demonstrable experience designing and publishing practical Reference Architecture.
• Experience integrating with and guiding functional Architecture teams.
• Ability to try new approaches, accept and acknowledge areas for improvement, refine and iterate.

This role will be a Hybrid working model, which will require 3 days per week at our temporary 20 York Mills Road, Toronto, Ontario location with travel, as needed, to our the Four Seasons Corporate Office located at 1165 Leslie Street, Toronto, Ontario #LI-Hybrid

Four Seasons is committed to providing employment accommodation in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. If contacted for an employment opportunity, please advise Human Resources if you require accommodation.