Security Lead Solution Architect

Role: Security Lead Solution Architect

Division: Assessment & Qualifications Delivery

Location: Chennai or Bangalore, India.  

About Pearson: At Pearson we ‘add life to a lifetime of learning’ so everyone can realise the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. Our Purpose | Add Life to a Lifetime of Learning. Pearson was founded in 1844 and has been built on our ability to grow with and adapt to a constantly evolving market. Our 20,000+ employees are dedicated to creating the high-quality, digital-first, accessible and sustainable resources for lifelong learning. 

About UK Assessment & Qualifications: We are responsible for the delivery of nearly 4 million examination results per annum, including A-Level, GCSE, BTEC and T-levels for students in UK and International centres. Our in-house systems process every learner from registration to marking and certification, in a highly regulated business. We currently operate a hybrid estate of predominantly bespoke systems, with an ongoing strategic transformation programme to migrate from on-prem to cloud based, cost effective, scalable, and resilient services.

About the Job

The position is for a Security Lead Solution Architect, who is responsible for the design of architectural solutions and plans for various transformation projects but also takes the lead on security. Currently we are in the middle of a large programme to migrate our existing on-prem estate to AWS, and so designs are focused on this transformation, although there will be other projects coming along with a broader outlook, so being adaptable and open to learning new skills is essential.

This involves working closely with our CISO team, to ensure our applications are secure, along with developers, project managers and SMEs to come up with the optimal design pattern for each project, as well as remaining hands-on during the project’s delivery phase to ensure that designs are being adhered to.

About you

This would suit a Solution Architect with a passion for security along with a background in complex designs around transformation from legacy to cloud, and who is looking to work on fast moving projects. A strong background in software development is preferred and proven track record in delivering projects is required.

The role requires attendance at business-facing and technical senior stakeholder meetings to present and explain why designs have been chosen, so good communication & planning skills are essential, with the ability to put things into non-technical terms for the wider audience.

Key Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in security best practice and implementing security controls, conducting risk assessments, and ensuring compliance with industry standards.
• Take the lead in incorporating robust security measures into the architectural designs, especially in the context of legacy-to-cloud transformations by working closely with the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) team.
• Expert knowledge of cloud security best practices, data encryption, identity management, and compliance requirements. Understanding how to secure cloud environments and applications against potential threats.
• Establish governance on best practices for cloud usage. Work closely with development teams to address technical challenges, optimize cloud usage, and ensure adherence to cloud architecture standards.
• Proficiency in creating comprehensive technical specifications, system architecture diagrams, and other relevant documentation to guide the development and implementation process of cloud solutions.
• Demonstrate strong capabilities in eliciting and analysing technical requirements beyond the initial draft. Work closely with stakeholders, including business users, product owners, and development teams, to understand the objectives and underlying business needs driving the cloud solution.
• Excellent Communication & Planning skills with the ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
• A proactive and results-driven mindset, with a passion for keeping up-to-date with the latest security bet practice and threats.
• Good conceptual design knowledge of:
  • Cloud Technologies:  A deep understanding of the various cloud computing models and cloud services offered by major cloud providers but especially AWS including AWS Aurora, API Gateway, ECS, DMS, DynamoDB, Lambda, Load Balancing, S3, SNS/SQS etc.
  • Architectural Patterns: Proficiency in designing scalable, fault-tolerant, and highly available architectures. This includes knowledge of microservices, serverless computing, event-driven architectures, and distributed systems.
  • Performance Optimization: Skills in optimizing cloud-based applications for performance, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. This involves choosing appropriate instance types, load balancing strategies, and caching mechanisms.
  • Cost Management: Ability to manage and optimize cloud costs, including resource provisioning, rightsizing, and utilization tracking.
• AWS Solution Architect Certification or AWS Certified Security Speciality

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Understanding of relational and NoSQL databases
• DevOps and Automation: Proficiency in DevOps practices and automation tools.
• Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
• Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing
• Experience with agile development methodologies, enabling collaboration, and iterative improvements.
• Knowledge of scripting languages (e.g., Python, PowerShell) and automation tools to streamline cloud deployments and management tasks.
• Experience with IaC principles and tools (e.g., Terraform, AWS CloudFormation) to provision and manage cloud resources programmatically.
• Teams and other Microsoft office apps

Job Location and Hours

The role is aligned to our Bangalore or Chennai offices in India, working a 45 hour week. All our roles are hybrid working; our current policy requires our team to visit their base office thrice a week, and with the possibility of occasional business travel to other Pearson sites. Candidates must be a suitable commute from their base office as our office presence policy may change to require more frequent presence in 2024.

For this role there is a requirement to provide occasional out of hours support during business critical periods.