Cloud Architect

Be Here. Be Great. Working for a leader in the insurance industry means opportunity for you. Great American Insurance Group’s member companies are subsidiaries of American Financial Group, a Fortune 500 company. We combine a "small company" culture where your ideas will be heard with "big company" expertise to help you succeed. With over 30 specialty property and casualty operations, there are always opportunities here to learn and grow. At Great American, we value the unique perspective each of our employees bring to the workplace. We know that when people with different cultures, backgrounds and experiences work collaboratively, we can exceed our business objectives. We are dedicated to attracting, developing and retaining a diverse workforce that fosters creativity and enables our ongoing success. Essential Job Functions and Responsibilities Cloud Strategy and Architecture Work with application, data and security architects to collaborate on solution designs targeting cloud technologies and platforms Proposes changes in solutions architecture standards, policies, and procedures for the organization. Ensures adherence to company architectural guidelines, principles, and standards in all project milestones and deliverables. Architect and design solutions to meet functional and non-functional requirements Promote re-use through implementation of shared templates and solution components Enforce adherence to architectural standards/principles, product-specific guidelines, usability design standards, etc. Proactively provide guidance on solution designs, standards, and integration methods Provide insight and direction on roles and responsibilities required for cloud solution operations Identify, communicate and mitigate Risks, Assumptions, Issues and Decisions throughout the full life-cycle of cloud infrastructure solutions Exhibits specialized knowledge of cloud platforms and leverages strong customer relationships Provides expertise and standards to produce an optimal, high level, conceptual design for projects. Researches, evaluates, and recommends new technologies and techniques and solutions to solve business problems Establish architecture drawings for core cloud solutions Analysis and decision making Responsible for analyzing and translating business, information, and technical requirements into an architectural blueprint that outlines solutions to achieve business objectives. Conduct research and analysis on the technology landscape in the marketplace including staying on top of competitive insights and evolving trends and technologies that can have an impact on Great American businesses Identifies, analyzes, and resolves problems relating to systems integration, compatibility, and multiple platforms. Considers various solution possibilities and architectural options based on feasibility and impact, and propose actionable plans Ability to analyze and operate at various levels of abstraction Ability to balance strategic alignment with practical and realistic approaches Technical Leadership Be able to provide technical direction and lead a group of one or more engineers to address a goal Anticipates IT industry future directions and relates them to future internal technology needs and projects. Provides technical leadership including being conversant with the future direction of systems, how that direction will impact the enterprise, and how future and current systems can be exploited for the benefit of the enterprise Guidance of engineering staff and reviews of as-built configurations during construction phase Assists project teams in requirements gathering and reviews. May facilitate information gathering sessions and provide solutions analysis services. May lead the work of others (trains, mentors, delegates, prioritizes, and reviews assignments). May have responsibility for performance and coaching of staff and may have a participatory role in decisions regarding talent selection, development, and performance management for direct reports. Experience: 8 or more years of related experience (3 years in cloud platforms). Experience with Microsoft Azure plus other cloud platforms preferred. Scope of Job: Defines and plans solutions architectures for enterprise cloud solutions. Makes solutions decisions for the organization based on the highest degree of technical complexity and understanding of the implications organization-wide. Participates in the technical aspects of strategic decisions regarding solutions. Performs work independently based on achieving long-term objectives. Works on multiple projects as a project leader or as a subject matter expert. Demonstrates expert knowledge and often works across multiple technical areas and/or business segments. Business Unit: Property & Casualty IT Services Number of Positions: 1