Senior Technical Architect

Redcentric | Architect / Senior Architect - VMware

Location: Home based (UK Only)

Role Overview

We are looking for an experienced VMware Architect or Senior VMware Architect to provide architecture leadership, design authority and technical assurance across Redcentric’s VMware based private cloud and managed service capabilities.

The role will focus on the architecture, evolution and governance of VMware platforms, with particular emphasis on VMware Cloud Foundation, VCF 9+ private cloud operating models, multi-tenant service architectures, advanced networking and security, and modern platform capabilities such as Kubernetes enabled workloads, self-service automation and Private AI. The successful candidate will help define secure, scalable and operationally supportable architectures that can be delivered consistently within a managed service environment.

Depending on experience, the successful candidate may operate either as a domain-focused VMware Architect or as a Senior VMware Architect with broader responsibility for cross-domain coherence, architecture strategy, governance, roadmap influence and architectural assurance across multiple products, platforms or major technology domains.

Key Responsibilities

Architecture and Design Authority

• Own or contribute to the architectural direction for VMware-based product and service capabilities, ensuring designs are secure, supportable, scalable and aligned to Redcentric’s managed service model.
• Translate customer, product, operational, commercial and security requirements into conceptual, logical and physical architectures.
• Ensure architecture designs align to AMPRS principles: Availability, Manageability, Performance, Recoverability, Scalability and Security.
• Provide design assurance, challenge, approval or escalation for architectural decisions, exceptions, risks and cross-domain dependencies.

VMware Cloud Foundation and Private Cloud Architecture

• Design and assure VMware private cloud platforms based on VMware Cloud Foundation, including management domains, workload domains, VCF Management Services, VCF Operations, VCF Automation, vSphere, vSAN, NSX, VMware Cloud Director and associated VMware/Broadcom platform services.
• Develop enterprise topology designs covering vSAN stretched clusters, multi-site network fabrics, distributed fault domains, recoverability patterns, platform scalability and fleet management structures.
• Shape VCF 9+ operating models that support self-service consumption, lifecycle management, platform governance, service catalogues, automation and operational readiness.
• Support migration, modernisation and evolution of VMware services in line with product strategy, technology roadmaps and managed service requirements.

Multi-Tenant and Managed Service Design

• Architect enterprise multi-tenant service models, including provider and tenant boundaries, delegated administration, role-based access, resource allocation, service catalogues and operational control models.
• Design identity federation models using OIDC, external identity providers and VMware Identity Broker where appropriate.
• Define secure network isolation models using VPCs, NSX, vDefend Distributed Firewall and micro-segmentation to support both traditional VM and modern platform workloads.
• Contribute to productised, repeatable managed service patterns aligned to the service catalogue, operational handover model, lifecycle ownership and commercial viability.

Security, Sovereignty and Governance

• Design security architectures across vSphere, vSAN, NSX and vDefend, incorporating Zero Trust principles, secure configuration and protection against lateral movement.
• Define sovereign and regulated platform controls, including data residency, geo-fencing, compliance guardrails, audit evidence and control mapping.
• Support compliance, assurance and governance activity across managed services, including risk assessment, exception management and architectural review.
• Help shape advanced managed security service offerings, such as managed lateral security or Firewall-as-a-Service, where these are commercially and operationally viable.

Cloud Native, Automation and Platform Capabilities

• Architect Kubernetes platform services, including multi-cluster management strategies, Cloud Native Storage, Container Storage Interfaces, persistent volume design, GitOps pipelines and compliance controls across geographically separated fault domains.
• Define VCF Automation catalogue designs, reusable blueprints, self-service consumption patterns and developer-facing service enablement.
• Promote modern engineering practices including DevSecOps, platform engineering, Infrastructure as Code, CI/CD, source control, automation and observability.
• Provide architectural guidance for VMware Private AI Foundation with NVIDIA, GPU-enabled platforms, RAG-capable workload patterns and AI catalogue blueprints where relevant to Redcentric’s service portfolio.

Stakeholder Engagement and Technical Leadership

• Work closely with Product Management, Product Engineering, Principal Architects, delivery, operations, service management, partners and customers.
• Lead or support workshops, technical briefings, solution reviews, due diligence, pre-sales activity and transition planning.
• Communicate architectural decisions, trade-offs and recommendations clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Provide implementation guardrails, standards and patterns for engineering, delivery and operations teams.
• Mentor engineers, architects and other technical contributors through review, documentation, knowledge sharing and communities of practice.

What We Are Looking For

• Significant experience designing, engineering and assuring solutions in VMware, cloud, hybrid, enterprise or managed service environments.
• Experience defining target architectures, reference designs, standards, design patterns, roadmaps and implementation guidance.
• Experience delivering complex engineering solutions and overarching platform designs within VMware Cloud Foundation or comparable managed service environments.
• Experience translating business requirements into structured conceptual, logical and physical designs.
• Experience producing high-quality technical documentation, including architecture decision records, reference designs, service blueprints, implementation guidance and RCAR-based artefacts covering requirements, constraints, assumptions and risks.
• Experience working across architecture, product, engineering, operations, service management, pre-sales and delivery teams.
• Experience operating in an MSP, service provider, enterprise technology or regulated environment.

VMware and Private Cloud Experience

• Strong experience with VMware Cloud Foundation and associated platform components including vSphere, vSAN, NSX, VMware Cloud Director, VCF Operations and VCF Automation.
• Experience designing VCF enterprise topologies, including management and workload domains, vSAN stretched clusters, multi-site network fabrics, VPC-based segmentation and fleet management structures.
• Experience defining multi-tenant service models, including provider and tenant boundaries, identity federation, role-based access, resource allocation, service catalogues, self-service consumption and operational controls.
• Experience with VCF Automation, reusable blueprints, service catalogues and developer-facing self-service consumption models.

Security and Governance Experience

• Experience designing security architectures across vSphere, vSAN and NSX.
• Experience with Zero Trust principles, identity security, data protection, secure configuration and compliance good practice.
• Experience with vDefend Distributed Firewall, micro-segmentation, lateral security patterns and secure inbound/outbound workload traffic models.
• Experience supporting architecture governance, design authority, technical assurance and exception management.

Cloud Native, AI and Automation Experience

• Experience architecting Kubernetes platform services, including multi-cluster strategy, Cloud Native Storage, Container Storage Interfaces and persistent volume design.
• Experience or strong awareness of GitOps, CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code, automation and source control practices.
• Experience with Private AI, GPU-enabled platforms, RAG-capable workload patterns or VMware Private AI Foundation with NVIDIA would be advantageous.
• Experience designing self-service AI, Kubernetes or platform services through catalogue-based consumption models would be advantageous.

Senior VMware Architect Level Expectations

Candidates considered for the Senior VMware Architect level should also be able to demonstrate broader architecture leadership beyond a single product or domain. This includes architecture strategy, cross-domain design coherence, technical governance, architectural assurance and the ability to influence roadmap, investment and governance decisions.

Senior-level candidates should be comfortable defining architecture strategy across multiple products, platforms or major technology domains, leading major design reviews, resolving significant architectural trade-offs, mentoring Architects and Technical Leads, and supporting longer-term technology strategy and service evolution.

Desirable Certifications

Relevant certifications are desirable but equivalent experience may be considered. Suitable certifications may include:

• VMware Certified Professional, VMware Certified Advanced Professional or VMware Certified Design Expert-level certifications.
• VMware Cloud Foundation, NSX, vSAN, VCF Operations, VCF Automation or VMware/Broadcom architecture-focused certifications.
• TOGAF, ITIL, CISSP, CCSP or equivalent architecture, service management or security certifications.
• DevOps, automation, platform engineering, security, networking or service management certifications where relevant.