Define target-state architecture and guide platform evolution from fragmented products to a coherent, AI-enabled SaaS platform. Lead architectural decisions, governance, prototyping, and influence engineering leadership to balance long-term design with pragmatic delivery.
Employ is transforming how hiring gets done. With our three ATS solutions - Jobvite, Lever, and JazzHR - plus cutting-edge AI Companions, we free recruiters from admin work and give them more time for what matters: connecting with people. More than 23,000 global customers rely on Employ to make millions of candidate connections each year, helping them hire smarter, faster, and at scale. From growing startups to the world’s most recognized brands, we’re redefining what’s possible in talent acquisition.
We’re a fast-moving, remote-first team of builders and innovators who live our people-first philosophy every day. We back it up with flexible work scheduling and paid time off, comprehensive benefits, and career development opportunities that help you thrive. At Employ, you won’t just grow your career - you’ll help millions of others grow theirs.
Come join our team where we have each other’s backs, champion our customers, hold ourselves accountable, and shape what’s next in talent acquisition.
Candidate Safety Notice
Please note, employ takes candidate safety seriously. Employ recruiters and employees communicate only via official @employinc.com email addresses. We will never request payment or personal financial information during the hiring process. If you receive suspicious outreach claiming to be from Employ, please report it to [email protected].
About the Opportunity
The Chief Architect is responsible for defining the technical architecture of the company’s product landscape and future.
This role will shape how the company moves from a portfolio of products and legacy architecture into a more coherent, unified, AI-enabled platform. You will define target-state architecture, identify the highest-value technical interventions, guide major technical decisions, and help engineering leadership make better long-term tradeoffs.
This is not an ivory tower architecture role. This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who can combine first-principles technical thinking with practical execution. You must be able to see the future clearly enough to drive toward it and stay grounded enough to help teams ship.
Success means sharper technical direction, fewer fragmented decisions, better platform coherence, stronger architectural integrity, and a credible path from today’s complexity to tomorrow’s platform.
About the TeamYou will report to the CTO and work closely with Product Engineering, Product Flow, VP of AI, platform leaders, and senior engineers. You may lead a Vanguard Engineering capability focused on prototyping and validating future-state architecture and leading the charge delivering the hardest to architect and build product areas.
What You’ll Do:
- Define the target-state architecture for the company’s platform evolution
- Drive architectural direction across APIs, services, integration patterns, data, identity, and AI-enabled capabilities
- Help the company move from fragmented systems toward a more coherent platform model
- Guide major architectural decisions with clear reasoning, tradeoff analysis, and pragmatic recommendations
- Identify architectural bottlenecks, duplication, scaling risks, and structural weaknesses
- Focus leadership attention on the technical decisions that matter most
- Establish architecture standards, review mechanisms, and decision frameworks that improve quality without slowing teams down
- Create enough discipline to drive coherence, but not so much process that architecture becomes dead weight
- Lead or influence prototyping efforts for new platform capabilities, architectural shifts, and future-state patterns
- Validate important ideas quickly before the company overcommits to bad assumptions
- Partner deeply with engineering leadership and senior engineers
- Raise the technical bar through clarity, credibility, and sound judgment
- Act as a force multiplier, not a bottleneck
Architecture Strategy
Technical Decision Leadership
Governance Without Bureaucracy
Vanguard Engineering & Prototyping
Engineering Influence
What You Bring:
- Deep technical judgment and strong systems thinking
- Ability to reason from first principles and communicate tradeoffs clearly
- Strong understanding of modern SaaS architecture, APIs, distributed systems, data design, and platform evolution
- Ability to balance long-term design with practical delivery needs
- We care less about how many years you’ve been called an architect and more about whether you can actually lead architecture at this level
What We’re Looking For:
- Real technical depth
- High credibility with strong engineers
- Pragmatic, not theoretical
- Can simplify complexity
- Understands AI-native architecture direction
- Wants to shape a company, not just review diagrams
Why You’ll Love Working Here:
Make an impact: Your work will directly shape how thousands of employees experience total rewards at Employ — ensuring programs that attract, engage, and retain top talent across the globe.
Meaningful, mission-driven work: Join a team where operational excellence in HR directly supports Employ’s mission to improve hiring outcomes for both people and businesses.
Remote-first culture: Work from where you’re most productive while staying connected to a collaborative, high-energy team through virtual-first rituals and regular in-person meetups.
Unlimited PTO: Trust-based time off so you can recharge and bring your best self to work.
Comprehensive benefits: Medical, dental, and vision coverage to support you and your family’s health and well-being.
Learning & development programs: Access to training, mentorship, and development resources to grow your skills — from HR operations to total rewards strategy.
At Employ, we believe that when people from different backgrounds and perspectives come together, amazing things happen. We’re proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we’re committed to creating an environment where everyone feels welcomed, respected, and able to thrive.
We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We believe that when people feel they belong, they can do their best work and we want every member of our team to feel that sense of belonging.
If you need accommodation at any stage of the hiring process, please reach out. We’ll be glad to support you.
Recruitment Fraud Notice:
Employ takes candidate safety seriously. Please be aware that Employ recruiters and interviewers will only communicate with candidates using official email addresses ending in @employinc.com.
We will never ask for payment, banking information, or personal financial details at any stage of the hiring process, and we do not conduct interviews via messaging apps or social media platforms.
If you receive communication that appears suspicious or claims to represent Employ but does not come from an @employinc.com email address, do not respond or continue engaging with the sender. Please report the message to [email protected].
Similar Jobs
Artificial Intelligence • Software
The Chief Architect will lead the technical direction for Legion's Workforce Management platform, focusing on architecture decisions, AI systems, and scalable software solutions. Responsibilities include hands-on coding, technical leadership, and ensuring systems meet enterprise standards for performance and security.
Top Skills:
AIAPIsAWSAzureData ProcessingDistributed SystemsEvent-Driven ArchitectureGCPGoJavaKotlinMachine LearningMicroservicesPythonSaaSScala
Financial Services
As Chief Architect, lead the architecture practice, align IT initiatives with business strategies, manage architecture capabilities, and ensure stakeholder engagement. Oversee team performance, knowledge management, and professional development while navigating technology risks and fostering innovation.
Top Skills:
CRMCybersecurityData PlatformsEnterprise ArchitectureErpInformation Technology
Automotive • Hardware • Internet of Things • Mobile • Software • App development • PropTech
Lead and govern end-to-end architecture for the myQ IoT platform, balancing hands-on design and implementation with architectural leadership, roadmap creation, platform modernization, cross-team collaboration, mentoring, and ensuring scalable, secure cloud-native solutions supporting millions of devices.
Top Skills:
AnalyticsAPIsAWSCloud-NativeData PipelinesEmbedded FirmwareEvent-Driven SystemsGenaiIotMicroservicesMobile ApplicationsMyqReal-Time StreamingVideo PlatformsWeb Applications
What you need to know about the Colorado Tech Scene
With a business-friendly climate and research universities like CU Boulder and Colorado State, Colorado has made a name for itself as a startup ecosystem. The state boasts a skilled workforce and high quality of life thanks to its affordable housing, vibrant cultural scene and unparalleled opportunities for outdoor recreation. Colorado is also home to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, helping cement its status as a hub for renewable energy innovation.
Key Facts About Colorado Tech
- Number of Tech Workers: 260,000; 8.5% of overall workforce (2024 CompTIA survey)
- Major Tech Employers: Lockheed Martin, Century Link, Comcast, BAE Systems, Level 3
- Key Industries: Software, artificial intelligence, aerospace, e-commerce, fintech, healthtech
- Funding Landscape: $4.9 billion in VC funding in 2024 (Pitchbook)
- Notable Investors: Access Venture Partners, Ridgeline Ventures, Techstars, Blackhorn Ventures
- Research Centers and Universities: Colorado School of Mines, University of Colorado Boulder, University of Denver, Colorado State University, Mesa Laboratory, Space Science Institute, National Center for Atmospheric Research, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Gottlieb Institute
