Ameriprise Financial

Solutions Architect

Posted on: 11 Apr 2021

Minneapolis, MN

Job Description

Conceptualize and design detailed solutions for specific projects enabling the organization to meet business objectives with an emphasis on applications. Provide technical leadership to ensure technical design and implementation are aligned with business requirements. Serve as the primary point of contact between the project team and the architecture delivery organization. Ensure compliance of technology solutions with architectural standards and participation in the full development life cycle of the delivered capability.

* Partner with business analysts, systems analysts and engineers in gathering and reviewing non-functional requirements. Identify key business and technology drivers that impact architectures, including end-user requirements, existing software distribution capabilities, existing application environment (including legacy and packaged systems), and performance/availability requirements. Collaborate with application and infrastructure teams to understand scope and requirements.
* Conduct assessments of current business and technology architectures including: functional assessments, such as end user satisfaction and functional overlaps/gaps; and technical assessments, such as platforms, tool proliferation, age of underlying technologies; uptime/availability; and business processes. Identify and document any risks, issues or critical success factors that may require immediate action.
* Translate project requirements into detailed designs consistent with current and future platform strategy and road-map while influencing requirements and balancing needs for immediate action and the POA. Design external system interface architecture that includes appropriate application of techniques and standards. Maintain and promote use of appropriate design techniques and methodologies. Actively participate in testing design and execution to validate coverage and perform causal analysis.
* Create effective and efficient control patterns, conduct risk evaluations and enforce policies and standards to enable the enterprise to conduct business at an appropriate and known risk level. Research and recommend technology to improve current systems. Ensure capabilities are reviewed and compliant within defined risk levels while considering hardware/software currency, performance/availability, security and information/transaction integrity and drive the awareness of required improvements.
* Communicate and manage governance parameters that take into account stakeholders' interests and processes with measurable results. Partner with other architects to ensure alignment and integration across portfolio boundaries and promote an enterprise focus on applications management. Develop and build strong relationships within and across the lines of business and use effective communication skills to influence and accomplish strategic application architecture objectives.
* Research and maintain a deep understanding of current and emerging technologies and solutions to solve business problems. Based on this research, proposes changes in process, policy and standards as they relate to the architecture and design principles. Collaborate with other peers and colleagues within the industry and identify opportunities for sharing knowledge.
* Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, related field, or related work experience.
* 5-7 years of relevant work experience required.
* Skills in general architecture, operations, and deployment methodologies and techniques (e.g. TOGAF, Zachman, ITIL, MOF).
* Solid understanding and applied expertise in solutions architecture designs and concepts, which include but are not limited to: SDLC Process, Security, high availability, recovery, performance, monitoring and operations design, and application architecture.
* 5+ years relevant solutions architecture experience that includes successful software integration experience.
* 3+ years software development and/or technical support experience.
* Strong written and verbal communication skills.
* Attention to detail.

Effective communication skills (written and verbal) to effectively interact with all levels of technology and business partners.
Experience delivering concurrent, large information management projects at all phases-from project definition through design and delivery.
Financial Services industry specific knowledge that includes a working knowledge of industry standards and architectures.
Working knowledge of modern web applications, including Responsive Design, JavaScript MVC frameworks, and enterprise-grade web sites.
Working knowledge of the core elements of Open Web applications (HTML5, CSS and JavaScript).
Working knowledge of AJAX, REST, SOAP, Databases, Linux, Windows, Web content management.
A desire to explore new and emerging web and development technologies, synthesize recommendations, and influence key stakeholders.
Proven experience configuring, debugging, and deploying enterprise applications in complex environments
Proven experience designing and delivering scalable and distributed web applications.
Ability to communicate effectively with developers, stakeholders, peers, and leadership, driving results and action.
Strong business acumen and the ability to identify key issues and their impact in a broad business context. Candidate must be able to translate technology into business terms and value.
Experience with cloud architectures.
Experience with DevSecOps.
Brokerage/Manage Products industry experience including knowledge of industry platforms such as Thomson Desktop, Beta Clearing platform, Fiserv, Vestmark, or other.

Ameriprise Financial

Minneapolis, MN

Ameriprise Financial, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services to individual and institutional clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through five segments: Advice & Wealth Management, Asset Management, Annuities, Protection, and Corporate & Other. The Advice & Wealth Management segment provides financial planning and advice, as well as full-service brokerage services primarily to retail clients through its advisors. The Asset Management segment offers investment management and advice, and investment products to retail, high net worth, and institutional clients through unaffiliated third party financial institutions and institutional sales force. Its products also include U.S. mutual funds and their non-U.S. equivalents, exchange-traded funds, variable product funds underlying insurance, and annuity separate accounts; and institutional asset management products, such as traditional asset classes, separately managed accounts, individually managed accounts, collateralized loan obligations, hedge funds, collective funds, and property funds.

The Annuities segment provides variable and fixed annuity products to individual clients through affiliated and unaffiliated advisors, and financial institutions. The Protection segment offers various products to address the protection and risk management needs of retail clients, including life, disability income, and property casualty insurance through advisors and affinity relationships.

The Corporate & Other segment consist of long term care business, net investment income or loss on corporate level assets. The company was formerly known as American Express Financial Corporation and changed its name to Ameriprise Financial, Inc. in September 2005. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. was founded in 1894 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.