Solution Architect Specialist

Why this job matters:

This is an exciting opportunity to join a global team at the forefront of technology, playing a pivotal role in delivering exceptional outcomes for our customers and for BT International. As a senior leader in solution architecture, you will be central to designing and delivering innovative, high-impact solutions for global enterprises.

You'll bring a strong background in technology, with proven experience in pre-sales, solution design, and delivery. Drawing on this expertise, you'll lead across multiple customer engagements, ensuring excellence in every phase—from initial conversations through to implementation. Your leadership will guide cross-functional teams to craft high-quality, deliverable solutions that meet customer expectations and drive growth for BT International.

You will act as the single point of accountability for the solution, leading engagements from initial customer conversations through sales and into delivery. Your leadership will ensure that all stakeholders—internal and external—understand the solution, its scope, and its intended outcomes.

The role demands deep expertise in solution architecture and design, especially for complex, multi-technology environments involving custom components, non-standard portfolios, and intricate delivery and service requirements. You will engage with senior stakeholders and customers as a trusted advisor, instilling confidence in BT's ability to deliver.

As part of BT International's Customer Solutions and Design team, you will ensure that what we sell is what we deliver—right the first time. You will be accountable for solution clarity, scope alignment, and delivery quality across the pre-sales and early delivery lifecycle, ensuring solutions are fit for purpose, commercially viable, technically sound, and executable.

A mindset of continuous learning, simplification, and innovation is essential, helping to modernize our operations and shape a better future.

At the heart of everything we do is a simple goal: ensuring every customer and partner experiences that things just work… Better on BT.

What You Will Do:

Strategic Leadership

• Drive improvements in solution quality, win rates, and operational KPIs.
• Ensure governance processes and risk management standards are upheld on high-value, complex deals.
• Promote a mindset of having a strong grip on all workstreams and striving for the best outcomes for customers and the business.
• Be visible, proactive, and lead by example with a strong opinion.

Solution Design & Architecture

• Lead end-to-end solution design and architecture of complex, customized solutions involving multiple technology towers.
• Establish solution design frameworks that balance customer requirements, implementation feasibility, and profitability.
• Ensure solutions meet customer expectations on cost, time, and quality while driving profitability and growth for BT.
• Ensure technical viability and practical deliverability of proposed solutions.
• Ensure solutions meet business and operational requirements and fit into larger architectural strategy and infrastructures.
• Ensure business requirements are translated into deliverable solutions, which meet customers' needs.
• During delivery, assess scope changes to maintain alignment with cost, timeline, and quality objectives.
• Create reusable offerings and solution components/accelerators that can be rapidly customized for specific customer scenarios.

Sales Enablement & Support

• Partner closely with sales leadership to align pre-sales strategies with sales objectives.
• Support complex sales cycles with solution presentations, demonstrations, and technical deep dives.
• Participate in key customer meetings to articulate the value and approach of proposed solutions.
• Provide expert solutioning guidance during strategic customer conversations and executive meetings.

Proposal Development & Scoping

• Own the development of compelling proposals, statements of work, and input into customer contracts.
• Accurately reflect solution scope while identifying critical dependencies and risks.
• Comply with governance processes to ensure appropriate risk assessment and mitigation.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Lead virtual cross-functional teams of technical, service, and delivery professionals.
• Collaborate with sales, bid, and product teams to shape viable solutions.
• Collaborate with delivery teams to ensure proposed solutions can be effectively implemented and executed.
• Work with product management to align service offerings with product roadmaps and capabilities.
• Work with regulatory teams to develop compliant solutions.
• Provide feedback to product and delivery teams based on customer requirements and market demands.

Market Intelligence & Competitive Analysis

• Develop strategies to differentiate solution offerings from competitors.
• Provide insights to executive leadership on market dynamics and competitive positioning.
• Analyze win/loss data to refine solution approaches and proposal strategies.
• Stay ahead of market trends and reflect insights in pre-sales solution strategy to maintain competitive edge.
• Identify market opportunities for new service offerings or solution packages.

Culture & Mindset

• Own your role and outcomes, ensuring accountability and responsibility.
• Drive a culture of sharing knowledge, methodologies, documentation, and customer-facing collateral.
• Drive a continuous improvement mindset to raise the bar on how we work on a daily basis.
• Mentor new joiners and cross-functional team members, sharing knowledge and experience.
• Perform necessary administrative tasks while focusing on leading and managing people to deliver required customer and business outcomes.

Skills and Experience Required:

Professional Experience:

• 12+ years of experience in pre-sales, solution design, solution architecture, technical leadership or related fields.
• Proven track record of supporting large, complex sales opportunities and driving revenue growth.
• Experience collaborating with global cross functional pre-sales or solution architecture teams.
• History of successful collaboration with sales, delivery, service design and product organizations.
• Experience with proposal development, estimation, and scope definition.
• May hold relevant industry recognized accreditations.

Solution Design and Technical Proficiency:

• Strong background in solution strategy, designing and delivering complex, multi-domain solutions
  (e.g., networking, cloud, WAN, SDWAN, LAN, WiFi, security, contact centers, collaboration).
• Broad technical knowledge of multiple technologies across Digital Infrastructure (Cloud, WAN, SDWAN, LAN) and Digital Workplace (Collaboration and Contact Centers), and emerging technologies including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Ability to lead technical conversations with customers and keep current with technology trends and deployment methods.

Leadership and Collaboration:

• Understand the role of teams in pre-sales and deliveries and collaborate effectively.
• Foster a culture of care, investment in outcomes, and a solution-oriented mindset.
• Encourage a "can do" attitude, ensuring tasks are completed right the first time.

Behavioral Competencies:

• Act with integrity and take full accountability for decisions and their impact.
• Be inquisitive, ask questions, and challenge the status quo.
• Hold people accountable and ensure adherence to standards.

Role Modelling and Commitment:

• Exemplify desired behaviors and attitudes.
• Live by Leadership Standards and mentor others.
• Demonstrate commitment to the role, ensuring tasks are completed to a high standard and on time.
• Bring their best to work every day and drive performance goals aligned with BT International strategy.

Commercial Accumen:

• Be commercially aware of scope changes and their impact on P&L.
• Hold commercial discussions to protect scope and P&L.
• Recognize and pursue cross-sell and up-sell opportunities across Digital Infrastructure (Cloud, WAN, SDWAN, LAN) and Digital Workplace (Collaboration and Contact Centers) solutions.

Communication:

• Communicate effectively with all levels of the business leadership team both internally and with customers.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders.
• Present solutions with passion and impact to internal and external audiences.