Director of Enterprise Architecture

Southwest Power Pool (SPP) is about more than power. We’re about the power of relationships. Our employees have the opportunity to work together to ensure electricity is delivered reliably and affordably to the millions of people living in our service territory. We have been voted one of Arkansas’ Best Places to work by Arkansas Business and we are looking for a member of our team who is passionate about our mission to keep the lights on!

We have a core ideology here at SPP that we stand by: Do the right thing, for the right reason, in the right way.

We believe in supporting our employees through a fantastic benefits package:

- Competitive and transparent pay with bonus opportunities

- Excellent insurance package including three great medical plans to choose from, employer-paid short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance

- Relocation bonus (if applicable)

- Hybrid working environment for positions that are eligible

- Fantastic contributions to your retirement through a 401(k) savings plan with employer-match benefits and a pension (defined benefit plan) fully funded by SPP

PLEASE NOTE:

SPP is not able to sponsor employment visas or student-work authorizations (STEM OPT) for this position. Please ensure you are eligible to work in the U.S. without sponsorship prior to applying. Compensation Information

The salary range(s) represents our good faith estimate for the role at this time. While we strive to provide competitive and transparent compensation, there may be circumstances where an offer is above or outside of the listed range. We are open to discussing salary expectations with qualified candidates considering factors such as the candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies, experience and geographic location will all be considered during the hiring process.

Director, Enterprise Architecture Pay Range - $174,710 - $231,450

Overview

The Director of Enterprise Architecture at SPP provides executive leadership for the Enterprise Architecture and Governance. This role is responsible for leading the creation and maintenance of enterprise-wide information technology architecture and governance in collaboration with technology stakeholders throughout the company. The Director of Enterprise Architecture and Governance facilitate the development of roadmaps to achieve the envisioned architecture while ensuring reliable, secure and cost-effective operations. The Director is also responsible for partnering with management and technical staff across the enterprise to evaluate and share information about emerging trends and provide technical consulting and collaboration while shepherding the architecture from inception to implementation and deployment.

Essential Functions

- Provide executive management for enterprise architecture design, development and support

- Provide executive leadership and personnel management to the Enterprise Architecture and Governance team, including representation on SPP’s Project Review and Prioritization Committee

- Establish and maintain a data lifecycle and data governance program

- Facilitate the creation of the technical vision and associated roadmaps needed for ensuring the future of SPP’s technology needs can be met in a reliable, secure, efficient and cost-effective manner

- Establish strategic and tactical goals for achieving the shared architectural vision

- Establish strategic relationships with IT, SPP business stakeholders, vendors, and peer RTOs to meet business needs and develop a forward looking technology vision for SPP

- Foster an enthusiastic culture of innovation and automation across the IT department such that innovation and automation are used to solve problems and to prevent future problems

- Facilitate the implementation, monitoring, and documentation of robust processes for the evaluation of technologies by providing leadership and technical consulting as appropriate

- Possess high-level knowledge and stay abreast of network infrastructure, server platforms, storage and file systems, databases, architectural styles, software development, and client platforms

- Ensure that new technologies are continuously assessed for improving the functional, financial, and reliable performance of SPP and our members, and lead efforts to introduce new technologies to SPP in a manner consistent with stakeholder needs

- Independently perform assignments with guidance from the Senior Vice President, IT on overall objectives, critical issues, new concepts, industry developments and policy matters

- Provide technical consulting and expertise to SPP staff, committees and working groups

- Represent SPP at other industry related committee and working group meetings and, in particular, the ISO/RTO IT Committee’s Technology Working Group

- Mentor, encourage and develop technology leadership within IT

- Demonstrate the SPP culture drivers of efficiency, collaboration and continuous improvement

- Ensure unwavering compliance with all applicable standards and controls

The statements contained herein describe the scope of the responsibility and essential functions of this position, but should not be considered to be an all-inclusive listing of work duties and responsibilities. Individuals may perform other duties as assigned including work in other areas to cover absences, or relief to equalize peak work periods or otherwise balance the workload.

Education Requirements

- Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, IT Engineering, or a related field.

Experience Requirements

- Twelve (12) years technical experience, including at least 5 years in an architecture leadership role.

Required

- Demonstrable leadership skills in alignment with SPP’s core values

- Demonstrated experience building and leading architecture functions or teams.

- Proven success in designing and implementing enterprise-wide technology strategies.

- Strong understanding of enterprise, application, data, and infrastructure architecture disciplines.

- Experience with modern architectures including cloud, microservices, API-driven design, and data platforms.

- Excellent collaboration and communication skills, with the ability to influence at all levels of the organization.

- Ability to balance strategic vision with practical execution.

- Knowledge and experience with Enterprise Architecture methodologies and frameworks

- Ability to communicate effectively with engineers, management and senior management, including officers of other companies for purposes of requests, analysis, coordination, guidance and presentations

- Experience and understanding of business requirements and the process of translating them into well-engineered and integrated technical solutions

SPP is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer of individuals with disabilities and protected veterans and is committed to excellence. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please contact us at HR@spp.org and let us know the nature of your request. We will only respond to messages left that involve a request for a reasonable accommodation in the application process. We will accommodate the needs of any qualified candidate who requests a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

At SPP we believe in a culture of belonging. Learn more here: Culture of Belonging - Southwest Power Pool.

Full job descriptions will be made available to those selected for an interview.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.