Senior ICT Architect

Location: Ghent, Belgium
Work Model: Hybrid (up to 2 days remote per week, on-site presence required across UGent campuses)
Start Date: 15 June 2026
Contract Duration: Until 12 June 2028
Workload: Full-time (100%)
Application Deadline: 03 June 2026

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Senior ICT Architect to support the ongoing modernization and standardization of a complex, fragmented ICT landscape within a large academic organization.

In this role, you will translate strategic business objectives into actionable enterprise and solution architectures, ensuring coherence across applications, data, integration, and infrastructure domains. You will play a key role in shaping future-proof architecture standards, governance models, and transformation roadmaps.

This position requires strong architectural leadership, the ability to operate in a regulated and multi-stakeholder environment, and a pragmatic mindset to balance long-term vision with operational constraints.

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise & Solution Architecture

• Develop enterprise and solution architectures aligned with organizational strategy.
• Translate business requirements into target architectures, principles, roadmaps, and phased implementation plans.
• Model as-is and to-be architectures, capability maps, and information models.
• Ensure architectural coherence across business, application, data, integration, and infrastructure layers.

Architecture Governance & Decision-Making

• Support and facilitate architecture governance processes and decision-making forums.
• Define and maintain architecture standards, design principles, and guidelines.
• Prepare Architecture Decision Records (ADR) and ensure their application in delivery contexts.
• Contribute to architectural review boards and evaluation frameworks.

Transformation & Strategy Support

• Support modernization and digital transformation programs.
• Guide architectural alignment across multiple initiatives and domains.
• Contribute to sourcing and vendor selection processes, including requirements definition and architectural evaluations.
• Ensure alignment between strategic objectives and implementation realities.

Stakeholder Collaboration

• Act as a bridge between business stakeholders, delivery teams, project managers, and technical experts.
• Facilitate architectural discussions and workshops across multidisciplinary teams.
• Communicate complex architectural concepts in a clear and actionable way.

Required Qualifications

Experience

• Minimum 10 years of experience in IT, with strong architectural expertise.
• At least 5 years of experience in:
  • Enterprise or domain architecture roles (application, infrastructure, security, data, ERP, BI, ECM, etc.)
  • Architecture governance and decision-making frameworks
  • Defining and managing transformation roadmaps in complex organizations
  • Modeling enterprise architectures (as-is / to-be)
• Proven experience working in public sector or highly regulated environments.

Technical & Methodological Skills

• Strong knowledge of architecture modeling frameworks and tools:
  • ArchiMate
  • TOGAF
  • UML
  • Sparx Enterprise Architect
• Experience with:
  • Azure and Azure DevOps
  • Kubernetes and Docker
  • Git-based development workflows
• Strong understanding of:
  • Domain-Driven Design (DDD)
  • Event-driven architecture
  • Architecture Decision Records (ADR)

Language Requirements

• Native-level Dutch proficiency (CEFR C2).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting ICT architecture in procurement, sourcing, and vendor selection processes.
• Experience with ICT procurement and evaluation of technology solutions.
• Strong understanding of business processes in complex organizations.
• Experience with project management concepts including cost estimation, planning, coordination, and governance.
• Broad ICT domain knowledge with specialization in at least one architecture domain (infrastructure, application, data, security, or process).

Work Environment

• Academic and research-oriented environment with a large and complex ICT ecosystem.
• Strong emphasis on standardization, governance, and future-proof architecture design.
• Hybrid working model with flexibility for remote work (up to 2 days/week), subject to operational needs.
• Travel between UGent locations may be required.

What Makes You Successful

• Strong ability to translate strategy into actionable architecture.
• Pragmatic approach to complex architectural challenges.
• Strong governance and decision-making facilitation skills.
• Ability to influence stakeholders at different organizational levels.
• Clear communication and documentation skills.
• Strong analytical mindset with a focus on long-term sustainability and coherence.

Apply Now

Interested candidates are invited to apply before 03 June 2026. Due to the short timeline, early submission is strongly recommended.