DSHS FTAA IT Enterprise Application Architect

Full Job Description

Are you passionate about application architecture and eager to make an impact? We want to hear from you!

Bring your unique perspective to become a leader in developing application strategy and roadmaps that help DSHS modernize, consolidate, and retire applications, fostering change across the diverse programs we serve in Washington State.

The Division of Technology Innovation (DIT) within the Department of Social and Health Services is looking for a strategic IT leader—forward-thinking, collaborative, communicative, and self-motivated—to join as an Application Architect supporting the DSHS Enterprise Architecture team.

In this role, you will lead enterprise technology efforts in application management and governance, ensuring unified application architecture aligned with DSHS and statewide standards, with integrated security and quality.

As DSHS progresses with application rationalization, consistent architectural guidance becomes crucial to avoid fragmented solutions, duplicated efforts, and the accumulation of technical and security debt.

Additionally, this opportunity offers executive-level recommendations and influences architectural decisions that can impact agency strategy and statewide initiatives for years to come.

Such responsibility and influence in governance cannot be achieved through ad hoc task distribution among delivery teams and instead support broader agency and statewide goals.

This role presents a high-visibility opportunity to shape the future of our enterprise applications while collaborating with a dynamic team of professionals.

Together, we will partner with community organizations and stakeholders across the state, building relationships and utilizing resources to deliver impactful business capabilities and services through applications.

Apply now, and let's build the future together!

This opportunity will be a flexible hybrid remote work arrangement, with work from anywhere in Washington. You may occasionally need to travel for business, and the official duty station is in Olympia, WA.

What You Will Achieve in the First 6-12 Months:

• Develop Key Relationships: Build rapport with cross-departmental IT teams, business stakeholders, and leadership across the organization.
• Participate in Application Rationalization: Play a critical role in the upcoming application rationalization efforts at DSHS, which currently has more than 800 applications, that will look to consolidate and decommission similar applications due to functional overlaps to improve business value and/or reduce costs based on business fit, technical fit, and strategic alignment.
• Participate in Application Standardization: Actively influence decisions during current modernization, procurement, and delivery cycles to lock in architectural patterns, integration approaches, and vendor and platform commitments, shaping DSHS technology direction for years to come.
• Plan and Roadmap: Create a robust strategic roadmap for the agency’s future applications architecture, new technologies, and scaling requirements, identifying both immediate and long-term needs.

As a key member of our team, you will:

• Create, build, manage, and monitor the agency's enterprise application vision, strategies, standards, governance functions, and frameworks
• Serve as the designated point of contact for the IT applications architecture, providing sound advice and insight on all technical issues that arise; DSHS technology roadmaps, standards, and enterprise technology reference models; and identifying opportunities to improve enterprise technology quality and availability, and to drive continuous improvement.
• Identify and eliminate gaps in data architecture management practices.
• Define and govern the enterprise application architecture standards, reference architectures, and design patterns that ensure DSHS application solutions are consistent, interoperable, secure-by-design, and aligned with business capabilities and the Enterprise Architecture framework.
• Provide expert leadership across the application lifecycle—including strategy, solution design, procurement support, development oversight, integration, testing, deployment, and operational readiness—by defining application non-functional requirements, validating designs through architecture reviews and decision records, and ensuring compliance with enterprise standards.
• Establish application integration approaches (API-first, event-driven patterns where appropriate).
• Promote modular architecture and shared services and reduce architectural risk and technical debt by steering teams toward maintainable, supportable, and cost-effective solutions.

Our ideal applicant is a skilled professional with a proven history of delivering successful application design solutions.

They possess a combination of technical expertise and business understanding, with a passion for emerging technologies.

Eager to learn, think creatively, and solve complex problems innovatively, they should be familiar with the government environment and its dynamics.

The candidate must be able to simplify complex ideas, eliminate obstacles, and offer clear recommendations to the team.

They need to handle stress, adapt to evolving business needs, and take responsibility for delivering high-quality work on schedule.

Additionally, effective communication with diverse internal and external partners from various technical backgrounds is essential.

If this aligns with your expertise and interests, we invite you to apply today! Come partner with us in this meaningful and critical work.

Who should apply?

Bachelor's degree in information systems or computer science related discipline, or equivalent and extensive project-related experience AND minimum seven years of application development or IT experience with direct responsibility for strategy formulation and/or translation, business analytics, and program management, or consultative experience in Enterprise Data Architecture, IT analysis, or system design.

Experience in these areas can be substituted year-for-year for education.

Five years of progressively responsible experience in the field of application architecture, and/or administration of an application platform.

Knowledge of application development frameworks, application programming interface (API’s) and/or middleware, servers, and storage, as well as project management and business analysis.

Preferred Education, Experience, or Certifications

• A broad understanding of enterprise architecture frameworks.
• Experience with and proficiency in using an enterprise architecture tool, such as iServer, ArchiMate, The Essential Project, etc.
• Knowledge of DevOps principles and implementation of CI/CD within cloud platforms (i.e., Azure, AWS)
• Extensive and broad experience with Enterprise Architecture frameworks (TOGAF, Zachman Framework, etc.)
• A high level of expertise in leadership and facilitation of technical workgroups and teams.
• Experience with the PMI Project Management methodology and the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) model for IT Service Management.

To be considered for this opportunity, please include the following:

• Current chronological resume
• A cover letter explaining why you are interested in the job, and your skills and experience that make you the best person for the job
• Three professional references with current contact information

Questions? Please concact jourdan.kovacs@dshs.wa.gov and reference 02946

The Department of Social and Health Services’ (DSHS) vision that people find human services to shape their own lives requires that we come together with a sense of belonging, common purpose, shared values, and meaningful work. It is crucial to our agency’s vision that you bring a fairness, access, and social justice commitment to your work with DSHS. We strive to support all Washingtonians, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, people with physical, behavioral health, and intellectual disabilities, elders, LGBTQIA+ individuals, immigrants and refugees, and families building financial security.

Additional Information

Prior to a new hire, a background check including criminal record history may be conducted. Information from the background check will not necessarily preclude employment but will be considered in determining the applicant's suitability and competence to perform in the job. This announcement may be used to fill multiple vacancies. Employees driving on state business must have a valid driver's license. Employees driving a privately owned vehicle on state business must have liability insurance on the privately owned vehicle.

Washington State Department of Social and Health Services is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in any area of employment, its programs or services on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, marital status, race, creed, color, national origin, religion or beliefs, political affiliation, military status, honorably discharged veteran, Vietnam Era, recently separated or other protect­ed veteran status, the presence of any sensory, mental, physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability, equal pay or genetic information. Persons requiring accommodation in the application process or this job announcement in an alternative format may contact the Recruiter at (360) 725-5810. Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call through Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6384.



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