Enterprise Operational Technology (OT) Architect

NW Natural•Happy Valley, OR

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

NW Natural is seeking an Enterprise Operational Technology (OT) Architect to define, maintain, and govern the company's OT architecture. This role supports gas control, pipeline, distribution, storage, and field operations, ensuring OT systems are secure, resilient, highly available, and aligned with enterprise architecture standards and business objectives. The architect will provide leadership across the full OT lifecycle, including strategy, solution design, modernization, risk mitigation, and technology roadmaps. Collaboration with Enterprise Architects, Solution Architects, Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Operations, and Engineering teams is key to ensuring consistent, standards-based OT solutions. This role also encompasses Solution Architecture responsibilities. NW Natural is committed to providing safe and reliable utility services and renewable energy, with a strong focus on environmental stewardship, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
Minimum 10 years of experience designing, architecting, and implementing technology solutions, with significant experience in Operational Technology or industrial environments, preferably within utilities.
Demonstrated experience developing architecture strategies, reference architectures, and roadmaps.
Knowledge of OT systems and environments used in gas or industrial operations, including SCADA and control systems, gas control, pipeline, and distribution operations platforms, and field devices, telemetry, and industrial communications.
Understanding of IT/OT convergence and integration patterns.
Experience working within enterprise architecture and solution architecture disciplines.
Knowledge of IT service management, governance, compliance, and risk management frameworks.
Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to convey complex architectural concepts clearly.
Excellent analytical, problem solving, and decision making skills.
Leadership and collaboration skills, with the ability to influence across teams without direct authority.

Nice To Haves

Enterprise and solution architecture principles and practices
Operational Technology architecture and system design
Process Control & Plant Environment Architecture
Industrial Network Architecture
Telemetry & Communications Architecture
Enterprise SCADA Architecture
High availability and disaster recovery architectures
OT cybersecurity architecture concepts and controls
Architecture documentation and modeling
Vendor and technology evaluation
Risk assessment and mitigation
Stakeholder communication and facilitation
Strategic planning and roadmap development
Financial and lifecycle awareness for technology decisions

Responsibilities

Define, document, and communicate the enterprise OT architecture strategy, including reference architectures, standards, roadmaps, and guiding principles.
Define current state and future state OT architectures supporting gas control systems, pipeline monitoring, distribution operations, and field telemetry.
Ensure OT architectures address safety, reliability, availability, scalability, and operational continuity requirements.
Partner with Gas Operations and Engineering teams to translate operational requirements into architecturally sound OT solutions.
Lead architectural design for OT initiatives, including system upgrades, modernization efforts, integrations, and lifecycle replacements.
Ensure alignment between OT architectures and enterprise IT infrastructure, network, identity, and security strategies.
Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to incorporate defense in depth, segmentation, access control, monitoring, and risk mitigation into OT architectures.
Provide architectural oversight and governance to ensure OT implementations adhere to approved standards, policies, and designs.
Conduct architectural assessments, gap analyses, and risk assessments for OT environments and recommend mitigation strategies.
Participate in vendor and technology evaluations, proof of concepts, and architecture trade-off decisions for OT platforms.
Develop and maintain architectural documentation, diagrams, and decision records.
Communicate and present OT architecture concepts and solutions to technical and non-technical stakeholders, including leadership.
Provide architectural mentoring and guidance to project teams and technical staff supporting OT initiatives.
Stay current with industry trends, regulatory expectations, and emerging technologies impacting utility OT environments.