IT Architect - HR Technology

Caterpillar Inc.•Irving, TX

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc. When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it. IT Architect – HR Technology Leads architectural guidance for complex projects, addressing critical challenges and maintaining high standards of quality across deliverables.

Requirements

The ability to objectively evaluate tools, platforms, and vendors - balancing factors such as cost, complexity, and long-term maintainability.
The ability to clearly explain why a choice was made, not just what was chosen. Technical architects bridge the gap between business and technology.
The ability to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders, influence technology teams without formal authority, and create clear diagrams and documentation that align everyone around a shared solution.
HR technology architects excel at translating HR strategy (talent, workforce planning, skills, AI-enabled insights) into technical solutions.
Partner closely with HR, Legal, Finance, and IT to align architecture decisions with operating models, change management, and long-term transformation goals.
Analytical Thinking: Knowledge of techniques and tools that promote effective analysis; ability to determine the root cause of organizational problems and create alternative solutions that resolve these problems. Seeks discrepancies and inconsistencies in available information; explains variances. Organizes and prioritizes the sequence of steps to be taken to remedy the situation. Identifies many possible causes for a problem based on prior experience and current research. Quantifies the costs, benefits, risks and chances for success before recommending a course of action. Approaches a complex problem by breaking it down into its component parts. Chooses among a diverse set of analytical tools according to the nature of the situation.
Core Application Systems: Knowledge of major production application systems used for delivery services to internal and external clients; ability to leverage major production application systems in diverse situations. Leads in designing application architecture for core applications. Consults on conversions and retirement of core systems. Monitors industry for new approaches to applications development and implementation. Ensures that appropriate back-up, recovery, and contingency plans are in place for core applications. Conceptualizes and describes high-level data flows between core systems.
Technical Excellence: Knowledge of a given technology and various application methods; ability to develop and provide solutions to significant technical challenges. Advises others on the assessment and provision of all technical solutions. Engages appropriate subject matter resources to effectively resolve technical issues. Mentors others to enhance their technical competence and their application to achieve more effective technical solutions. Coaches others in promoting, defining, analyzing, and providing superior technical solutions to business problems.
Software Product Design / Architecture: Knowledge of software product design; ability to convert market requirements into the software product design. Plays a leading role in the development of technical standards and platforms. Elaborates on the evolution of technical design tools, techniques and strategies. Demonstrates extensive experience with software design, development and deployment. Compares and contrasts software design and architecture of competitive products. Directs company-wide application software architecture design methods, tools, and practices.
Application Modernization: Knowledge of the concepts, processes and technologies of application modernization; ability to design, develop and deploy modernization plans based on specific business requirements. Creates and customizes cloud application modernization plans based on specific business requirements. Consults on security issues and problems regarding application migration. Coaches others on the modernization approach for microservice-based application. Leads discussions on the challenges and risks in developing cloud-native based applications. Provides insights into complex technical problems of coexistence of legacy and new application systems.
Architecture Modeling: Knowledge of Architecture Modeling; ability to develop and modify enterprise architecture through conceptual, logical and physical approaches. Consults on architecture framework design verify operational objectives for each framework design procedure. Determines corresponding indicators for each technology layer and evaluates the operational performance of each layer. Decides on specific roles and responsibilities of engineers within business, information and data architecture modeling.
Requirements Analysis: Knowledge of tools, methods, and techniques of requirement analysis; ability to elicit, analyze and record required business functionality and non-functionality requirements to ensure the success of a system or software development project. Follows policies, practices, and standards for determining functional and informational requirements. Confirms deliverables associated with requirements analysis. Communicates with customers and users to elicit and gather client requirements. Participates in the preparation of detailed documentation and requirements. Utilizes specific organizational methods, tools, and techniques for requirements analysis.
Target Architecture: Knowledge of target architecture; ability to develop the IT blueprint and roadmap while aligning the architecture and processes with business strategies and objectives. Designs each phase in the target architectural process and selects corresponding portfolio of services to ensure that stakeholder requirements are fully met. Monitors target architectural processes to ensure that they are in line with business strategies and objectives. Advises others on implementing quality assurance deliverables and estimated outcomes for target architecture. Guides less experienced architects in the processes involved in analyzing target architecture. Coordinates architectural resources to ensure that the future state of IT meets client requirements. Provides solutions to moderately complex architectural modeling problems and significant barriers encountered in the target architecture design process.

Nice To Haves

An understanding of major HR platforms (e.g., Workday) and their native capabilities, data schemas, and limitations. This includes knowing when to configure vs. customize or when to “make” vs. “buy” a technology solution.
A blend of HR and technology skills.
Ability to foster relationships between different business functions, such as IT and Legal.

Responsibilities

Partner closely with Caterpillar IT to maintain an end-to-end view of the HR tech stack, including current-state architecture and target state development.
Drive architectural and data integration capability, defining patterns that enable reuse, scalability, and clean integrations across tools.
Designing an application's technical infrastructure, such as specific databases, programming languages, utilities, and testing approaches.
Leading the evaluation and deployment of innovative technologies to add or enhance existing digital technical capabilities.
Participating in addressing business requirements for applications and collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver digital solutions that meet business results.