Principal Architect - Compliance Risk Technology

Wells Fargo Bank•Charlotte, NC

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Wells Fargo is seeking a Principal Architect to help shape and lead the next generation of Compliance Risk Technology architecture across the enterprise. In this highly visible role, you will provide architectural leadership and technical direction for modernization initiatives across Employee Compliance, Regulatory Compliance, Surveillance, and the broader Compliance Risk landscape. These platforms are central to the firm’s regulatory commitments and operational integrity, and the architectural decisions made in this role will have impact across the enterprise. You will partner closely with senior leaders across business, risk, and technology, serving as a trusted advisor on architectural direction and long term strategy. You will translate complex regulatory and business requirements into clear, defensible technology approaches, while guiding how data, analytics, artificial intelligence, and intelligent automation are thoughtfully and responsibly integrated into Compliance Risk operations at scale. This role is well suited for a seasoned architect with deep experience in regulated environments, a demonstrated ability to modernize complex technology ecosystems, and the judgment to balance immediate regulatory needs with long range platform evolution that delivers lasting value to the organization.

Requirements

7+ years of architecture experience, or equivalent demonstrated through one or a combination of the following: work experience, training, military experience, education
7+ years of experience as a Principal, Lead, or Enterprise Architect (or equivalent senior engineering leadership role)
7+ years of experience in Compliance, Regulatory, Surveillance, Employee Compliance, or Risk Management Technology architecture
5+ years of experience with microservices and domain-driven architecture approaches
5+ years of experience architecting modern data platforms, including object storage and open technologies
5+ years of experience designing API-first and event-driven integration patterns
3+ years of experience designing and delivering AI/ML and NLP-based solutions in regulated compliance, risk, or financial environments

Nice To Haves

Ability to operate with executive presence while remaining hands-on where it matters
Comfort navigating complex legacy environments and regulatory constraints
Bias toward simplification, reuse, and platform-based thinking
Willingness to challenge legacy patterns to drive durable, compliant, long-term outcomes
Proven ability to synthesize complex ecosystems into rationalized, target-state architectures
Demonstrated success modernizing large, fragmented technology estates into integrated platforms
Hands-on exposure to agentic frameworks, orchestration engines, or workflow-driven AI systems
Experience supporting regulatory remediation programs, consent orders, or sustained examination cycles
Experience architecting platforms across first-line, second-line, and audit use cases
Strong understanding of enterprise data governance and model risk management frameworks
Strong communication skills with the ability to influence engineers, risk partners, and executive stakeholders

Responsibilities

Act as the architectural authority for Compliance Risk Technology, defining and driving a cohesive target-state architecture across a complex landscape of legacy platforms, vendor solutions, and custom-built systems
Provide architectural leadership for modernization and transformation initiatives, ensuring solutions remain regulator-ready, auditable, and defensible
Translate regulatory requirements and business objectives into clear, actionable architectural designs and multi-year technology roadmaps
Design and govern enterprise-scale application and microservices architectures aligned to Compliance Risk domains, including surveillance, investigations, attestations, issues management, and regulatory change
Define API-first, contract-driven, and event-driven integration patterns supporting near-real-time monitoring and alerting capabilities
Architect modern data platforms that enable compliance analytics, reporting, lineage, and auditability, including object-storage-based data lake and lakehouse patterns
Integrate structured and unstructured data into unified compliance data assets that support traceability, reproducibility, and evidentiary requirements
Design and guide the implementation of AI-enabled architectures, including ML-based risk scoring, alert prioritization, anomaly detection, and NLP-driven regulatory and case analysis
Architect intelligent and agentic automation solutions with appropriate human-in-the-loop controls, aligned with Responsible AI and Model Risk Management expectations
Establish architecture standards, reference architectures, and guardrails across application, data, AI, integration, security, resiliency, and privacy domains
Engage directly with delivery teams by reviewing designs, guiding implementation decisions, and resolving complex architectural trade-offs
Partner with leaders across Technology, Risk, Legal, and Compliance to influence investment decisions, platform consolidation efforts, and long-term technology roadmaps
Maintain awareness of emerging technologies, industry best practices, and regulatory trends, recommending innovations that enhance operational effectiveness and compliance outcomes