Software Systems Architect

Matthews International•Cranberry Township, PA

About The Position

The Software Systems Architect owns the holistic architecture of the platform - from device firmware through user interfaces and cloud integrations - establishing standards, defining integration patterns, and ensuring security and compliance are built in by design. Serves as the primary custodian of the organization’s technical vision and platform architecture. Bridges high-level business and product requirements with low-level technical design and execution, ensuring that software systems are secure, scalable, resilient, and fit for long-term evolution. Assesses, secures and strengthens the existing product portfolio, addresses architectural risks, security gaps, and technical debt. The ideal candidate will be in the Pittsburgh, PA area.

Requirements

10+ years’ experience in Software Engineering
3+ years’ experience in a dedicated Architectural or Principal Engineering role.
Proven ability to design interconnected systems that balance the constraints of embedded hardware with the flexibility of cloud environments.
Deep understanding of system architecture, integration patterns, APIs, and data flows.
Proven ability to guide architectural decisions across multiple teams.
A track record of "leading through influence," mentoring senior engineers and driving technical consensus without formal authority.
Experience embedding security, reliability, and compliance requirements into system design.

Nice To Haves

Deep experience with Embedded Linux (Yocto Project), RTOS, and industrial communication protocols.
Expertise in AWS/Azure IoT stacks, distributed systems, and data-at-scale.
Strong background in industrial security, including secure boot, encryption, and vulnerability management throughout the SDLC.
Proven ability to design interconnected systems that balance the constraints of embedded hardware with the flexibility of cloud environments.
Experience supporting long-term platform evolution and modernization initiatives.
Familiarity with DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and infrastructure architecture.

Responsibilities

Own the end-to-end technical roadmap for new product development while ensuring the stability and modernization of legacy systems
Define and maintain the overall software architecture, including system boundaries, component interactions, data flows and deployment models.
Establish architectural standards, principles, and reference patterns to ensure consistency across teams.
Ensure architectural decisions support scalability, reliability, performance, and long-term maintainability.
Provide Architectural oversight through design reviews and technical guidance.
Ensure architectural decisions are grounded in measurable business outcomes, balancing cost, risk, and technical investment to maximize return on investment and support long-term product and platform viability.
Collaborate closely with Product Management, Engineering Leadership, DevOps, and Security teams to ensure solutions meet business and operational needs.
Provide architectural oversight through design reviews and technical guidance.
Maintain architectural documentation and decision records.
Work within an agile development framework to guide architectural decisions, adapt rapidly to evolving product requirements and market conditions, and ensure technical solutions remain aligned with changing business priorities.
Ensure non-functional requirements (security, availability, performance, observability) are addressed by design.
Define patterns for identity, access control, encryption, dependency management, and secure communication.
Anticipate and mitigate architectural risks related to data protection, system resilience, and regulatory requirements.
Guide teams in managing technical debt through intentional trade-offs and modernization strategies.
Act as a technical authority and mentor to engineering teams and technical leads.
Align multiple teams around shared architectural direction and integration patterns.
Lead Proof of Concept (POC) initiatives for emerging technologies, such as AI-driven development tools
Lead the end-to-end architecture of a next-generation industrial printer platform supporting embedded systems, HMI, and cloud-connected IoT applications.
Additional duties as assigned.