Technical Architect - AI Platform

USAA•San Antonio, TX

1d•$143,320 - $273,930•Hybrid

About The Position

The Technical Architect, AI Platforms, establishes technology strategy and architecture for enterprise AI and machine learning platforms. This role evaluates emerging technologies, defines scalable architecture and design patterns, and guides the integration, deployment, and operation of AI capabilities across USAA’s technology and data ecosystems. The ideal candidate combines practical AI/ML architecture experience with strong business judgment and enterprise influence. This person will translate business needs into clear technical direction while balancing innovation, scalability, operational readiness, risk, cost, and responsible AI practices. We offer a flexible work environment that requires an individual to be in the office 4 days per week. This position can be based in one of the following locations: San Antonio, TX, Plano, TX, OR Phoenix, AZ. Relocation assistance is not available for this position.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree; OR 4 years of relevant education and/or experience.
8 years of experience in advanced analytics or equivalent field to include at least 2 years in a technical leadership role within IT.
Experience in technology application development and/or infrastructure and operational implementation.
Demonstrated experience in explaining complex technology decisions to both technical and nontechnical audiences at all levels in the organization.
Demonstrated experience effectively communicating and developing high trust relationships with frontline and second level management and stakeholders.
Understanding and application of technical architecture standards, principles, and policies and knowledge of applicable regulations and risk management practices.

Nice To Haves

Experience architecting and operationalizing enterprise AI/ML or generative AI solutions, including cloud-based AI platforms, MLOps or LLMOps practices, and integration with existing applications and data ecosystems.

Responsibilities

Collaborates with business and IT stakeholders to understand strategy, requirements, measures, risks and controls for a business function or IT domain.
Utilizes expertise and research to create technology decisions with relevant architecture artifacts and proactively apply architecture thinking to conceive evolutionary strategies and roadmaps that can accelerate current capabilities for a business function or technology domain.
Cultivates productive and trusted relationships with business and IT stakeholders, as well as engineering resources, to provide leadership and guidance to influence and shape priority, cost transparency and execution of architecture solutions and domain direction.
Assess domain applications in collaboration with business and application owners to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats and risks. Advise business owners of proposed courses of action.
Defines and documents architecture standards for a technology domain to ensure architectural compliance of technology solutions. Use risk assessment methodologies to draft/evaluate and approve/reject waivers to architecture standards.
Participates in activities that support the USAA technology ecosystem such as workstream planning, solution design reviews, code reviews, test case definition, and assistance in troubleshooting of Availability Command Center incidents to resolve complex production issues related to a technology domain.
Provides professional and technical mentorship for new architects, engineers and IT community colleagues in an open, respectful, flexible and empathetic manner. Seeks out mentoring opportunities specifically to create team redundancy and backfill ability.
Executes architecture practices and processes by properly creating and maintaining architecture domain documentation, ensuring timely completion of deliverables and suggesting enhancements.
Establishes external relationships with contacts on industry organizations and government boards and vendors in the marketplace related to a business function or technology domain.
Establishes a plan to gain external eminence by pursuing professional and industry technical certifications, presenting at conferences, publishing technical papers, contributing to open source, authoring patents, etc..
Ensures risks associated with business activities are effectively identified, measured, monitored, and controlled in accordance with risk and compliance policies and procedures.