Head Resourcing are recruiting for a not-for-profit company headquartered in Edinburgh that delivers data integration solutions relied on every day by dozens of multi-national and FTSE-100 life insurers, pensions firms, and investment platforms and managers, as well as by thousands of firms in the wider UK financial services industry. Owned by some of the UK's leading investment, pensions and insurance companies, the company has the resource and reach to inspire businesses to be better connected and more productive through nurturing greater collaboration, increasing process efficiencies and driving standardisation.
The role is based in central Edinburgh but it is predominantly remote. People from DBA backgrounds or those with strong data analyst roles that want to take on a new challenge and learn new skills are encouraged to apply for this role.

Role Summary

You will have a hands-on role in developing data and process integration design Standards. You will develop a detailed understanding of each problem domain in close collaboration with Business Architects; create integration patterns; marshal data into structures defined using technologies like XML Schema and JSON Schema; work with colleagues to review and refine deliverables; and review and validate outputs with cross-industry working groups of subject-matter experts and technology specialists at Criterion's customers and other stakeholders.

You will also support colleagues in ensuring high quality outputs; and you will contribute to wider strategic work that ensures that the companies technology strategy continues to meet the needs of its community.

The role reports to the Solutions Director and is based in Edinburgh; but extensive use of hybrid working means that it is open to candidates UK-wide.

Key Responsibilities Deliver:

• Develop and deliver technical artefacts, including XML Schema, JSON Schema, OpenAPI specifications, and example data structures in XML and JSON.
• Meet functional and non-functional requirements documented by the companies Business Architects across development and enhancement projects.

Collaborate:

• Participate in industry Project Working Group meetings and other customer engagements virtually, in Edinburgh or possibly elsewhere around the UK.
• Work with Project Managers on resource estimating. Deliver all activities to the quality and timescales of the relevant development project or through the complete lifecycle of related XML, JSON and other artefacts.
• Provide constructive Quality Assurance of colleagues' outputs as required.
• Support key relationships with Project Managers, Business Architects and Technical Architects in the team, to contribute to the overall success of the Development function.
• Work with the Solutions and Programme Delivery Directors for direction and escalation.
• Share knowledge, insights and skills with colleagues and wider team.

Drive forward:

• Provide input and direction to the companies development and enhancement work, as well as technical input to requirements gathering and analysis.

Help shape technology strategy and maintain the companies roadmap of technology opportunities and threats.

• Contribute to the best-practice use of underlying technologies, methods and tools in line with market developments and supplier upgrades. Identify opportunities to use technologies and tools to improve the accuracy and efficiency of their development cycle.

Sustain:

• Support internal infrastructure decisions and provide ongoing support as relevant.
• Contribute to the maintenance of a comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date repository of technical artefacts (models, diagrams, specifications, user guides, other documentation, etc.) for Criterion's services.

About You

The ideal candidate will have roughly 5 years experience as a Developer, Analyst, Architect or similar role; and preferably be educated to degree level.

You will be comfortable undertaking, or developing an understanding of:

• XML Schema design and construction.
• JSON Schema design and construction.
• API specification, with particular reference to Swagger / OpenAPI.
• Use of XML technologies, such as XSLT, XML Schema, XPath, etc.
• Data exchange design using HTTPS and sFTP, including security considerations at rest and in transit.
• Use Case interpretation, process modelling and Entity Relationship/Data Modelling.

It would also be helpful to have some exposure to:

• The UK Financial Services industry.
• SOA development practices and governance.
• Architecture frameworks and modelling tools.
• Development and project management methodologies (e.g., Prince2, Agile).
• Projects that take a polyglot or mix-and-match approach to development languages.
• Use of UML, BPNM or ArchiMate.

In Return

You will receive a salary of £50 - £60k, including discretionary annual bonus, flexible holiday arrangements, flexible working hours, hybrid working, generous pension contributions, Private Medical Insurance, Life Assurance, Critical Illness cover, Income Protection cover, an Employee Assistance programme and a range of Flexible Benefits amounting to 3.5% of basic salary.