Integration Architect

Integration Solution Architect - event-driven and streaming architectures, including Kafka, Redis, and Flink.Who we areAt XPLUS, we have over 100 consultants in a tight-knit community of architects and program managers. Our consultants work at the biggest clients on core programs.We offer possibilities for architects to grow to the next level or to become an architect. We assess your level before joining us, look for strengths and opportunities to grow. We look for a project that fits with your ambitions and have experienced coaches to guide you in your development. The XPLUS academy offers a clear set of trainings and we partner with AMS to get academic insights. Next to the trainings, we regularly meet for knowledge-sharing and some fun togetherWho you areYou are an IT professional with a minimum of 10 year's experience in IT or a least 5 years as IT or solution architect. Growing as an architect and continuing to grow as a professional, is a major drive.· You have experience in development and integration projects.· You have experience in application architecture with excellent middleware knowledge.· You want to be part of a community of architects and to contribute to its growth.· You are entrepreneurial. You initiate actions and you see the project through till the end.· You have a master's degree or bachelor. Preferably in IT.· Fluent in Dutch and or French, and EnglishAbout the missionFor a large financial institution, to support a major back-office migration program, we are building a key real-time integration platform that shields the migration from the consuming front-end applications. This is a multi-year migration effort where mastership of data is gradually moved from the old to the new system, while at the same time updates coming from the front end application must update the right systems in the right order.As an Integration Solutions Architect & Implementation Lead, you will be responsible for defining, maintaining, and evolving the integration solution architecture, ensuring alignment with enterprise and domain-level guidelines. You will also be translating high-level solution designs into detailed low-level designs and ensuring their successful implementation together with development teams.This is a hands-on technical leadership role that combines design, proof-of-concept development, and close collaboration with engineers. You will guide teams in adopting event-driven and streaming paradigms, coach them on best practices, and evangelize modern design approaches across the organization.You will work closely with the lead enterprise architect for the domain, business analysts, product owner, technical leads, developers, and testers to align architecture with implementation, while also coordinating with offshore and distributed teams to ensure consistent delivery. The role demands strong technical depth in Java, Spring Boot, Redis, event-driven systems like Kafka and Flink, paired with the ability to mentor and inspire engineering teams.We are looking for a senior profile with a mature personality who leads by example and can inspire and coach teams to grow and transcend their limitations.Your responsibilities will be to:Define, maintain, and evolve the integration solution architecture, ensuring alignment with enterprise and domain-level guidelines.Translate high-level architectures into clear, implementable designs that balance scalability, performance, and maintainability.Define and validate non-functional requirements such as performance, observability, scalability, and resilience across the integration landscape.Lead architecture reviews and provide guidance on standards, patterns, and integration principles.Lead targeted Proofs of Concept (PoCs) to validate design hypotheses and de-risk technology choices.Mentor technical leads and engineers to strengthen architectural thinking and event-driven design skills.Collaborate closely with development teams, product owners, and enterprise architects to ensure the architectural intent is preserved throughout delivery.Coordinate and align distributed teams, ensuring effective communication, design alignment, and smooth handovers across geographies.Champion modern integration paradigms (event-driven, streaming, reactive systems) and coach teams in adopting them effectively.Provide high-level technical oversight during implementation, ensuring solutions meet architectural quality standards.Key capabilities & experienceProven experience designing and implementing complex integration architectures in large-scale enterprise environments.Solid technical foundation in Java and Spring Boot, enabling credible technical leadership and design validation.Deep understanding of event-driven and streaming architectures, including Kafka, Redis, and Flink.Strong grasp of integration design patterns, middleware concepts, and real-time data synchronization.Experience defining architecture principles, documentation standards, and design governance frameworks.Ability to translate conceptual and logical designs into actionable technical blueprints.Experience leading cross-functional and distributed teams, promoting alignment between architecture and delivery.Excellent communication and facilitation skills to bridge enterprise architects, business analysts, and technical leads.Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and uplift architectural maturity across teams.Openness to continuous learning and evangelizing new paradigms, especially in event-driven and data-streaming systems.Minimum qualifications10+ years of software engineering experience, with strong and recent Java expertise.10+ years of solution and/or integration architecture experience.5+ years in a technical leadership or architecture delivery role.Solid experience translating conceptual designs into detailed technical specifications.Strong communication skills for collaboration across technical roles and geographies.A hands-on mindset — willing to validate design through PoCs and guide teams through complex implementation challenges.Curious how you can become an XPLUSser?First, we have a discussion where we take the time to understand what you have done so far, but especially where you want to go.If we feel the right click, we take you through an assessment by one of our senior architects which results in a report on where you are as an architect.