Senior Solutions Architect at Miva Open University

Miva Open University is a Pan-African Open Distance e-Learning University that is committed to enabling learners reach their maximum potential by delivering top-tier tertiary education services through the use of high-quality content and immersive practical experiences.

OVERALL FUNCTION

• We are seeking a Senior Solutions Architect to define and drive the strategic direction of Miva’s AI-powered educational technology ecosystem.
• You will lead the design, evaluation, and implementation of scalable, secure, and future-ready architectures that enhance digital learning experiences and support enterprise-level AI adoption.
• In this role, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams, mentor junior architects, and provide strategic guidance across infrastructure, AI integration, and digital content delivery.
• The ideal candidate brings deep technical expertise in cloud-native platforms, AI systems design, API ecosystems, and emerging edtech technologies, along with strong leadership and business acumen.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Define and execute Miva’s enterprise architecture strategy for AI-enabled edtech solutions, aligning it with long-term product and learning goals.
• Evaluate and select AI platforms, large language models LLMs), embedding stores (e.g.,
• FAISS, Pinecone, Weaviate), and vector databases that optimize personalized learning, search, and content generation.
• Architect and manage API orchestration layers to enable seamless integration of third-party AI tools, internal services, and generative content engines.
• Establish technical guidelines for model evaluation, A/B testing, monitoring, and observability frameworks to assess performance, drift, and fairness.
• Lead design and implementation of cloud-native, scalable infrastructure for real-time inference, data transformation, and multimodal content delivery.
• Collaborate with executive leadership to advise on the strategic adoption and lifecycle planning of AI/ML technologies.
• Drive the roadmap for generative AI applications, including autonomous content generation, chatbot tutors, semantic search, and intelligent feedback systems.
• Partner with research and development to explore, prototype, and validate emerging technologies, translating innovation into practical impact.
• Develop and enforce architecture standards, design patterns, and technology governance frameworks across platforms.
• Define best practices for DevOps, including CI/CD pipelines, containerization, infrastructure-as-code, and monitoring for AI-based systems.
• Ensure that all architectures meet regulatory, privacy, and security compliance (e.g.,
• GDPR, COPPA across the digital education landscape.
• Collaborate with curriculum, content, and engineering teams to ensure architectural alignment with instructional design and learner needs.
• Serve as a technical advisor to Miva’s publishing arm (Equator) to support the development of simulations, case studies, and immersive learning assets.
• Manage relationships with external vendors, AI service providers, and technology partners to evaluate and negotiate solutions.
• Oversee the design and execution of proof-of-concepts (PoCs) and MVPs for next-generation learning technologies.
• Promote knowledge sharing through internal documentation, architecture reviews, workshops, and communities of practice.
• Define and track KPIs and metrics to measure solution impact, model efficiency, and user engagement across systems.
• Drive architectural cost optimization while ensuring long-term performance, resilience, and value of deployed technologies.

QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS

• Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• 6–10 years of experience in software or solutions architecture, with at least 3 years in a senior or leadership capacity.
• Deep expertise in AI/ML systems, including model deployment, inference optimization, and orchestration.
• Proven track record with cloud platforms AWS, Azure, or GCP, microservices architecture, and serverless computing.
• Familiarity with vector databases, prompt chaining, and embedding workflows in the context of LLM-based applications.
• Experience evaluating and implementing AI tools like LangChain, Hugging Face, OpenAI APIs, or Vertex AI.
• Strong grasp of data governance, compliance frameworks, and security protocols in educational or digital environments.
• Demonstrated success leading cross-functional teams and aligning technical vision with organizational goals.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence both executive and engineering stakeholders.

Method of Application