Solutions Architect – Solutions Engineering

Who we are

Founded in 2016, Alef Education (ALEFEDT on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange) is an award-winning AI powered learning solutions provider redefining K to 12 education. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the company serves approximately 2.0 million students and 84,000 educators across 19,000 schools in the UAE, Indonesia, and Morocco.

Its flagship Alef Platform delivers personalized learning experiences that enhance student engagement and outcomes, while its supplemental solutions Alef Pathways, Abjadiyat, and Arabits extend learning across subjects and languages.

Through its innovative use of artificial intelligence, data insights, and culturally relevant content, Alef Education is transforming teaching and learning to advance equity, access, and excellence for every student. 

About The Role

The Solutions Architect – Solutions Engineering is responsible for the technical design, engineering and delivery of proposals, RFPs and outsourced projects, together with strategic engineering initiatives such as AI Automation projects, across Alef Education’s Digital Office. 

Reporting to the Solutions Architect Lead, the role translates business and bid requirements into robust, scalable and secure technical solutions, provides technical ownership of outsourced delivery and vendors, and works closely with the Business and Growth teams on pre-sales engineering. 

The role where applicable will cover the management and delivery of projects and AI automation initiatives inclusive of management of resources. 

The ideal candidate combines strong hands-on solution engineering and integration skills with experience in proposals and bids, outsourced project delivery and emerging AI and automation technologies.

Key Responsibilities:

Tolutions Engineering and Technical Design:

• Design, build and integrate software solutions and applications across in-house and outsourced delivery, translating business and bid requirements into technical specifications.
• Ensure all solutions are scalable, secure and aligned with enterprise architecture standards and business requirements.
• Develop proofs of concept, prototypes and technical designs to validate proposed solutions.
• Lead the analysis of system requirements, facilitating discussions with key stakeholders to understand needs and information flows.
• Collaborate with development teams to translate business requirements into technical solutions and ensure a consistent understanding across all stakeholders.
• Maintain broad awareness of technology solutions and platforms to enable rapid response to business needs and opportunities.

Proposals, RFPs and Bid Support:

• Provide technical ownership, assessment and analysis of proposals, RFPs and bids for the Business and Growth teams, producing solution designs, effort estimates and technical responses.
• Engage with clients and partners during pre-sales to clarify requirements and present technical solutions.
• Ensure proposed solutions are technically sound, deliverable and aligned with enterprise standards and cost expectations.
• Assess and determine the technical suitability of existing and prospective vendors, partners and clients to inform bid and delivery decisions.

Outsourced Project Delivery:

• Provide technical oversight of outsourced projects, ensuring delivery quality, adherence to design and integration with existing systems.
• Coordinate with cross-functional teams and outsourced vendors to ensure seamless delivery and integration of solutions.
• Identify and manage technical risks and issues, implementing mitigation strategies as necessary.
• Manage and coordinate resourcing across internal and outsourced technical resources where required to deliver projects, providing project management and delivery oversight.

AI Automation and Strategic Engineering Initiatives:

• Lead the technical delivery of strategic engineering initiatives such as AI Automation projects.
• Identify and apply AI and automation technologies to address business and operational requirements.
• Stay up to date with emerging technologies and industry trends to drive innovation in solutions engineering.

Quality Assurance and Documentation:

• Ensure all solutions undergo thorough testing and quality assurance prior to release.
• Produce and maintain technical documentation, including designs, integration specifications and handover materials.
• Implement processes for continuous improvement and optimisation of solutions.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Management:

• Work closely with other functions in Technology and Security.
• Collaborate with business units and the Growth team to understand their needs and deliver effective technical solutions.
• Manage day-to-day relationships with external vendors and partners, ensuring quality and timely delivery of services.

Team and Resource Leadership:

• Lead and manage a team where applicable on  deliverables inclusive of internal and external resourcing.
• Allocate, supervise and develop team resources to deliver projects, proposals and AI automation initiatives.
• Set objectives, monitor performance and provide guidance, mentoring and feedback to direct and indirect reports.

To Be The Right Fit, You'll Need

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., AWS, Azure, TOGAF, ITIL) are a plus.
• 5-7 years of relevant experience across roles such as software development, system architecture and technical consulting, including comprehensive and recent experience designing and delivering complex software systems.
• Proven experience delivering integrations and applications across in-house and outsourced teams, including contributing to proposals, RFPs and bids.
• Minimum of 2 years as a Solutions Architect, retaining strong hands-on coding ability and able to create proofs of concept (POCs).
• Experience leading and managing technical teams, including contractors and permanent (EOR) employees such as developers and AI Automation Engineers.
• Hands-on knowledge of designing, building and integrating applications across in-house and outsourced delivery, with strong understanding of infrastructure, APIs and application support.
• Strong skills in solution design, systems integration, data flows and API development across complex environments.
• Strong hands-on software development background, with the ability to architect and deliver technical, application and business solutions for complex system architectures, infrastructure and related services.
• Proven capability managing technology implementation projects and coordinating internal and outsourced resources to deliver successfully.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, manage and develop technical teams of contractors and permanent employees, setting direction and ensuring delivery.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to articulate technical solutions to clients, partners and stakeholders at every level of seniority, including in pre-sales settings.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to resolve complex technical issues and challenges effectively.
• Ability to drive innovation in IT services and adapt to changing technology landscapes.
• Experience with AWS or Azure cloud, APIs, microservices and automation tooling preferred.
• Understanding of IT requirements and challenges within the education sector preferred.
• Experience applying AI and automation technologies (e.g. initiatives such as Miqas al Dhad) and contributing technical content to RFPs, proposals and bids preferred.
• Good understanding of Agile methodologies and ways of working preferred.
• Ability to quickly research and learn new programming tools, platforms and techniques preferred.
• Fluency in English.

What we offer

We believe our people are our greatest advantage. We value curiosity, purpose, and the drive to make a real difference. When you join Alef, you join a mission — and a team that’s just as passionate about transforming education as you are.

At Alef, we don’t just imagine a better future for education.

We build it — together.

https://www.alefeducation.com/