Application Architect

Location: 

Toronto, ON, CA, M4G 3W9

WELCOME TO VCNA!

We are St Marys Cement, part of Votorantim Cimentos North America (VCNA).

As the North American operations of Votorantim Cimentos, a global building materials and sustainability solutions leader in 11 countries, we are helping to make a positive impact and are transforming our world. We have a culture built on solid partnerships, long-lasting relationships, and opportunities for those who want to learn, grow and be part of a diverse and dynamic culture.

With solutions that include cement, ready-mix concrete and aggregates, we help to build homes, highways, hospitals, buildings, bridges, and schools across the Canadian and U.S. Great Lakes region and Northeast United States. Our commitment to excellence can be seen in those who invest and believe in what we do, those who share their lives with us, those who trust in our deliveries and those committed to innovation and a sustainable future.

Every day, we have the chance to accomplish something new and you're invited to be part of it.

 

Job Purpose

 

This position is responsible for ensuring that VCNA's IT systems reliably and effectively support the company's business goals. The incumbent will achieve this by:

  • Providing the vision and strategy for VCNA's overall systems architecture and innovating through the research and application of existing and new technologies.
  • Addressing business requirements and improving business effectiveness by collaborating with the business teams, local and global IT, and vendors, to deliver solutions aligned with the overall IT strategy.
  • Managing large systems projects, and supervising and mentoring IT analysts, technicians and outsourced support teams.
  • Providing third level technical support.

 

Key Accountabilities

 

  • Act as focal point for the technical team on large projects.
  • Prepare and present project proposals as well as help to identify and schedule project deliverables, milestones, and required tasks.
  • Define project plans for implementing solutions including project scope, technical, financial, resource, change, and people-related aspects.
  • Manage large implementation projects (>300hr).
  • Estimate project schedule and cost based upon agreed scope.
  • Business Analysis
  • Research and analyze technologies to identify, propose innovative, cost-effective solutions to improve processes and support business growth.
  • Create business cases to justify investment.
  • Act as a trusted advisor for business stakeholders to identify the needs of the business.
  • Create functional requirements that clearly define the scope of the request to the business team.
  • Design and implement large software solutions and mentor other team members on medium and small projects including leading with improvements in governance, security, and architecture.
  • Provide technical guidance, advice, and recommendations to assist in technology decisions, directions, strategy, and roadmap.
  • Communicate technical design through functional/technical specifications and diagrams (Landscape, Dataflow, Sequence).
  • Create and execute test plans and detailed test scripts for software solutions (custom and vendor solutions).
  • Understand networking sufficient to analyze application requirements and impacts.
  • Support
  • Respond to assigned tickets and provide third level support including occasional emergency support after regular working hours.
  • Mentor other team members and outsourced support teams.
  • Lead problem investigations to solve system incidents and determine root cause of complex issues.
  • Demonstrate on a regular basis original thinking which is required to assess, troubleshoot, and mitigate issues.
  • Assess complex problems, independently find Root Cause, and determine solutions to implement and document resolutions for future reference.
  • Independently repair and recover from system failures in a timely manner even when not familiar with the system.
  • Coordinate and clearly communicate with impacted parties.
  • Advanced level knowledge of MS Windows operating systems, scripts, Active Directory, and familiarity with computer hardware, interfaces, and cables sufficient to identify and specify cables and systems.
  • Provide reasonably accurate effort estimates for assigned incidents for investigation and solution implementations.
  • Work with vendors, outsourcers, and contractors to improve existing systems and services and ensure SLAs and KPIs are met.


Key Requirements:

  • Strong technical and software architecture skills, especially Microsoft technology stack (dotnet, SQL, PowerBI)
  • Bachelor's degree in computer science or a related information technology field.
  • 12+ years of related experience.
  • Managing small teams.
  • Working with and negotiating with vendors.
  • Working with outsourced support teams.
  • Good interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills in English
  • Microsoft solution architect, Microsoft platform certifications, or equivalent would be very beneficial.

 

OUR PEOPLE

We care about people - all people. At VCNA, we take safety, health and wellness seriously. We're dedicated to giving our employees a safe workplace, our neighbors a safe environment and our customers a high-quality and safe product. Safety first -and always!

 

Our VC Way reflects who we are, inspiring us to unite our culture and be our best: Our Way of Being: ethical and respectful, Our Way of Working: together with excellence and Our Way of Thriving: with the courage to transform.

 

INCLUSION AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT

We have a results-oriented culture that values being open, honest, and authentic. It's part of our DNA. We are continually expanding our diverse and inclusive team by providing opportunities for everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability or economic status - a workplace where you can express your individuality and be your best self!