Principal Architect

We are the movers of the world and the makers of the future. We get up every day, roll up our sleeves and build a better world together. At Ford, we’re all a part of something bigger than ourselves. Are you ready to change the way the world moves?

The Ford Motor Credit Company team helps put people behind the wheels of great Ford and Lincoln vehicles. By partnering with dealerships, we provide financing, personalized service and professional expertise to thousands of dealers and millions of customers in over one hundred countries around the world.

In this position...

We are seeking a Principal Architect to drive the modernization of our cloud-native data and application platforms. This role will be responsible for defining and executing an enterprise architecture strategy that aligns with business objectives, data mesh principles, and distributed cloud-native systems.

We are seeking a Principal Architect to drive the modernization of our cloud-native data and application platforms. This role will be responsible for defining and executing an enterprise architecture strategy that aligns with business objectives, data mesh principles, and distributed cloud-native systems.

As a technical thought leader, you will architect scalable, resilient, and secure platforms, collaborating with engineering teams to ensure best practices in cloud infrastructure, data engineering, and automation. You will also play a pivotal role in influencing technical roadmaps, mentoring engineers, and championing innovation.

What you'll do...

Enterprise & Cloud Architecture

• Define and execute the technical vision and strategy for cloud modernization, leveraging Google Cloud Platform (GCP) .
• Design and implement scalable, resilient, and secure cloud-native architectures, integrating machine learning, big data, and observability solutions.
• Establish best practices for automation, CI/CD, and DevSecOps to drive operational efficiency and software quality.
• Lead technical governance to ensure alignment with business objectives, security policies, and compliance requirements.

Data & AI Enablement

• Architect and implement event-driven data architectures that support data mesh principles, data as a product, and domain-driven design (DDD) .
• Define strategies for data interoperability, governance, and self-service platforms to enable AI and analytics-driven decision-making .
• Lead the adoption of MLOps practices, ensuring seamless deployment and monitoring of machine learning models in production.

Technology Leadership & Mentorship

• Partner with engineering, product, and business teams to define scalable and cost-efficient architectural solutions.
• Act as a mentor and coach to senior engineers and architects, fostering a culture of continuous learning and technical excellence.
• Drive technical innovation by researching emerging technologies, contributing to open-source communities, and participating in industry forums.

You'll have...

• 10+ years of experience in software architecture, cloud engineering, or enterprise systems design.
• Deep expertise in cloud-native platforms (GCP, AWS, Azure) and containerized microservices architectures (Kubernetes, Docker, Istio, Service Mesh).
• Strong knowledge of distributed data systems, event-driven architectures (Kafka, PubSub, etc.), and API design (GraphQL, REST, gRPC) .
• Hands-on experience with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Ansible), CI/CD pipelines, and observability tools (Prometheus, OpenTelemetry, Grafana).
• Excellent communication and leadership skills, with the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels.

Even better, you may have...

• Experience in data governance, security, and compliance in cloud environments.
• Hands-on experience with AI/ML deployment, MLOps, and model monitoring.
• Certifications such as GCP Professional Cloud Architect, AWS Solutions Architect, or Azure Solutions Architect.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage

• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more

• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more

• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases

• Tuition assistance

• Established and active employee resource groups

• Paid time off for individual and team community service

• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day

• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: BENEFITS

This position is a range of salary grades LL6 .     

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

If you are located in Dearborn or Detroit, you will have to be in the office 3 days a week.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

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