Technical Architect

Join us in enabling trade through Canada's largest port

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is an arm's-length federal agency responsible for the shared stewardship of the lands and waters that make up the Port of Vancouver, Canada's largest port. Our mandate, as outlined in the Canada Marine Act, is to enable Canada's trade objectives on behalf of all Canadians, ensuring the safe movement of goods through the Port of Vancouver while protecting the environment and considering local communities.

As an organization with a significant impact on communities and businesses across Canada, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is dedicated to diversity, inclusion, and sustainability. We strive to create a workplace that mirrors the richness of our community, empowering all employees to achieve their full potential.

The Technical Architect works closely with IS teams and stakeholders to define and govern information technology architecture standards and decisions for applications, integrations, and digital platforms. This position works closely with Manager, IT Platform Engineering to drive the definition and maintenance of architecture designs, integration patterns, and technical standards, translating project and platform requirements into clear, implementable technical direction. As a key technical resource, the Technical Architect owns architecture decisions across platforms and the integration lifecycle, including defining technical requirements, producing architecture decision records and specifications, and providing implementation oversight and ongoing stewardship.

What you do: Conduct research and analysis to evaluate technologies, platforms and integration approaches against IS architecture standards and project requirements.

Explore and recommend frameworks, platforms and technical stacks; assess fit against technical architecture standards and IS platform portfolio

Act as a primary owner in the Information Services team for technology planning and participate in the internal projects planning process

Identify and implement improvements to address technical debt, enhance integrations, and improve platform reliability through effective leadership and collaboration

Lead the identification and validation of business and technical needs with internal and external stakeholders, and own the creation of technology specifications and requirements

Translate business and project requirements into implementable technical specification, converting objectives into concrete architecture designs and specifications for delivery teams

Ensure platform coherence across IS‑governed environments by designing solutions that are connected, reusable, and integrated into the broader VFPA technology ecosystem, avoiding isolated point solutions

Provide architecture oversight across the full scope of IS‑governed technology work: enterprise application implementations, IT infrastructure and field technology projects (IoT, cameras, gate control, OT/IT systems), data integration initiatives, platform version upgrades (e.g. major platform releases and service changes), and custom development projects

Produce and maintain architecture decision records (ADRs), solution design documents, and integration diagrams that serve as the authoritative technical reference for IS platforms and projects; use these artifacts to drive alignment sessions across IS teams

Provide technical leadership as it relates to developing strategy, scalability, performance, architecture and overall high‑level design to ensure solution quality

Technology solution owner during the implementation phase

Champion the adoption of reusable architecture assets to improve efficiency

Own the roadmap for AI infrastructure, tools, and platforms (in coordination with other IS teams for AI productivity and governance); define technical standards for safe and consistent AI adoption across IS

Architect and coordinate implementation of purpose‑built AI products, integrations, and complex agent‑based solutions

Own agent orchestration, runtime environments, deployment pipelines, CI/CD for agents, and API patterns

Enforce runtime safety controls: sandboxing, rate limiting, human‑in‑loop escalation, and rollback procedures

Define and enforce integration and identity standards for AI systems: secure APIs, authentication and authorization controls, tenancy guardrails, and data flow controls

Define and maintain technical guardrails for AI: standard libraries, vetted model endpoints, cost controls, and vendor constraints to limit platform lock‑in

Identify integration opportunities and overlaps among VFPA systems and infrastructure; maintain the integration pattern library and resolve application and data integration issues as required

Own and maintain the IS API catalog; define API design, versioning, and integration standards to enable consistent and reusable connections across VFPA platforms and systems

What you bring: A post‑secondary degree in computer science, information systems, engineering or another acceptable area, along with a minimum of five years related experience, including recent proven leadership on enterprise platform architecture, cross‑system integration design, and technical standards ownership environments.

Experience working with both agile and waterfall delivery methodologies is required, and well as proficiency in tools like Visio, draw.io, Jira, and SharePoint. Strong preference for those with a passion and dedication to ongoing professional development. Must value maintaining technology skills and act proactively to stay abreast of advances in their areas of expertise.

Must have demonstrated experience with the following:

Proficiency in tools like Visio, draw.io, Jira, and SharePoint

Cloud data platforms (Azure and AWS) along with on‑premises data integration

Understanding of on‑premises and on‑cloud technology deployments

Experience working as a technology solution owner

Complex technical and architectural documentation skills

Conceptual understanding of and exposure to modern programming languages, data management, analysis and reporting tools

Development and programming hands‑on experience

What we offer:

Market‑competitive base salaries and variable incentive plan

Flexible remote work program

Earned time off program

Paid vacation and personal care leave

Learning, development, and advancement opportunities

Onsite gym with towel service in a national landmark in the heart of Vancouver's waterfront

Generous and inclusive benefits package including retirement benefits plan

Location:

Vancouver, Canada

Job type:

Bargaining Unit, Full‑Time, Permanent, Hybrid

Working environment:

Normal office conditions.

MARINETRANSPORTATION SECURITY CLEARANCE

The incumbent must obtain and maintain a valid Marine Transportation Security Clearance as this position is required to access restricted areas/information as defined by the Marine Transportation Security Regulations.

This is Canadian‑based employment, and all employees are expected to maintain legal eligibility to work in Canada. Applicants advancing in the hiring process may be subject to technical assignments, psychometric assessments, and/or background checks, including but not limited to criminal record, credit, and/or reference checks.

At the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, we are dedicated to employment equity and a workplace reflective of the diversity of our port community. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates including women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, and members of visible minorities. Reasonable accommodation can be provided in the selection process and while working with the port authority. If you require assistance with applying to our openings or are seeking accommodations to apply in an alternative format, please contact us at careers@portvancouver.com. We are committed to supporting your needs and will do our best to provide the necessary assistance.

We recognize and acknowledge that we are located on the traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil‑Waututh) Nations. To learn more about our First Nation relations and commitment to reconciliation, please visit our website.

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