IT Solutions Architect – AI & Automation

Position: IT Solutions Architect – AI & AutomationReports To: Director of ITDepartment: Information TechnologyFLSA Status: Exempt
Position Purpose:
The IT Solutions Architect – AI & Automation is the primary technical authority for the application portfolio that supports our food manufacturing operations. That portfolio covers enterprise integrations, custom software, automation, and AI-enabled systems. The role evaluates business processes and technologies, prioritizes opportunities by value, feasibility, and risk, and sets development standards across the full software development lifecycle. The Architect hands-on designs, builds, and supports solutions using the right mix of AI tools, APIs, custom code, and automation platforms, including UiPath, and integrates business applications and data, including our Sage X3 ERP system.
The Architect ensures that all development, deployment, and maintenance of code and software follows industry best practices and SCF IT security practices. The Architect owns each initiative from requirements through deployment, training, and ongoing production support, and keeps solutions reliable, secure, and compliant with food safety, quality, and regulatory requirements. AI-enabled workflows carry appropriate data protections and human oversight. The role works with Finance, Operations, HR, Sales, Maintenance, and IT, and reports measurable results such as time saved, error reduction, and reliability. On an ongoing basis, it establishes the standards and technical foundation that a growing team of specialists will build on.
Key Specific Responsibilities:
Automation and Systems Integration

Define and maintain the architecture for the organization's custom applications, integrations, automation workflows, and AI-enabled systems.
Work with business teams to identify manual processes, define requirements, and prioritize opportunities based on value, feasibility, and risk.
Evaluate tools, platforms, and approaches - including AI services, RPA platforms, APIs, and cloud services and make recommendations that balance capability, cost, and long-term maintainability.
Design, build, test, and deploy automations and integrations using the appropriate combination of APIs, custom code, AI tools, and RPA platforms such as UiPath
Develop and maintain integrations between Sage X3, other business applications, databases, and external services, using C#/.NET and REST or SOAP APIs.
Establish development standards, coding practices, and documentation requirements for solutions built within IT.
Ensure solution designs align with business goals, security requirements, and operational sustainability.
Support CI/CD pipeline processes for deployed applications, including deployments, versioning, and environment configurations.
Design and support custom applications (e.g., web, desktop, or console tools) as needed to complement automation and integration work.
Build and support automation workflows using the appropriate combination of APIs, custom code, AI tools, and RPA platforms such as UiPath — including attended and unattended automations, and Orchestrator scheduling, queues, and monitoring.
Design, build, and maintain custom applications across the organization's portfolio, including web applications (Blazor), desktop applications, console tools, and shared class libraries targeting current .NET versions.
Monitor production systems, investigate failures, and maintain logging, exception handling, and support documentation.

AI, Reporting & Continuous Improvement

Build and maintain data connections and reports, including Power BI dashboards, that help teams make decisions and measure the results of automation and technology projects.
Work with business and IT teams to improve data quality, system connectivity, and the effective use of Sage X3 and other platforms.
Identify and evaluate opportunities to incorporate AI tools and services into business workflows - including document processing, classification, summarization, and decision support.
Develop and test AI-enabled workflows with appropriate data protections, accuracy checks, and human review before they are used in production.
Track outcomes from automation and AI projects (time saved, error reduction, reliability) and report measurable results to stakeholders.
Support operations teams in identifying technology opportunities related to food safety, quality, labor efficiency, and product yield.

Collaboration, Documentation & Training

Partner with Finance, Operations, HR, IT, Sales, and Maintenance to understand needs, estimate ROI, prioritize the portfolio, and deliver solutions.
Own initiatives from initial discussion through requirements, design, development, testing, deployment, and ongoing support; communicate priorities, timelines, and progress to stakeholders.
Maintain clear documentation for each solution: requirements, architecture decisions, process maps, runbooks, and change records.
Train end-users and provide ongoing support to ensure effective adoption of deployed solutions.

Technical Support & Compliance

Monitor production applications, automations, and integrations; investigate and resolve failures, exceptions, and data discrepancies.
Investigate automation and system failures, exceptions, and data discrepancies; restore service, address recurring issues, and maintain logging and exception-handling documentation.
Review the Help Desk system regularly for tickets assigned to them; investigate, resolve, and provide timely updates on those requests.
Provide ongoing technical support for the business applications and solutions within their area of responsibility.
Follow company requirements for access control, data security, testing, and change management.
Ensure solutions support applicable food safety, quality, and regulatory requirements.

Qualifications for Position:

3-5 years of hands-on software development and systems integration experience, including experience with automation (RPA/UiPath) and AI-driven workflows.
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Information Technology, or a related field; equivalent experience considered.
Deep proficiency in C#, .NET (including .NET Core and modern .NET), and SQL; experience delivering production applications across multiple form factors (web, desktop, console, services).
Experience with modern web frameworks including Blazor or comparable platforms.
Experience designing and maintaining CI/CD pipelines and managing application infrastructure and deployments.
Experience integrating with ERP systems; Sage X3 or similar platforms preferred.
Practical experience building RPA automations with UiPath or a comparable platform (Power Automate, Automation Anywhere); Orchestrator experience a plus.
Practical experience applying AI tools or services in business workflows (document extraction, classification, summarization, or similar).
Experience with RESTful APIs, SOAP web services, and data integration patterns.
Experience with relational databases, data warehousing, and reporting tools such as Power BI or Tableau.
Familiarity with version control (Git), CI/CD tooling, and IDEs such as Visual Studio or JetBrains Rider.
Manufacturing, food production, or supply chain experience is a plus.

Supervision:
This position currently operates within the IT department, with the possibility of growing and mentoring a team of specialists as the organization's technology portfolio expands. The IT Solutions Architect collaborates across all business units and provides technical direction for solutions that span the organization.
Measurements of Performance:

Number of solutions delivered on time and within scope annually.
Reliability of production systems and automations (target: 99% or greater uptime; exception rate less than 2%).
Measurable FTE hours saved or cost reduction attributable to delivered technology initiatives.
Stakeholder satisfaction with solution quality and responsiveness.
Quality and completeness of technical documentation as assessed by IT leadership.

Travel Requirements:☐ Overnight Travel – not required☒ Overnight Travel – sporadic - required☐ Overnight Travel – 20% or greater – required☐ Overnight Travel – valid passport required for international travel
Essential Competencies:

Analytical Thinking - Quickly assesses complex, multi-step problems and identifies the most effective solution or integration path.
Attention to Detail - Produces clean, well-structured, and thoroughly tested code and architecture with robust exception handling.
Communication - Translates technical concepts clearly to non-technical stakeholders; comfortable facilitating requirements workshops and design reviews.
Collaboration & Partnership - Builds effective working relationships across Finance, Operations, HR, IT, and other departments to drive adoption of solutions.
Continuous Improvement Mindset - Proactively identifies opportunities to expand the technology portfolio, improve existing systems, and optimize integrations.
Accountability - Takes ownership of deliverables, communicates status proactively, and resolves production issues with urgency.