IBMi Solution Architect - Central Engineering

Costco IT is responsible for the technical future of Costco Wholesale, the third largest retailer in the world with wholesale operations in fourteen countries. Despite our size and explosive international expansion, we continue to provide a family, employee centric atmosphere in which our employees thrive and succeed.

This is an environment unlike anything in the high-tech world and the secret of Costco’s success is its culture. The value Costco puts on its employees is well documented in articles from a variety of publishers including Bloomberg and Forbes. Our employees and our members come FIRST. Costco is well known for its generosity and community service and has won many awards for its philanthropy. The company joins with its employees to take an active role in volunteering by sponsoring many opportunities to help others.

Come join the Costco Wholesale IT family. Costco IT is a dynamic, fast-paced environment, working through exciting transformation efforts. We are building the next generation retail environment where you will be surrounded by dedicated and highly professional employees.

Solution Architects create IT architecture & design solutions based on business requirements, industry trends, and technology options. Solution Architects are responsible and accountable for the solution architecture in partnership with Enterprise Architects, Domain Architects, and Engineering teams. Solution Architects partner with the delivery team for solution planning, delivery, detailed design, and implemented solutions. Solution Architects ensure the implemented solutions are consistent with the approved architecture. Solution Architects communicate, mentor, and lead teams based on program or project needs for solution delivery.

In this key position, the candidate in this role will drive the strategic vision, design, and architecture of critical business applications, focusing on modernization and replatforming projects. This role will be pivotal in defining the long-term technical strategy, enhancing efficiencies, and promoting innovation while ensuring the security and scalability of our solutions. The expertise of this Solution Architect will guide the modernization of applications on the IBMi platform, offering hands-on leadership and mentorship to support teams. Collaboration with cross-functional teams and Architects will be central to achieving our organizational objectives through a collective effort. This Solution Architect will partner with the delivery teams for solution planning, delivery, detailed design, and implemented solutions and ensure the solutions are consistent with the approved architecture. If you are a dynamic leader with a passion for technology and a track record in driving impactful change, we invite you to apply and be part of our innovative and collaborative environment.

If you want to be a part of one of the worldwide BEST companies “to work for”, simply apply and let your career be reimagined.

ROLE

● Drives the strategic vision, design, and architecture of critical business applications, focusing on modernization for enhanced performance, user-friendliness, and portability.

● Influences the development of key technologies and solutions, shaping the future of products and services.

● Takes responsibility for the execution of large-scale projects, ensuring they are delivered on time and within budget.

● Provides build vs buy recommendations aligned with IT and business roadmaps.

● Designs applications architecture for modern IBMi, process optimizations, and data modeling.

● Collaborates to design new products, integrations, and features autonomously or collaboratively.

● Plays a key role in software design and implementation direction for high-quality products meeting business needs.

● Partners with teams as a subject matter expert to deliver benchmarked solutions for complex technical projects using diverse technologies.

● Establishes and collaborates on executing technical direction, standards, and methodology for specified technologies.

● Develops and implements strategic platform vision for global engineering and omnichannel experiences in line with company objectives.

● Leads and mentors a team of Engineers, offering technical guidance and fostering continuous learning and growth.

● Educates technical staff on emerging technologies and collaborates on enterprise-wide technical direction.

● Collaborates with cross-functional teams to implement scalable and reliable solutions, considering technical risks and mitigation strategies.

● Documents solutions architecture design and analysis work, and communicates architectural decisions that impact solutions.

● Defines the principles, guidelines, standards, and solution patterns to ensure decisions are aligned with the enterprise's future-state architecture vision.

● Partners with Enterprise Architecture to establish strategies and standards for global solutions.

● Implements measures to optimize performance and troubleshoot issues.

● Leads application modernization efforts through collaboration and active involvement.

● Recommends infrastructure upgrades to support business growth and evolving technology requirements.

● Identifies the organizational impact (Skills, processes, structures, or culture) and financial impact of the solutions architecture.

REQUIRED

● 10+ years of professional Information Technology experience in solutioning, designing, development, and delivering computer systems.

● 10+ years’ minimum experience of hands-on proven track record in IBMi, RPG, ILE development, and Implementation.

● 5+ years of experience building supply chain products or driving supply chain transformation, e.g. building products for use by customers in digitizing their supply chains, or leading a major supply chain transformation initiative.

● 3+ years of technical team leadership experience.

● 3+ years of hands-on solutions architecture experience with COTS package integration experience.

● Experience with modernizing and decoupling the IBMi applications.

● Proven expertise in working with cloud platforms, such as Azure or Google Cloud, to architect and implement scalable and efficient platforms and services.

● Proven skills in leadership, relationship building, negotiation, collaboration, advocacy, governance, and consensus building.

● Knowledge of IT Application architecture and Design methodologies across multiple platforms.

● Excellent verbal and written communication skills (facilitation, negotiation, conflict resolution) at all levels.

● Ability to translate technical ideas/designs to multiple audiences, including Executives.

● Thorough understanding of and experience with multiple SDLC methods such as waterfall, SCRUM, and/or Agile.

● Ability to communicate trade-offs and transactional states with technical and business teams.

● Ability to make architecture changes in a dynamic agile environment.

Recommended

● Bachelor degree or equivalent experience in computer science, information systems, supply chain operations, or related fields. An advanced degree is a plus.

● Relevant experience in retail, manufacturing, Ecommerce, and supply chain domains.

● Proficient in implementing multi-tiered architecture and Rest APIs.

● Possess Solution Architecture Professional Certification (e.g., IASA CITA-F, CITA-A).

● Knowledgeable in services integration, messaging, object-oriented programming, and enterprise service bus.

● Familiarity with other architecture certifications (e.g., TOGAF 9, SEI).

● Experienced in DevOps, agile methodology, and continuous improvement.

● Ability to understand business needs and strong problem-solving skills.

● Deep understanding of emerging technologies and logical time management.

● Strong communication skills and attention to detail.

● Proven experience in Scrum/Agile environments and creating documentation.

● Capability in eliciting business requirements for various programs/projects.

● Proficient in Google Workspace applications, including Sheets, Docs, Slides, and Gmail.

Required Documents

● Cover Letter

● Resume

California applicants, please click here to review the Costco Applicant Privacy Notice.

Pay Ranges:

Level 2 - $120,000 - $150,000, Bonus and Restricted Stock Unit (RSU) eligible

Level 3 - $145,000 - $180,000, Bonus and Restricted Stock Unit (RSU) eligible

Level 4 - $175,000 - $230,000, Bonus and Restricted Stock Unit (RSU) eligible

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, health benefits - medical/dental/vision/hearing aid/pharmacy/behavioral health/employee assistance, health care reimbursement account, dependent care assistance plan, short-term disability and long-term disability insurance, AD&D insurance, life insurance, 401(k), stock purchase plan to eligible employees.

Costco is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. Costco is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or any other legally protected status. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request to

If hired, you will be required to provide proof of authorization to work in the United States. In some cases, applicants and employees for selected positions will not be sponsored for work authorization, including, but not limited to H1-B visas.