VP, Architecture

The Vice President of Architecture is the enterprise executive accountable for technology architecture strategy, governance, and organizational leadership across Clean Harbors. The role establishes the target-state architecture and operating model that connect business priorities to secure, scalable, resilient, and cost-effective technology capabilities. As a senior advisor to executive leadership, the Vice President shapes enterprise platforms, applications, data, integration, cloud, infrastructure, and security architecture while ensuring that investments deliver measurable business value and sustainable outcomes. 

This leader builds and develops a high-performing architecture organization, drives consistent decision-making across portfolios, and balances near-term delivery commitments with long-term enterprise health. The position has authority to set architecture standards, chair governance forums, resolve cross-platform design issues, and escalate material technology risks. 

Why work for Clean Harbors?

• Health and Safety is our #1 priority and we live it 3-6-5!

• Competitive wages

• Comprehensive health benefits coverage after 30 days of full-time employment

• Group 401K with company matching component

• Opportunities for growth and development for all the stages of your career

• Generous paid time off, company paid training and tuition reimbursement

• Positive and safe work environments 

Enterprise Architecture Strategy and Governance 

• Define, communicate, and maintain the enterprise architecture vision, principles, reference architectures, standards, and multi-year roadmaps in alignment with company strategy. 
• Lead enterprise architecture governance and decision forums; establish clear decision rights, exception processes, documentation standards, and accountability. 
• Assess emerging and proven technology trends, determining where adoption can improve business performance, risk posture, agility, or operating efficiency. 
• Ensure architecture decisions meet enterprise requirements for security, privacy, resilience, interoperability, performance, scalability, and regulatory compliance. 
• Identify systemic architecture risks and provide executives with clear options, tradeoffs, recommendations, and mitigation plans. 

Business and Technology Strategy Partnership 

• Partner with executive leaders, business stakeholders, Platform Owners, Product Owners, and Engineering leadership to translate business strategy into technology capabilities and investment priorities. 
• Influence enterprise planning, portfolio sequencing, acquisition integration, and major transformation programs through fact-based architecture guidance. 
• Balance speed, cost, risk, and long-term sustainability when advising on build, buy, reuse, retire, and modernization decisions. 
• Present complex technology strategies and decisions in clear business terms to executive audiences and governance bodies. 

Portfolio and Solution Architecture Leadership 

• Provide executive oversight for architecture across complex, cross-platform programs and ensure solution designs align with enterprise target states and roadmaps. 
• Drive consistency across application, integration, data, deployment, cloud, infrastructure, and security architectures while allowing appropriate business-domain flexibility. 
• Establish architecture engagement models that enable delivery teams to make timely, high-quality decisions and realize architectural intent through implementation. 
• Resolve cross-portfolio dependencies and design conflicts, reducing duplication, fragmentation, and avoidable complexity. 

Modernization, Innovation, and Operational Excellence 

• Own the enterprise view of technical debt, lifecycle risk, platform health, and modernization needs; prioritize remediation based on business value and risk. 
• Champion reusable platforms, automation, observability, resilience engineering, and engineering practices that improve stability, maintainability, and delivery performance. 
• Sponsor pilots and controlled experimentation, with defined success measures and responsible pathways to scale or exit. 
• Establish architecture outcomes and metrics, including standards adoption, reuse, risk reduction, modernization progress, reliability, cost optimization, and time to delivery. 

Organization and Talent Leadership 

• Lead, coach, and develop Architecture Directors, Technical Architects, Solution Architects, and related architecture leaders; create succession plans and strengthen enterprise architecture capability. 
• Define organizational structure, role clarity, workforce plans, career paths, performance expectations, and professional development priorities. 
• Build an inclusive, accountable, and collaborative culture that values sound judgment, constructive challenge, transparency, and continuous learning. 
• Attract and retain high-caliber architecture talent and develop architecture communities of practice across technology teams. 

Financial, Vendor, and Risk Stewardship

• Contribute to technology investment planning, business cases, budgeting, and cost optimization; ensure architecture recommendations consider total cost of ownership. 
• Shape strategic vendor and partner decisions, evaluate product and platform fit, and reduce unnecessary technology proliferation and concentration risk. 
• Partner with Security, Risk, Legal, Procurement, Finance, and Audit stakeholders to address technology controls, obligations, and material risks. 

Supervisory Responsibility 

This position has supervisory authority and is accountable for organizational structure, selection, development, performance management, succession planning, workforce planning, and compensation recommendations for the Architecture function. Expected direct and indirect reports may include Directors of Architecture, Enterprise Architects, Technical Architects, Solution Architects, and other architecture professionals. 

May be assigned additional duties not listed above based on business needs.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, or a related discipline required; master’s degree or equivalent advanced study preferred. 
• Typically 15 or more years of progressive technology experience, including substantial enterprise architecture or solution architecture leadership in complex, large-scale environments. 
• Typically 7 or more years leading managers and senior technical professionals, with demonstrated success building architecture capabilities and influencing at the executive level. 
• Demonstrated experience creating enterprise technology strategy and roadmaps, governing major investments, leading modernization, and delivering cross-functional transformation. 
• Alternative combinations of education and relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of degree requirements. 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities 

• Enterprise-wide strategic thinking with the ability to connect business models, operating priorities, risk, and technology investment decisions. 
• Deep knowledge of enterprise architecture practices, cloud and platform strategy, application and integration patterns, data architecture, cybersecurity concepts, and modern engineering delivery. 
• Executive presence and exceptional communication, facilitation, negotiation, and conflict-resolution skills. 
• Ability to lead through influence, establish credibility across diverse stakeholders, and make decisions amid ambiguity and competing priorities. 
• Strong financial and commercial acumen, including business-case evaluation, total-cost-of-ownership analysis, vendor assessment, and investment prioritization. 
• Demonstrated people leadership, organizational design, talent development, change leadership, and succession planning capabilities. 
• Commitment to ethical decision-making, operational discipline, customer and employee safety, and continuous improvement. 

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Wondering what to expect in starting your career with Clean Harbors? Click Here to view a Day in the Life Video!

40-years of sustainability in action. At Clean Harbors, our mission is to create a safer, cleaner environment through the treatment, recycling, and disposal of hazardous materials. Clean Harbors is the leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.  Everywhere industry meets environment, Clean Harbors is on-site, providing premier environmental, energy and industrial services. We are solving tough problems through innovation and proven methodology – come be part of the solution with us.

Join our safety focused team today!  To learn more about our company, and to apply online for this exciting opportunity, visit us at https://careers.cleanharbors.com/.

Clean Harbors is an equal opportunity employer. 

Clean Harbors is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request reasonable accommodation, contact ect@cleanharbors.com or 1-844-922-5547. 

Clean Harbors is a Military & Veteran friendly company. 

Please be advised that Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used to support certain stages of the recruitment process but are not used as a replacement for human decision making. 

Clean Harbors is committed to complying with applicable pay transparency laws and ensuring fair and equitable compensation. The posted salary range reflects the minimum and maximum target for this role. Final compensation may vary based on factors such as location, experience, skills, and business needs. In addition to the base salary, some roles may be eligible for bonus or incentive compensation and a comprehensive benefits package.

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