WE'RE HIRING: Application & Domain Architect

Design the architecture that powers the future of merchant technology at Lesaka.

LOCATION
Johannesburg

BUSINESS UNIT
Information Technology

REPORTS TO
Enterprise / Solution Architect Lead

Why This Role Matters

As Lesaka continues to scale across products, channels, and markets, the complexity of our technology landscape grows with it. Every integration, application, data flow, and platform decision impacts how efficiently we operate and how effectively we serve merchants.

This role sits at the centre of that evolution. You will help shape the application architecture that connects ERP, CRM, payments, data, and core merchant platforms into a scalable, modular, and well-governed ecosystem.

Get this right and we move faster, integrate smarter, reduce duplication, and create technology foundations that support growth for years to come.

About Lesaka

Lesaka is a fintech company on a mission to digitise commerce in Africa. We are listed on NASDAQ (LSAK) and the JSE (LSK) and serve merchants, consumers, and enterprises across the continent.

From spaza shops and taxi ranks to restaurants and city traders, our products power the small exchanges and the big steps of African commerce. One platform. Many products. One ambition: to be the most loved Merchant Operating Platform in Africa.

How We Operate

Our strategy starts from a simple operating truth. Exceptional customer experiences come from exceptional staff experiences. We balance four pillars across everything we do: Customer Experience, Staff Happiness, Cost Discipline and Risk Control. Each one amplifies the others when properly aligned.

We have organised around one merchant journey with clear execution and accountability.

Our North Star

Deliver exceptional experiences to our customers and our staff. We measure ourselves against CHAP (Customer Happiness), SHAP (Staff Happiness), Cost-to-Serve efficiency and Regulatory Impact. Happy customers, happy staff, disciplined cost, controlled risk.

The Role

You will design and govern application and domain architectures across the Merchant Division, ensuring scalable, modular, and well-integrated systems aligned to business capabilities, enterprise standards, and long-term technology strategy.

You will work closely with Product, ERP, CRM, Data, Infrastructure, Engineering, Finance, BPMO, and Risk teams to shape architecture decisions, integration patterns, and platform standards across the organisation.

You are strategic, technically strong, and commercially aware. You enjoy solving complexity, creating structure, and designing systems that scale without compromising performance, governance, or agility.

What You'll Own

Enterprise Architecture Blueprint & Application Standards

• Define and maintain application architecture standards, patterns, and reference models aligned to enterprise architecture principles.
• Review and approve application solution designs before implementation
• Develop domain capability models linking business processes to technology services.
• Identify technical debt within the application landscape and define remediation roadmaps.
• Standardise architecture patterns including APIs, microservices, and modular design principles.

Integration & Domain Architecture Enablement

• Define canonical data models and domain boundaries across platforms.
• Design reusable integration and API interaction patterns across systems.
• Review and approve integration designs between ERP, CRM, core systems, and data platforms.
• Reduce point-to-point integrations through API-led and middleware-driven architecture approaches.
• Partner with Integration and Engineering teams to ensure consistent architecture standards across domains.

Architecture Governance & Risk Oversight

• Participate in Architecture Review Boards and governance forums.
• Maintain architecture risk registers covering scalability, security, resilience, and maintainability.
•  Ensure architecture decisions are documented with clear rationale and traceability.
• Monitor adherence to architecture standards across delivery lifecycles.
• Escalate risks arising from poor design decisions or non-compliance.

Technology Investment & Application Lifecycle Advisory

• Evaluate platforms, tools, and technologies against architecture standards and business objectives.
• Conduct build vs buy vs integrate assessments for new capabilities.
• Maintain application lifecycle roadmaps covering modernisation, rationalisation, and retirement decisions.
• Identify overlapping or redundant applications and recommend optimisation opportunities.
• Contribute to technology budgeting and roadmap planning aligned to enterprise priorities.

Stakeholder & Business Alignment

• Engage business and product stakeholders to translate business requirements into scalable architecture solutions.
• Facilitate workshops aligning business capabilities to application and domain architecture.
• Support delivery teams to ensure architectural intent is implemented correctly.
•  Communicate architectural decisions, trade-offs, and constraints clearly across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Resolve conflicts between business priorities and architecture standards where required.

What You'll Bring

You are equal parts strategist, systems thinker, and architecture practitioner. You can zoom out to shape enterprise-wide architecture principles and zoom in to assess whether an integration design or domain model will scale operationally.

You understand how architecture decisions impact cost, agility, operational risk, integration complexity, and delivery speed. You care as much about governance and maintainability as you do about innovation.

• Strong experience in enterprise, application, or domain architecture environments.
• Deep understanding of application integration, APIs, and domain-driven design principles.
• Experience with ERP, CRM, payments, and enterprise platform ecosystems.
• Exposure to cloud-native architecture and integration platforms.
• Strong understanding of architecture governance, standards, and risk management practices.
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to business stakeholders.

How You'll Show Up

• Strategic insight. You see how today’s architecture decisions shape future scalability and operational agility.
• Analytical thinking. You break down complex system landscapes into practical, governed solutions.
• Innovation focused. You identify architecture patterns and technologies that create long-term business value.
• Collaboration. You partner effectively across Product, Engineering, Data, Infrastructure, and business teams.
• Accountability. You take ownership of architecture quality, standards, and governance outcomes.
• Resilient under pressure. You operate effectively in fast-moving, high-complexity environments.

Experience & Qualifications

• 5+ years in IT, with at least 3 years in an architecture-focused role.
• Experience in complex, multi-product or multi-business-unit environments preferred.
• Financial services, fintech, or payments industry experience advantageous.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or equivalent.
• TOGAF 9/10 certification essential.
• AWS, Azure, or GCP Solutions Architect certification advantageous.

Ready to Build With Us?

If you are passionate about enterprise architecture, scalable system design, and building technology foundations that enable long-term business growth, we’d love to hear from you.

Apply now or share this opportunity with someone exceptional.

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