Head of Division Architecture & Innovation (all humans)

Erste Digital is the technology engine of Erste Group – one of the leading banking groups in Central and Eastern Europe, serving more than 16 million customers. More than 1,800 experts at our locations in Vienna, Bratislava and Prague develop innovative digital products, platforms and infrastructures that shape the banking of tomorrow.

We combine technological excellence with the ambition to create real value for our customers – agile, sustainable and with a clear view of the bigger picture. This is exactly why we need you.

As Head of Division Architecture & Innovation, you will take on one of the key strategic leadership roles at Erste Digital. You will build and further develop the enterprise architecture function as an internal management consulting unit – with direct impact on our technology strategy and digital transformation. You will work closely with top management, take responsibility for central architecture governance and ensure its decentralised implementation across the Business and Enabler Tribes of Erste Digital.
In parallel, you will also lead the innovation team and be responsible for both central focus topics and the decentralised innovation capabilities of the entire organisation.
You will connect banking and IT strategies with tangible impact – for our company and for millions of customers. You see yourself as a key enabler of the bank’s digital future, continuously assessing the entrepreneurial and regulatory impact of technology decisions.

Your Tasks:

You will be responsible for the entire enterprise architecture function – from strategic direction to operational delivery:

• Positioning and further developing enterprise architecture as a strategic partner for Business and IT, with a clear focus on measurable business value
• Building, leading and developing a high-performing architecture team covering Enterprise, Business, IT and Innovation, including clear roles, career paths and skills
• Designing and establishing effective architecture governance, including principles, standards and decision-making processes, with a focus on adaptive steering and data-driven decisions
• Ensuring end-to-end governance of software development – from requirements engineering to testing – to safeguard quality, reusability and time-to-market
• Strategically steering and consolidating the IT portfolio, including the systematic reduction of technical debt and the promotion of sustainable architecture modernisation
• Identifying and assessing technology trends early and deriving sound strategic options and scenarios to support investment decisions
• Preparing decision-ready materials for top management, including transparent target pictures, dependencies and risks
• Linking IT investments to business outcomes, such as growth, efficiency and risk reduction, and establishing corresponding steering mechanisms
• Working closely with Business and IT stakeholders at all levels to effectively anchor architecture decisions
• Further developing the enterprise architecture operating model, including OKRs, metrics and clear value contributions of the EA function
• Steering and prioritising innovation projects across the entire organisation, with a clear focus on strategic value and efficient use of resources
• Integrating insights from enterprise architecture into the innovation funnel to align innovation with strategically relevant challenges
• Transferring successful innovation initiatives into the regular IT portfolio and ensuring sustainable scaling and industrialisation

Beyond your qualifications, the right attitude towards leadership is equally essential to us. How we live leadership:

• Out of Comfort Zone
• Servant Leadership
• Performance Impact
• Future Orientation
• Client Orientation

Click here to learn more about our Leadership Dimensions.

What you bring:

• Completed degree in STEM, business or a related field – or equivalent experience
• 10+ years of experience in strategic planning, business analysis and/or enterprise architecture
• 5+ years of leadership experience
• Deep understanding of modern architecture paradigms in interaction with the organisation creating and/or operating them
• Proven experience in leading engineering teams and managing complex stakeholder landscapes
• Strong consulting skills: you are convincing in the boardroom as well as in architecture reviews
• Experience with EA frameworks, such as TOGAF, and agile methods at enterprise level
• Excellent communication and presentation skills – in German and English
• Entrepreneurial mindset, systems thinking and the ability to connect the “big picture” with operational details
• Knowledge of the financial services environment or other regulated industries, experience in international, multilingual organisations and involvement in complex transformation initiatives are considered an advantage

Our Offer

• Possibility to benefit and learn from our international, talented and passionate community at Erste
• Interest groups and clubs: Take part in discussions and get involved in projects. Numerous interest groups invite you to engage with a topic
• Health Centre – The Erste Campus operates a fully equipped health center that offers all employees a high standard of medical services during working hours.
• Employee benefits –  Benefit from special conditions for financial services and insurances, supermarkets, clothing stores and many more
• The minimum wage for this full-time position in accordance with the collective agreement with complete fulfillment of the functional profile is EUR 90.000,00 gross per year. But this is just a formality - we would be happy to talk about your actual salary in person! 
• We offer our employees the opportunity to divide their hours between working from home and at the office.
• We consider the diversity of our employees as key to innovation and success. As employer we are proud to offer everyone equal chances, irrespective of age, skin colour, religious belief, gender, sexual orientation or origin.

In addition to your CV, please submit a short Architecture & Innovation Leadership Portfolio of max. 2–3 pages.

This should include:

• Relevant projects from recent years, including your role and achieved outcome
• 2–3 concrete examples of how you created commitment for architecture and innovation decisions in complex organisations – including situations with conflicting stakeholder interests
• Examples of how you managed trade-offs between Business, IT and regulatory requirements
• Examples of how you prioritised, deprioritised or terminated initiatives to ensure a focused IT and innovation portfolio

Please apply by latest 24.07.2026. We look forward to hearing from you.