About Networkz IT
Networkz IT is a managed services provider purpose-built for regulated industries. We go deepest in life sciences - supporting biotech organizations from pre-seed through post-IPO and acquisition across FDA 21 CFR Part 11, GxP, SOX, HIPAA, and CMMC frameworks. We do not treat IT as commodity helpdesk. Every system decision passes through a stage-appropriate compliance and validation review before it goes near a client environment.
Our mission: deliver exceptional IT infrastructure and compliance solutions that enable our clients to operate with confidence, scale without fear, and advance work that matters.
Our four core values drive every client engagement and every internal decision:
- Empathy. We communicate with transparency, actively listen, and lead with understanding and respect in every interaction.
- Accountability. We operate with integrity, honesty, and ownership on all commitments we make to our clients, team, and ourselves.
- Growth Mindset. We prioritize the growth of our clients and team through continuous improvement, scalability, and personal development.
- Detail Oriented. We achieve operational excellence through high-quality, repeatable, and adaptable processes that drive scalability and consistent results.
Position Summary
The Solutions Architect is NIT’s senior technical authority. This role owns the technical direction of all client environments, the design and integrity of NIT’s managed services stack, and the quality of all technical delivery. The Solutions Architect operates at the intersection of deep engineering expertise and client-facing technical advisory - spanning cybersecurity governance, infrastructure design, regulatory compliance frameworks, project technical leadership, and pre-sales engagement for clients in regulated industries.
This is a senior individual contributor role with broad organizational influence. The Solutions Architect sets the technical standard for the entire engineering team, holds design authority across all client environments, and is the accountable technical voice from first scoping call through project delivery and ongoing managed services. Engineers and senior technicians execute within the frameworks, plans, and standards this role defines.
Core Responsibilities:
Technical Architecture and Design Standards
Own the architectural direction of all client environments across NIT’s full managed services stack: Microsoft 365, Intune, Azure, Nerdio, ThreatLocker, Huntress, Fortinet, NinjaRMM, Zscaler, and adjacent technologies. Define and maintain architecture standards, configuration baselines, and security policy frameworks that all engineering work is measured against. Make the final call on technology selection and architectural decisions. Ensure every client environment is designed to a documented, defensible standard before build begins - and that deviations from that standard are identified, reviewed, and resolved, not worked around.
Pre-Sales Technical Partnership and SOW Ownership
Partner with the Account Manager on new business and expansion opportunities. The Account Manager leads client relationships and drives the sales process; the Solutions Architect provides the technical foundation that makes proposals credible and commitments defensible. This includes participating in scoping calls with prospects and existing clients, authoring the technical sections of all Statements of Work, and serving as a required approver on the full SOW before it is presented to the client. No technical scope leaves NIT without the Solutions Architect’s sign-off.
This role brings technical credibility to the room - asking the right discovery questions, identifying scope risk, and ensuring that what NIT proposes is genuinely buildable to the standard we commit to.
Technical Project Leadership
Lead complex client projects from scoping through delivery - owning the technical plan, sequencing workstreams, and directing the appropriate resources to execute. NIT’s senior technical team operates with significant autonomy; the Solutions Architect is expected to run projects independently and in parallel with other senior engineers, not as a layer above them. The distinction this role brings is architectural decision authority and the ability to represent technical complexity directly to client stakeholders when engagements require it.
In practice this includes: participating in internal and joint client project meetings, making architecture and approach decisions when they arise mid-project, keeping the Account Manager informed of technical status and change order needs, and showing up prepared when client calls require technical explanation. Scope changes and technical blockers get surfaced early - not after they have become client-facing problems.
Compliance Competency
Bring working expertise across the regulatory frameworks NIT’s clients operate under: FDA 21 CFR Part 11, GxP, SOX ITGC, HIPAA, GDPR, and CMMC. This includes understanding validation methodology, compliance documentation requirements, and how regulatory obligations translate into technical controls. The Solutions Architect does not need to be NIT’s deepest compliance specialist, but must be independently capable - able to advise clients, contribute to validation work, and maintain competency that keeps NIT’s compliance capability intact across the team. Stay current on regulatory changes and flag implications for client environments.
Tier 3 Escalation and Incident Response
Serve as the final internal escalation point for complex technical issues. Lead incident response for security events across the client portfolio. Own root cause analysis, remediation documentation, and post-incident review.
MSP Toolstack Ownership
Own the technical configuration, maintenance, and evolution of NIT’s internal toolstack: HaloPSA technical configuration, NinjaRMM policies, ThreatLocker policy management, Huntress deployment standards, and AI tool governance. Evaluate and pilot new tools and capabilities on behalf of the organization.
Technical Quality Assurance
Review technical work product across the engineering team. Establish and maintain configuration standards, runbooks, and technical documentation. Identify gaps in team technical capability and recommend training or process changes.
Vendor and Technology Relationships
Maintain working relationships with NIT’s key technology vendors and partners. Contribute to technology evaluations, stay current on the platforms NIT deploys, and participate in vendor conversations where technical expertise adds value - renewals, escalations, new platform assessments. The senior technical team manages vendor relationships collaboratively; this role is expected to carry its weight in that work without requiring a designated hand-off structure.
Required Qualifications:
Experience
- 7+ years in IT infrastructure, systems engineering, or enterprise architecture
- 3+ years supporting life sciences, biotech, pharmaceutical, or other regulated industries
- Proven Tier 3 escalation experience in a multi-client MSP or enterprise environment
- Demonstrated experience setting technical architecture standards and holding a team accountable to them
- Experience owning the technical plan on complex, multi-workstream projects - including sequencing, delegation, and client-facing technical communication
- Experience authoring technical scopes of work and participating in pre-sales discovery
- Background in both hands-on technical execution and advisory/governance work
Deep Technical Expertise
- Microsoft ecosystem (M365, Azure, Entra ID, Intune, Defender suite)
- Endpoint security and monitoring platforms (ThreatLocker, Huntress, NinjaRMM)
- Networking and infrastructure (Fortinet, Zscaler, VPN, SD-WAN)
- Cloud and hybrid architecture (Azure, Nerdio)
- Security operations: zero trust, identity management, threat response
- Scripting and automation (PowerShell preferred)
Compliance and Regulatory Knowledge
- Working knowledge of FDA 21 CFR Part 11 and GxP validation requirements
- Familiarity with SOX IT General Controls (ITGC)
- Understanding of HIPAA Security Rule technical safeguards
- Familiarity with GDPR data protection requirements for clients with EU data exposure
- Awareness of CMMC/NIST 800-171 for defense-adjacent clients
- Ability to translate regulatory requirements into practical technical controls and team-executable standards
Certifications (Preferred)
- Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert or equivalent
- Microsoft 365 Certified: Enterprise Administrator Expert
- CISSP, CISM, or equivalent security certification
- ITIL Practitioner or higher
What Good Looks Like
You walk into a scoping call knowing what questions to ask to find the scope risk the client hasn’t identified yet. The SOW you sign off on is technically accurate, appropriately scoped, and something you are confident the team can deliver. When a project kicks off, you have a plan - not a rough idea, a plan - and the team knows what they’re working on, in what order, and why.
You direct the engineering team clearly and hold the technical bar without doing all the work yourself. You know which engineer to put on which problem and you set them up to succeed. When the Account Manager needs you on a client call to explain a technical decision or a change order, you show up prepared and you speak to the client in terms they can act on.
You set architecture standards and enforce them through documentation and review. When the team builds something, it is built to your standard and there is a record of it. You stay ahead of the regulatory landscape and you translate changes into updated requirements before they become gaps in client environments.
NIT Culture Fit
We look for people who lead with empathy in client conversations, hold themselves accountable without being told to, grow alongside the clients and team they serve, and sweat the details because they understand the stakes. In regulated environments, the details are not optional. A misconfigured policy or an undocumented change is not a minor issue - it is a compliance event, a client risk, and a trust problem. If that framing resonates with how you already work, you will fit here.
Working Conditions
- San Diego metro area residence required. This is a hybrid role - the majority of work is performed remotely, but client site visits in the San Diego area are a regular part of the job. Candidates must be local or willing to relocate prior to start.
- Regular participation in client scoping calls, project meetings, and internal team meetings
- Occasional evening or weekend work for critical implementations or security incidents
- Participation in compensated on-call rotation for Tier 3 escalations
Benefits
- Medical insurance
- Dental & Vision insurance
- Paid time off and paid holidays
- 401(k) with company matching
- Professional development budget and certification reimbursement
This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice. Networkz IT is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.
Pay: $140,000.00 - $175,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Professional development assistance
- Vision insurance
Application Question(s):
- Do you have 3 or more years of experience supporting life sciences, biotech, or other FDA/GxP-regulated industries?
- Do you have Tier 3 escalation experience in a multi-client MSP or enterprise environment?
- Are you currently located in the San Diego metro area, or are you willing to relocate at your own expense prior to your start date?
Work Location: Hybrid remote in San Diego, CA 92121
