Sr. Systems Design/Architecture Engineer

Adobe Software

Adobe Software

Design, IT
San Jose, CA, USA
USD 163,200-311k / year + Equity
Posted on Aug 15, 2025

JOB LEVEL

P55

EMPLOYEE ROLE

Individual Contributor

We are seeking a seasoned Systems Design/Architect to join our Business Architecture team, with a dual focus: delivering enterprise-grade systems architecture and leading the design and optimization of Adobe Experience Platform (AEP). This role is ideal for someone who thrives at the intersection of technical innovation, business strategy, and operational excellence.

You will need to work effectively with key collaborators to define and implement scalable, resilient, and observable solutions that support our global, multi-product business.

What you'll Do

  • Deliver requirements analysis, study market trends, and formulate informed recommendations.
  • Define innovation strategy and roadmap for addressing high priority opportunities.
  • Identify and Prioritize good bets for technology investment.
  • Collaborate with Product, Engineering, Digital Media Business Unit, UX, and others to deliver new innovative solution features.
  • Drive architectural design for multiple initiatives.

What you need to succeed

Required

  • 10+ years of experience in solution architecture or enterprise systems design.
  • Solid grasp of architecture design principles, cloud-native patterns, and business process optimization.
  • Hands-on experience with Adobe Experience Platform, including Real-Time CDP, Journey Optimizer, and Customer Journey Analytics.
  • Familiarity with observability tools (e.g., Datadog, Splunk, ELK) and workflow orchestration (e.g., Airflow, Azure Data Factory).
  • Experience with SQL, NoSQL, and data management concepts.
  • Superb communication and customer engagement skills.

Preferred

  • Experience and proven success in a global, multi-brand enterprise with both B2C and B2B customer models.
  • Proficiency in data mesh, design focusing on domains, and federated data governance.
  • Adobe certifications (e.g., AEP Architect or Developer).
  • Familiarity with multiple cloud providers and enterprise SaaS platforms.

Key Responsibilities:

Core Architecture & Innovation

  • Conduct industry and technology research to identify trends and innovative practices.
  • Define and evolve target architectures, sometimes in collaboration with enterprise architects.
  • Deliver effective design ensuring scalability, performance, and resilience.
  • Develop proof-of-concept solutions and validate them with collaborators.
  • Participate in Architecture Review Boards (ARBs) and maintain architecture documentation.

Leadership

  • Design and optimize AEP architecture to support real-time customer data ingestion, identity resolution, segmentation, and activation.
  • Implement observability across AEP workflows: monitoring, alerting, logging, and self-healing mechanisms.
  • Ensure compliance with global data privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA) using Adobe Privacy Service and data usage labels.
  • Translate business goals into scalable technical solutions.

Multi-functional Collaboration

  • Collaborate with business, marketing, data engineering, and analytics teams to ensure AEP meets evolving business and data needs.
  • Partner with product managers, engineers, and UX designers to deliver innovative features.
  • Advocate for adoption of new technologies and architectural improvements across teams.

Success Metrics:

  • Delivery of scalable and resilient architecture aligned with business goals.
  • Operational excellence in AEP workflows (e.g., uptime, data freshness, segment accuracy).
  • Adoption of AEP and efficient architectural practices across business units.
  • Measurable improvements in customer engagement and data-driven decision-making.

Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this position is $163,200 -- $311,000 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process.

At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans. Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP).

In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award.

State-Specific Notices:

California:

Fair Chance Ordinances

Adobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

Colorado:

Application Window Notice

Aug 13 2025 12:00 AM

If this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs.

Massachusetts:

Massachusetts Legal Notice

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Internal Opportunities

Creativity, curiosity, and constant learning are celebrated aspects of your career growth journey. We’re glad that you’re pursuing a new opportunity at Adobe!

Put your best foot forward:

1. Update your Resume/CV and Workday profile – don’t forget to include your uniquely ‘Adobe’ experiences and volunteer work.

2. Visit the Internal Mobility page on Inside Adobe to learn more about the process and set up a job alert for roles you’re interested in.

3. Check out these tips to help you prep for interviews.

4. If you are applying for a role outside of your current country, ensure you review the International Resources for Relocating Employees on Inside Adobe, including the impacts to your Benefits, AIP, Equity & Payroll.

Once you apply for a role via Workday, the Talent Team will reach out to you within 2 weeks. If you move into the official interview process with the hiring team, make sure you inform your manager so they can champion your career growth.

At Adobe, you will be immersed in an exceptional work environment that is recognized around the world. You will also be surrounded by colleagues who are committed to helping each other grow through our unique Check-In approach where ongoing feedback flows freely. If you’re looking to make an impact, Adobe's the place for you. Discover what our employees are saying about their career experiences on the Adobe Life blog and explore the meaningful benefits we offer.

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