About this opportunity
Original employer descriptionWho We Are
At Kyndryl, we design, build, manage and modernize the mission-critical technology systems that the world depends on every day. So why work at Kyndryl? We are always moving forward – always pushing ourselves to go further in our efforts to build a more equitable, inclusive world for our employees, our customers and our communities.
The Role
The Opportunity
Every large enterprise is sitting on decades of business-critical applications and a rare chance to reinvent them with agentic AI. As a Modernization Architect at Kyndryl, you’ll be the person who turns that chance into reality.
You’ll step into a client’s toughest modernization challenge, turn ambiguity into a clear architecture and roadmap, and build the working demo, pilot, or MVP that proves the value. Then you’ll stay with it, guiding delivery teams and advising senior executives, until the promised outcomes are delivered. Your work will span everything from focused engineering pilots to large-scale agentic factories.
This is a hands-on, client-facing leadership role in Kyndryl’s Global Modernization Center of Excellence. It’s built for architects who like to build, enjoy being in the room with decision-makers, and want their work to show up in real business results.
Why You’ll Love This Role
- Build things that work. Create production-ready agentic AI demos, pilots, and reference implementations, not slideware.
- Start ahead. Accelerate your solutions with the Kyndryl Agentic Framework (KAF), Kyndryl AI IP, and proven modernization offerings instead of starting from a blank page.
- Get a seat at the table. Advise senior client stakeholders across industries and help shape their modernization strategy.
- Own the outcome. Take a solution from scoping, estimates, and SOW through delivery, and see your designs go live.
- Work with the best. Collaborate with sales, consulting, legal, delivery, and engineering teams, and bring in cloud, mainframe, and network & edge specialists whenever a solution crosses domains.
- Keep growing. Ongoing learning and certification are part of the job, not an extra.
What You’ll Do
Discover and shape the opportunity
- Lead client discovery and AI readiness assessments to uncover high-value application modernization and agentic AI use cases.
- Turn ambiguous business needs into clear technical architectures and implementation roadmaps.
- Facilitate workshops, design sessions, and architecture reviews that align business and technical stakeholders.
- Advise senior client leaders on modernization and agentic AI adoption, with solution narratives that resonate with both executive and technical audiences.
Architect and build
- Design target-state cloud-native and AI-native architectures, using microservices, APIs, containers, and cloud-native patterns, to modernize legacy and monolithic applications.
- Define modernization solutions that combine application, infrastructure, agentic SDLC, and platform engineering expertise across public and private cloud.
- Build agentic proofs of concept, pilots, MVPs, and reference implementations that demonstrate measurable business value.
Scope, estimate, and win
- Own technical solution definition, including scope, PoC framing, assumptions, dependencies, and baselines.
- Prepare estimates for effort, cost, risk, timeline, and team composition using Kyndryl’s solution calculator and related tools.
- Develop SOWs, RFP responses, and technical proposal content, and contribute to commercial inputs.
- Lead technical due diligence and confirm that proposed solutions are feasible and deliverable.
Deliver and grow
- Partner with sales, consulting, legal, delivery, engineering, and COE teams to structure sound, deliverable engagements.
- Provide technical leadership from pursuit through implementation to protect solution fidelity and client success.
- Engage Cloud, Mainframe, Network & Edge, and other specialists when a solution spans multiple domains.
- Stay ahead of advances in AI, application, and cloud technologies through continuous learning and certification.
What Success Looks Like
- Clients see you as a trusted advisor who brings clarity to complex modernization decisions.
- Your pilots and MVPs move from demo to production and show measurable business value.
- Your estimates and SOWs hold up in delivery, and delivery teams value the clarity you provide.
- You become a go-to voice in the COE, sharing patterns and reusable assets that make the next engagement faster.
Choose Your Path: Areas of Specialization
You’ll bring deep expertise in at least one of these areas, along with an application-led perspective across the others.
- Apps on Public Cloud (AWS, GCP, or Microsoft Azure): Design and deliver application modernization and agentic AI solutions on a leading hyperscaler.
- Edge & Software-Defined Networks: Modernize networks with agentic AI, SDN, SD-WAN, SASE, and zero-trust patterns for autonomous, resilient, and secure connectivity.
- Mainframe Modernization: Modernize IBM Z and z/OS workloads through migration, integration, and adoption of modern application platforms.
- Cloud Platform Engineering: Build internal developer platforms and apply CI/CD, DevOps, and DevSecOps practices to speed up modern application delivery.
- Private Cloud: Modernize applications and workloads for private-cloud and data-center environments.
Kyndryl currently does not require employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, however, if you are hired to work at a client, customer, or partner location, you may be required to show proof of vaccination to align with their respective COVID-19 vaccination policies. Those who believe they are eligible may apply for a medical or religious accommodation prior to the start of employment.
Who You Are
What You’ll Do
Discover and shape the opportunity
- Lead client discovery and AI readiness assessments to uncover high-value application modernization and agentic AI use cases.
- Turn ambiguous business needs into clear technical architectures and implementation roadmaps.
- Facilitate workshops, design sessions, and architecture reviews that align business and technical stakeholders.
- Advise senior client leaders on modernization and agentic AI adoption, with solution narratives that resonate with both executive and technical audiences.
Architect and build
- Design target-state cloud-native and AI-native architectures, using microservices, APIs, containers, and cloud-native patterns, to modernize legacy and monolithic applications.
- Define modernization solutions that combine application, infrastructure, agentic SDLC, and platform engineering expertise across public and private cloud.
- Build agentic proofs of concept, pilots, MVPs, and reference implementations that demonstrate measurable business value.
Scope, estimate, and win
- Own technical solution definition, including scope, PoC framing, assumptions, dependencies, and baselines.
- Prepare estimates for effort, cost, risk, timeline, and team composition using Kyndryl’s solution calculator and related tools.
- Develop SOWs, RFP responses, and technical proposal content, and contribute to commercial inputs.
- Lead technical due diligence and confirm that proposed solutions are feasible and deliverable.
Deliver and grow
- Partner with sales, consulting, legal, delivery, engineering, and COE teams to structure sound, deliverable engagements.
- Provide technical leadership from pursuit through implementation to protect solution fidelity and client success.
- Engage Cloud, Mainframe, Network & Edge, and other specialists when a solution spans multiple domains.
- Stay ahead of advances in AI, application, and cloud technologies through continuous learning and certification.
What Success Looks Like
- Clients see you as a trusted advisor who brings clarity to complex modernization decisions.
- Your pilots and MVPs move from demo to production and show measurable business value.
- Your estimates and SOWs hold up in delivery, and delivery teams value the clarity you provide.
- You become a go-to voice in the COE, sharing patterns and reusable assets that make the next engagement faster.
Choose Your Path: Areas of Specialization
You’ll bring deep expertise in at least one of these areas, along with an application-led perspective across the others.
- Apps on Public Cloud (AWS, GCP, or Microsoft Azure): Design and deliver application modernization and agentic AI solutions on a leading hyperscaler.
- Edge & Software-Defined Networks: Modernize networks with agentic AI, SDN, SD-WAN, SASE, and zero-trust patterns for autonomous, resilient, and secure connectivity.
- Mainframe Modernization: Modernize IBM Z and z/OS workloads through migration, integration, and adoption of modern application platforms.
- Cloud Platform Engineering: Build internal developer platforms and apply CI/CD, DevOps, and DevSecOps practices to speed up modern application delivery.
- Private Cloud: Modernize applications and workloads for private-cloud and data-center environments.
What You Bring
Core qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a comparable discipline (or equivalent practical experience).
- At least eight years of hands-on experience in solution architecture, software engineering, or technical consulting focused on application architecture and modernization.
- Deep expertise in at least one of the five specialization areas above.
- At least two years of hands-on experience delivering production-grade agentic AI applications.
- Advanced expertise with leading open-source agentic frameworks such as LangChain/LangGraph, AutoGen, CrewAI, Semantic Kernel, or equivalent.
- Deep Python proficiency; TypeScript/Node.js experience is a plus.
- Experience integrating AI agents with enterprise systems, including CRMs, ERPs, APIs, and data lakes.
- Experience with vector databases, embedding pipelines, and practical RAG architectures.
- Strong client-facing advisory, pre-sales, live-demo, and technical storytelling skills for engineering and executive audiences.
- Working knowledge of responsible AI, data privacy requirements, and enterprise security standards, applied across pursuit and delivery.
Depth in your specialization
Show us depth in the area you’re choosing. Certifications are valued, and if you don’t hold one yet, we’ll support you in earning it.
- Apps on Public Cloud: Design and implement cloud-native and AI-native applications on AWS, GCP, or Azure. Helpful certifications: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional, Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect, or Azure Solutions Architect Expert.
- Edge & Software-Defined Networks: Design agentic AI-enabled network modernization using SDN, SD-WAN, SASE, zero-trust, and automation patterns, with expertise in Palo Alto, Zscaler, Illumio, or Guardicore and strong DevNetOps and DevSecOps skills. Helpful certifications: CCNP Enterprise, AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty, Azure Network Engineer Associate (AZ-700), or Google Cloud Professional Cloud Network Engineer.
- Mainframe Modernization: Design modernization approaches for IBM Z and z/OS workloads, including migration, integration, API enablement, and adoption of modern application platforms. Helpful certifications: IBM Z Xplore or IBM Z Skills badges covering z/OS and IBM Z Software, or an IBM or Broadcom Mainframe Modernization or zCloud Program certification.
- Cloud Platform Engineering: Design internal developer platforms and standardized golden paths that accelerate secure application delivery. Helpful certifications: Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), Azure DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400), AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional, or FinOps Certified Practitioner.
- Private Cloud: Design application and workload modernization for private-cloud and data-center environments using containers, Kubernetes, APIs, automation, and cloud-native operating models. Helpful certifications: CKA, AZ-400, AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional, FinOps Certified Practitioner, or a comparable private-cloud platform credential.
Nice to have
- Background in engineering consulting or professional services.
- Experience contributing to large-scale modernization or transformation programs.
- Experience in both consultative solutioning and delivery settings.
- Industry experience in Financial Services, Healthcare, Telecommunications, Manufacturing, or the Public Sector.
- Familiarity with enterprise AI governance and AI risk-management frameworks.
Who you are
You bring a growth mindset and a commitment to your own development. You put customer success first, and you work openly, collaboratively, and inclusively with sales, delivery, engineering, and COE teams. If you meet most of the requirements above and the work excites you, we encourage you to apply.
Travel
You’ll travel globally at least 25% of the time to meet clients, lead workshops, and work side by side with delivery teams.
Why Kyndryl?
Kyndryl is redefining modernization through AI-led transformation, agentic platforms, and repeatable engineering patterns. As part of the Modernization Center of Excellence, you’ll work on high-impact client opportunities across industries, partner with global delivery and engineering teams, and apply Kyndryl’s agentic AI frameworks to solve complex modernization challenges at scale.
Your Future at Kyndryl
Every role at Kyndryl offers opportunities to advance your career through hands-on experience, continuous learning, and certifications across all four major platforms. Whether you want to expand your expertise or specialize in a specific sector, you can build your future here.
Kyndryl is committed to a diverse workplace and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. We also comply with all fair employment practices related to citizenship and immigration status.
Ready to turn innovation into results? Apply now.
The compensation range for the position in the U.S. is - $179,760 to $341,520 based on a full-time schedule. Your actual compensation may vary depending on your geography, job-related skills and experience. For part time roles, the compensation will be adjusted appropriately. The pay or salary range will not be below any applicable state, city or local minimum wage requirement.
There is a different applicable compensation range for the following work locations:
California (San Francisco Bay Area): $215,640 to $409,800 California (All Other): $197,640 to $375,600
Colorado: $179,760 to $341,520
Massachusetts $179,760 to $375,600
New York City: $215,640 to $409,800
Washington: $197,640 to $375,600
Washington DC: $197,640 to $375,600
This position will be eligible for Kyndryl's discretionary annual bonus program, based on performance and subject to the terms of Kyndryl's applicable plans. You may also receive a comprehensive benefits package which includes medical and dental coverage, disability, retirement benefits, paid leave and paid time off. Note: if this is a sales commission eligible role, you will be eligible to participate in a sales commission plan in lieu of the annual discretionary bonus program. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis.
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.
Being You
Diversity is a whole lot more than what we look like or where we come from, it’s how we think and who we are. We welcome people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences. But we’re not doing it single-handily: Our Kyndryl Inclusion Networks are only one of many ways we create a workplace where all Kyndryls can find and provide support and advice. This dedication to welcoming everyone into our company means that Kyndryl gives you – and everyone next to you – the ability to bring your whole self to work, individually and collectively, and support the activation of our equitable culture. That’s the Kyndryl Way.
What You Can Expect
With state-of-the-art resources and Fortune 100 clients, every day is an opportunity to innovate, build new capabilities, new relationships, new processes, and new value. Kyndryl cares about your well-being and prides itself on offering benefits that give you choice, reflect the diversity of our employees and support you and your family through the moments that matter – wherever you are in your life journey. Our employee learning programs give you access to the best learning in the industry to receive certifications, including Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Skillsoft, and many more. Through our company-wide volunteering and giving platform, you can donate, start fundraisers, volunteer, and search over 2 million non-profit organizations. At Kyndryl, we invest heavily in you, we want you to succeed so that together, we will all succeed.
Get Referred!
If you know someone that works at Kyndryl, when asked ‘How Did You Hear About Us’ during the application process, select ‘Employee Referral’ and enter your contact's Kyndryl email address.
