Solution architect Jobs in Pasadena, CA

Company overview:

Blue Orange Digital is a boutique data and AI consultancy that delivers enterprise-grade results. We design and build modern data platforms, analytics, and ML and AI agent solutions for mid-market and enterprise clients across Private Equity, Financial Services, Healthcare, and Retail.

Our teams work with technologies like Databricks, Snowflake, dbt, and the broader Microsoft ecosystem to turn messy, real-world data into trustworthy, actionable insight. We are a builder-led, client-first team that prizes ownership, clear communication, and shipping high-impact work. We do not build science projects. We ship production-grade systems that move the bottom line.

Note: Please submit your resume in English, as all application materials must be in English for review and consideration.

About the Role

This is a true seller-doer role. You own the technical sale, then help deliver the work you sold. You sit at the front of the engagement, translating ambiguous business problems into scoped, credible solutions across our service lines: Data Platform Modernization, AI and ML Implementation, Analytics and BI, and Data Strategy. You lead discovery, shape the architecture, build the proposal, and carry the technical narrative that wins the deal.

Once the deal closes, you stay involved. You set the technical direction for the engagement, guide the delivery team through the first critical phases, and remain the trusted architect the client turns to. That dual mandate is how you land new accounts and expand existing ones. You are measured on both what you sell and what you deliver.

You will work directly with CTOs, VPs of Engineering, and CDOs, and pair with our practice leads and senior engineers. You report into leadership and work closely with both the sales and delivery organizations.

Why This Role Is Different from a Sales Engineer

Most technical sales roles split into two lanes. A sales engineer proves a single product works and hands the relationship off after the deal closes. A solution architect designs the system but sits apart from the commercial motion. This role fuses both, and adds a builder mandate on top.

• You architect across multiple vendors and cloud platforms, not a single-product demo. You design end-to-end architectures on Snowflake, Databricks, AWS, GCP, and Azure.

• You sell and carry a quota. You are not a support function to the account executive. You co-own the number.

• You deliver. You stay on the account and write production-grade code, so the solution you scoped is the solution that ships. No promises handed to a team that inherits them.

If you have been a sales engineer who wanted to stay hands-on, or a solution architect who wanted a seat in the deal, this is the role that gives you both.

What You Will Do

Sell: Pre-Sales and Technical Sales

• Lead discovery: run technical discovery with prospects, uncover the real problem, and qualify fit against our service lines.

• Architect the solution: translate client needs into reference architectures, solution approaches, and phased delivery plans on Snowflake, Databricks, AWS, GCP, and Azure.

• Own the technical narrative: partner with sales to build proposals and Statements of Work, scope team composition and timelines, and present the technical case to executive and engineering stakeholders.

• Hit the number: carry a sales quota. Drive pipeline alongside the sales team, advance deals through technical validation, and close.

• Handle objections: defend our builder-led approach against offshore, Big Four, and in-house alternatives with credible, technical answers.

Deliver: Solution Delivery and Expansion

• Own the architecture: set the technical direction for engagements you sell, and guide the delivery team through architecture decisions and the first critical phases.

• Stay hands-on: write and review production-grade code where it matters. You lead by shipping, not by managing from a distance.

• Deliver against a target: carry a delivery or utilization target. Your role blends selling with billable, hands-on contribution to client work.

• Land and expand: stay close to accounts you win, surface new opportunities, and grow engagements from an initial project into a lasting relationship.

• Protect quality: uphold our delivery standards for code review, testing, documentation, and clean handoff.

Your First 90 Days

• Days 1 to 30: Complete onboarding, learn our service lines and delivery standards, shadow live discovery calls, and co-author your first proposal or SOW alongside a practice lead.

• Days 31 to 60: Lead technical discovery independently, own the architecture on at least one active opportunity, and begin hands-on contribution to a delivery engagement.

• Days 61 to 90: Run the full technical sale end to end, contribute to your first closed-won deal, and establish a repeatable rhythm across pipeline and billable delivery.

What You Bring

We care about demonstrated ability over years on a resume. If you can do the work below, we want to hear from you.

• Deep technical background: proven, hands-on experience in data engineering, ML, cloud data platforms, or analytics, with real production systems you have shipped, not just designed. Most strong candidates bring roughly 8 or more years, but we weigh what you have built.

• Sales and delivery experience: a track record in a seller-doer, pre-sales solution architect, or consulting delivery lead role. You have carried a number and delivered the work behind it.

• Databricks expertise (required): hands-on, production depth on Databricks (Lakehouse, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, MLflow, Spark). Working knowledge of Snowflake and at least one cloud (AWS, GCP, or Azure), plus modern data tooling (dbt, Airflow, Python, SQL).

• Executive and technical fluency: you can lead a discovery call with a CTO and a whiteboard session with their engineers, and be credible in both rooms.

• Proposal and scoping ability: experience scoping engagements, writing proposals or SOWs, and presenting solutions that win.

• Builder mentality: you communicate clearly, own outcomes end to end, and thrive in ambiguous, client-facing situations.

Nice to Haves

• Consulting pedigree: consulting or agency background with client-embedded delivery.

• Cloud certifications: current certifications on Snowflake, Databricks, AWS, GCP, or Azure.

• AI and ML depth: experience taking GenAI or ML use cases from concept to production.

• Land-and-expand record: prior success growing a single project into a multi-workstream account.

• Vertical expertise: depth in one or more verticals such as fintech, healthcare, retail, or SaaS.

How Success Is Measured

This role carries a blended target. You are accountable for a sales quota tied to bookings and pipeline you help create and close, and for a delivery or utilization target tied to the billable, hands-on work you contribute to client engagements. Landing new logos and expanding existing accounts count on both sides of the ledger. We measure the arc, not the activity: pipeline you shape, deals you win, work that ships to production, and accounts that grow.

Where This Role Can Go

This is a senior individual contributor role with a clear trajectory. Strong performers grow from owning individual engagements into shaping the pre-sales function itself, mentoring newer architects, and building out a practice they lead. We have high talent density and real ownership, so the ceiling is set by what you build, not by a rigid ladder.

Why Blue Orange Digital

• Own the full arc: you shape the work, sell it, and see it through. No handing off to a team that inherits a promise you cannot keep.

• Builder-led culture: engineers lead here. You will not spend your days defending decisions to people who have never shipped.

• Real technology: direct, hands-on work across Snowflake, Databricks, AWS, GCP, and Azure with tier-one clients.

• Room to build: high talent density, real ownership, and the room to grow an account and your own practice.

Compensation and Benefits

• Total compensation: $150K to $180K base plus uncapped commission, for on-target earnings of roughly $260K to $320K. Accelerators kick in above 100% quota attainment.

• Bonuses: activity bonuses for pipeline milestones and threshold performance bonuses for sales results.

• Health: medical, dental, vision, and life insurance.

• Retirement: 401(k) with company matching.

• Events and travel: all conference, event, client visit, and per diem expenses covered.

• Location: fully remote within the United States.

Our Commitment

Research shows that some people hold back from applying unless they meet every listed qualification. If you are excited about this role and believe you can do the work, we encourage you to apply even if your background does not line up with every bullet above.

Blue Orange Digital is an equal-opportunity employer. We welcome and evaluate all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, or any other protected characteristic. We are committed to an inclusive hiring process and will provide reasonable accommodation to candidates who need it. Background checks may be required for certain positions or projects.