Senior payments architecture without a full-time hire.
Fractional payments architect capacity — chair design authority, challenge vendors, support regulator and scheme responses, and refresh the roadmap quarterly. 6 to 12 months, renewable.
2–4 days/month or 2–3 days/week · Fixed fee quoted after a short scoping call
Who this is for
- Institutions without a senior payments architect in house
- CIOs who need design authority chaired and vendors challenged, not another contractor on tickets
- Teams facing ongoing rail, ISO 20022, open banking or scheme pressure
Retain senior architecture judgment on a fixed cadence.
Vendor-led architecture drifts
Without a senior payments architect, design authority becomes a meeting and vendors become the architecture. Regulator and scheme questions get answered late. Roadmaps age without a quarterly refresh. This retainer puts senior judgment on a fixed cadence — days per month or per week — for 6 to 12 months, renewable.
How the retainer holds the line
- Design authorityI chair with mandate — decisions recorded, conflicts forced into the open.
- Vendor challengeIntegrators and product vendors get technical pushback from your side of the table.
- Roadmap cadenceQuarterly refresh so the programme stays honest against scheme and regulatory dates.
What you leave with
- Chair the design authorityStanding forum with decisions and follow-ups
- Challenge vendors and integratorsIndependent technical challenge on your side
- Support regulator and scheme responsesArchitecture-grounded input alongside your counsel and compliance
- Quarterly roadmap refreshUpdated programme view against real dates
How the retainer runs
- Setup (first month)Lock cadence, design-authority charter, vendor landscape and current roadmap. Leave with a working rhythm.
- Steady state2–4 days a month or 2–3 days a week: chair, challenge, respond, document decisions.
- QuarterlyRoadmap refresh with sponsors. Renew or adjust scope for the next 6–12 months.
Scope fence
This is fractional architecture advisory. I am not a full-time employee of record, and I do not replace your counsel.
In scope
- Design authority chairing
- Vendor and integrator technical challenge
- Architecture input to regulator and scheme responses
- Quarterly roadmap refresh
Out of scope
- Day-to-day ticket delivery as a body shop
- Legal advice or signing regulatory filings
- Production admin, keys or vendor commercial agency
- Open-ended hours without a cadence agreement
If you need hands on keyboards full time, hire. If you need senior judgment on a cadence, start here.
What I need from you
- Executive sponsor and a design-authority mandate
- Access to architecture and programme materials — under NDA
- Agreement on days-per-month or days-per-week cadence up front
2–4 days/month or 2–3 days/week · Fixed fee quoted after a short scoping call