What Does a Solutions Architect Do? Roles and Responsibilities

And the faster you deal with them, the faster and cheaper the product will be delivered. After developing a product roadmap, the solution architect is engaged in estimating the budget and introducing it to the stakeholders. Once everything is approved, SA traces the process of development and keeps clients tabs on the progress. During the development stage, the solution architect delves into each of the product areas. They have to explain how to make each part of the software so that everything fits into a single product. They’re in charge of creating and implementing the data center infrastructure that maintains network environments.

Solution architecture is usually implemented as a part of enterprise architecture. The latter determines what business structure, processes, and operations allow a company to meet its strategic objectives. Alternatively, we may say that enterprise architecture defines how a company’s business strategy can be executed most efficiently.

Risk Identification And Management

They need to understand not only the technology and software they are working with but also the business context and the needs of the end users. Close to 50% of companies have seen one or more projects fail in the past year according to a Planview survey. It is not hyperbole to state that the role of the solution architect is one of the most important for the design of any tech solution. So, there is no training course for this exam since every specialist will be tested based on their individual experience. These limitations may change the product a lot — and thus change its cost and time to market. As architects know the field, they’re aware of these constraints and ways to deal with them.

This definition may seem vague and generic, but only because customers’ problems are different, so they demand different solutions, usually with a unique approach. As a rule, this person has industry-specific expertise, so he or she understands what stakeholders want and why they want it. A solution architect role also presupposes strong technical skills that https://www.globalcloudteam.com/ help him or her communicate a product vision to a development team. It is proper to consider a solution architect as the person in charge of determining the underlying vision for the whole solution. In terms of the overall development process the solution architect sits between the underlying technical architecture and the overarching enterprise architecture.

Top 6 Challenges in Enterprise Application Development & Their Solutions

They collaborate with stakeholders, interpret requirements, and develop comprehensive solutions that combine various technological elements. Dispelling misconceptions about the role of a Solution Architect is a good starting point for gaining a precise understanding of their responsibilities. A widespread misunderstanding is that they are the most skilled developers or experts, extraordinarily adept in the project’s technology stack. While possessing a profound understanding of project technologies and demonstrating coding expertise is essential, these are not the only nor the definitive attributes of a Solution Architect. As a solutions architect, you’ll want to get certified in any relevant skills or technologies for your industry or field.

• It helps them develop a strong understanding of the tools and technologies involved in designing solutions.
• From there, the solutions architect creates an overall strategic technical vision—not unlike an architect designing a blueprint for a building.
• Understanding these aspects, they will be able to design a specific solution that fits the environment best.
• NIX understands the needs of businesses and has a dedicated team of solution architects available to help companies regardless of the industry.
• Architects are experts at speaking both ‘business; language with the clients and ‘technical’ language with the developers.

A senior architect is a role that has a high level of experience and expertise in solution architecture, and is recognized as an authority and a leader in the field. A senior architect provides strategic direction and guidance for the solution architecture practice, as well as the architecture standards and frameworks. A senior architect also participates in complex and critical projects, and provides consultation and advice to other architects and stakeholders. A senior architect needs to have a proven track record of delivering successful solutions, as well as the ability to mentor and inspire others. A technical architect is a role that focuses on the technical aspects of the solution, such as the infrastructure, platforms, tools, frameworks, and technologies. A technical architect defines the technical architecture and the technical requirements for the solution, as well as the technical risks and mitigation strategies.

Strong Communication and Interpersonal Skills

There are also several certificates recommended solution architects achieve before applying for the position. Most will already have several years (5-10) of hands-on experience in software development, network administration, or information technology. It helps them develop a strong understanding of the tools and technologies involved in designing solutions. The solution architect position evaluates all business requirements within an organization to come up with the technical vision to solve business problems. A lead architect is a role that leads and manages a team of architects, either within a project, a program, or a portfolio. A lead architect defines the architecture vision and strategy for the team, as well as the architecture governance and processes.

While these elements are “constraints”, they come with their own set of limitations. It comes down to the solution architect to understand them, look at their priority, and make managerial, technical decisions to solve these issues well within the business goals. These individuals are responsible for engineering, creating software architecture, and implementing technology. This specialist is responsible for making sure the future solution will perfectly fit all business requirements and end-user needs. They are the ones who oversee the successful implementation of the quality solution.

Finalizing A Technology Stack

Before embarking on product deployment, the role of a solution architect is to analyze your company’s IT landscape to map business expectations with current IT capabilities. This will allow them to determine whether newly developed software will fit the existing enterprise environment. To carry out this task, a technology solution architect has to understand how all the processes, operating systems, and application architectures pull together. If the team follows the Agile methodology, the solution architect’s role is to support the development team, accompanying the project at the implementation stage.

As a solutions architect, you will need to understand the business side of the organization to understand which IT solutions will fit the company’s goals. Your leadership skills will be important for steering the overall process of identifying key business objectives and determining the requirements for each solution. This far, we have established how a solutions architect helps IT and business teams with building products on time and on budget while ensuring that problems get solved. The concept of a solution architecture is rather complex and includes many aspects required to create a custom software solution with a specific purpose.

Creating Technical Documentation and Architectural Diagrams

Solution architecture belongs to the list of most important practices executed before any tech solution development begins. In this article, we’ll discuss what solution architecture is, describe the role of a solution architect, and explain how the adoption of this expertise can help solve business problems. We invite you to explore our top client cases, where you can gain insights into how we have transformed business challenges into success stories and understand the tangible benefits of custom software solutions. Rest assured, opting for Relevant means choosing a trusted partner dedicated to your technological success. Securing the expertise of a solutions architect on your team, whether internally or through a development partner, guarantees a host of undeniable benefits. With their invaluable contributions, you can be confident in achieving optimal project outcomes.

This includes coverage of software management systems and project management (PM) software – all aimed at helping to shorten the software development lifecycle (SDL). The starting point is generally being the only person on a very small, and sometimes insignificant project. The project may be small enough that a single person may fill every role – including the role of solution architect. This process is very detail-oriented and serves as a connecting piece between enterprise architecture and technical architecture. It also requires a breadth of knowledge in the technical and business inner workings of the company. A solutions architect should hold the caliber to communicate effectively with project managers, stakeholders, software vendors, and iOS and android developers in the software development process.

Responsibilities & deliverables

A solutions architect ensures that any new system that gets introduced fits into the current business environment. S/he carries an understanding of how the different elements of the business model works in unison and how to design a solution that would best meet this mix of operating system, processes, and architecture. This exam will be suitable not only for solutions architects but also for what does solution architect do any experts dealing with Google Cloud technologies. According to Google’s recommendation, it’s better to take this exam with at least 3 years of experience. An enterprise architect has a much larger scope of work compared to other architect specializations. This specialist develops and proposes strategic technological initiatives to the business’s top executives and explains their benefits.