Typically, these requirements come in from both technical and non-technical stakeholders where both have to be accounted for in the project. There are many different AWS certifications available, each designed for a specific type of professional. For example, there are certifications for programmers, system administrators, security professionals, and data scientists. Each of these certifications is for those with different experiences and goals, and trains additional knowledge and competencies. The average annual salary for cloud solutions architects in the US is $197,375 per year [1]. This figure includes a base salary of $118,045 and a reported additional yearly wage of $79,330.
The main role of a solution architect is to ensure the product meets business requirements and requirements from other stakeholders. A solution architect’s job here is to explain how this app can be built, what tools — programming languages, frameworks, APIs — should be used, and how much time this process will take. For that, architects do some solution architecture — draw diagrams to understand which components are required for this app.
Responsibilities & deliverables
It ensures the speed and accuracy of information transfer, as well as controls key development processes. Simply put, solution architecture is a high-level description of a software product in the context of the problems it solves. In other words, solution architecture shows how a system and its specific features help a company reach its determined business goals. The solution architect role may be the most sought after role in the software development process but it’s not without its challenges.
They typically have a strong custom software development, system design, and project management background and may also have specialized knowledge in a particular industry or technology domain. We hope now you have got an idea of – What is a solutions architect and can move further with the process. Solution architects possess a broad understanding of the latest technologies and determine how they can solve business problems. In addition, the professionals work closely with stakeholders such as business analysts, developers, and project managers to understand the project requirements and design an appropriate solution.
What does an AWS Solutions Architect do?
As solution architecture is more focused on details and solution technologies to address a specific business problem, it provides a channel between enterprise architecture and technical architecture. An effective approach for companies is combining enterprise architecture activities with solution and technical architecture activities. A solution architect is the most general and broad role in solution architecture.
For example, protecting customer data under GDPR and other privacy regulations is a business-level problem. If you want to catch all details quickly, check out our video about a solution architect role. ITIL is the industry-recognized set of qualifications that includes 5 levels. The highest credential is the ITIL Master for those professionals who work in IT service management and have extensive experience with ITIL practices.
What is a solutions architect?
An extensive comprehension of architectural principles and frameworks such as TOGAF or Zachman is indispensable for a Solutions Architect. They must also possess knowledge of service-oriented architecture (SOA), microservices, and API design. This understanding equips them with the ability to structure and design robust, scalable, and sustainable solutions. The average annual base pay for a solutions architect in the US is $197,854, although it ranges from about $99,000 to $172,000, according to Glassdoor [1]. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment opportunities for computer network architects are expected to grow 4 percent from 2021 to 2031 [2]. As companies expand their information technology networks, the demand for solutions architects will likely increase.
- Now that you know the roles of a solutions architect in bringing business excellence let’s discover the responsibilities of a dedicated IT solutions architect.
- The final component to the role of solution architect is the motivation and guidance of the development leads.
- This understanding equips them with the ability to structure and design robust, scalable, and sustainable solutions.
- Now, let’s get an in-depth insight into the solutions architect roles and responsibilities.
- As a result, solution architects constantly deal with analytical work and move between various business layers.
- Enhancing and throwing customer solutions into the right pot — that can’t be undervalued.
Well, I started as an operations lead, where I was leading about 28 people doing daily tasks, managing around 15 customers on a daily basis. Even then, I spent a lot of time learning major technologies — middleware, programming languages, databases — and improving my soft skills, such as writing and communications. Broadly speaking, a solution architect’s task is to evaluate all business requirements and come up with solutions in the form of products or services. SAs are not only in charge of finding answers but also of actively leading the technical vision to success.
Solution architecture and its main processes
No, solution architects do not require coding since many IT architects will already have experience with languages and Linux systems. Most of the time in their role they will analyze and lead software engineers and application architects to complete their projects. Successful solutions architects need a strong combination of hard and soft skills to achieve competency in the role. Hard skills include a deep knowledge of business processes and solutions, while soft skills include good communication. Solutions architecture requires both technical and interpersonal skills to design, describe, and manage solutions. They evaluate the existing environment and examine how different elements of business, information, and technology can be applied to solve a specific problem.
Next, they pass their tech vision to the development team who starts working on the solution. They’re in charge of creating and implementing the data center infrastructure that maintains network environments. Infrastructure SA gathers the business requirements and develops an infrastructure strategy that aligns with the business goals. But solution architects aren’t the only architects when it comes to software development.
Top 6 Challenges in Enterprise Application Development & Their Solutions
A mobile app’s tech architecture strategy depends on the modern-age technologies chosen by the solutions architect. Multiple programming languages, libraries, frameworks, standards, and architectural patterns are available, and each has different tech stack requirements. Here comes the solutions architect’s responsibility to choose the best suitable one. Experienced and dedicated solutions architect clearly communicates their technological vision to their development team. The solution architect assists the team and leads the project through implementation.
We’ve considered a role-based access control (RBAC) with three different roles to enable access level management. Our team has also implemented core logical modules, features, and logical layers such as management of Documents, Actions, Training Records, and Human Resources to bring more value to our Customer. The interconnection of modules and solution elements is presented on the detailed product scheme. Certifications are intended to validate the skills and expertise of solution architects.
Google Cloud Architect Certification
A domain architect is a role that focuses on a specific domain or area of the solution, such as data, security, integration, or user interface. A domain architect defines the standards, policies, and patterns for the domain, as well as the interfaces and dependencies with other domains. A domain architect also reviews and validates the design and implementation of the domain components, and provides guidance and support to the developers and testers. A domain architect needs to have a deep expertise and experience in the domain, as well as the ability to collaborate and communicate with other architects and stakeholders.
You will also need at least five years of experience working in software development and project management. They are monitoring a single application to understand the various interactions between the different components, and other business apps and can define limitations and requirements for source code. Solution architecture is one of the most mariadb developers important processes when redesigning your IT landscape. For example, if we talk about integration with existing solutions, then a new project must be created using particular technologies to comply with the corporate system. Solution Architects require a combination of technical expertise, business acumen, and excellent communication skills.
Where the development lead focuses on detailed knowledge of a particular area the SA is very broad. Instead of getting mired down into the details of implementing one specific thing the SA focuses on integrating various parts of the solution into one cohesive network that solves the larger problem. The Solution Architect salary fluctuates widely, influenced by factors such as geographic location, industry, years of experience, and the complexity of the projects they undertake.