What Is a Solutions Architect? How to Become One, Salary, Skills

By: Flaka Ismaili    July 5, 2022

A good Solution Architect must have excellent analytical skills to understand the needs of an organization and find solutions to help move the organization forward. They also must have good communication skills as they work with the organization’s leadership and IT professionals throughout a project. Ultimately, you will work with the organization’s leaders to identify problems and then work with our IT Team to address those problems with innovative software solutions. To join our team and implement systems architecture to help solve our organization’s network problems.

Solution architects will guarantee the solution meets the standards of your company environment. A solutions architect description places them somewhere in between the above-mentioned specialists. After the enterprise architect has determined what has to be done, the software solution architect specifies how it has to be done to address a certain business challenge. Unlike a technical architect who has nothing to do with managerial and financial aspects, a solutions architect takes them into account providing a liaison link between the enterprise and the technical architecture development. The solution architecture is described in a document that specifies a certain level of vision for all current and future solutions cancel timeshare, applications and processes that the organization has. The importance of solution architects lies in their ability to bridge the gap between technical and business aspects of a project.

Solutions Architects Within a Company

Besides that, it’s important that solution architects consider the project from a long-term perspective and understand that the solution might need to scale and adapt to possible changes in the future. So, being the one who knows the ultimate target, they guide the development process accordingly. While a solution architect doesn’t directly get involved solutions architect vs product manager in project management, accounting for deadlines and given resources is inevitable. Solution architects must be able to make decisions about which solutions are advantageous and which are worthless in a given situation. They must be focused on business results and understand how to achieve them according to the given timeframes and resources.

solutions architect definition

It will delve more into the practical implementation in technology of the strategies covered as a part of the reference architecture in the prior article. Notably, the reference architecture identified four business processes that are contributory to the strategy – machine learning and data analytics, infrastructure management, information security, and software development. However, for the sake of brevity this article will walk through the solution architecture for only one of the four , namely machine learning and data analytics.

Application architecture

Enterprise architecture should make it possible for an organization to achieve traceability from the business strategy down to the technology used to implement that strategy. Each solution architect role is valuable for the overall working process of the IT system. There is no practice ignoring the roles and responsibilities in solution architecture development. One more role of solution architect may be included, such as the Software Development Life Cycle planning. From the other perspective, a solution architect is not a project manager .

solutions architect definition

The enterprise architect has the broadest view of the company’s current state of architecture and goals. It is this expert who is responsible for creating a strategic plan for implementing technical changes. This person works closely with top-level executives and decision-makers as he or she demonstrates to them the business value of suggested technical initiatives. In contrast, enterprise architecture, which also includes the aforementioned four types of architecture, operates at the strategic level and its scope and span is the enterprise rather than a specific business problem. A technical architect primarily oversees software architecture, technical development, and implementation technology.

What Skills Are Needed to Be a Solutions Architect?

With companies increasingly relying on software and emerging technologies, the role of a solutions architect will continue to gain weight. Software architecture and systems integrated into it are numerous details that work together. A solutions architect needs to be very attentive to those details, as overlooking something may hinder the development process, lead to breakdowns, or make the software solution inefficient. They also should be able to understand the technical specifications of many different software solutions and hardware and perform analysis of different business layers.

solutions architect definition

Their main task is to provide technical leadership and make decisions regarding the most vital parts of the system that is being developed. A solutions architect is responsible for translating the vision for the project to the development team and plays a pivotal part throughout the entire systems development lifecycle. A solutions architect is responsible for creating a comprehensive architecture for a software solution and providing strategic direction throughout the development process. With technology architecture, a solution architect details the structural design of the IT infrastructure that is needed to support the proposed solution. When introducing a new product or system as part of an IT solution, solution architects make sure that it fits into existing information security practices. How the project complies with each regulation is formally documented at the beginning of a project.

What is an infrastructure architect?

They should be able to define the problem before starting on a solution. The solution architect must also have a clear goal in mind before he starts working on his project. Technology architecture describes the software and hardware needed to implement the business, data, and application services. The Solution Architect supports the Lead Architect in the delivery of the end-to-end solution. The SA will work within one or many projects that describe the program of work under the Lead Architect.

According to job search sites, the average salary for a Solutions Architect role can vary widely depending on the location, education, certifications, additional skills, the number of years in the profession, etc. Evaluates project constraints to find alternatives, alleviate risks, and perform process re-engineering if required. This specific exam will be suitable for specialists working with Microsoft Azure and possessing advanced knowledge of Azure infrastructure. Communicate and consult with clients and internal stakeholders to develop appropriate solutions.

Solutions Architect Salary

Although the enterprise architect often has a more technical background, they do rely on a team of both solution and domain architects to execute the implementation. A solution architecture is an architectural description of a specific solution. SAs combine guidance from different enterprise architecture viewpoints , as well as from the enterprise solution architecture . Although a solutions architect is not directly involved https://globalcloudteam.com/ in project development, they still need to ensure that project resources are being used efficiently and impactfully. They should be business-minded, capable of identifying the most effective solution at every turn, for every part of the architecture. It is their responsibility to focus on business goals, including hiring new people, and understand how to achieve them in the set timeframe and within the given budget.

  • This distinction can be clearly seen in the terms “Architecture Building Block” and “Solution Building Block” .
  • Like the reference architecture this shows the relationships that exist between the layers themselves.
  • Though this is a fictional case study, technical aspects such as integration methods and nonfunctional requirement specification are designed to closely mimic real-world scenarios.
  • You will likely need a bachelor’s degree or higher in information technology, computer science, software engineering, or a related field.
  • Solution Architects are responsible for evaluating an organization’s business needs and determining how IT can support those wants with software, hardware or infrastructure.
  • Simply put, this is the foundation of the product on which the long-term success of any project depends.