IT Architecture = Communications

For the last six months or so, I have been working for the US Government as a Services Oriented Architecture (SOA) Technical Lead. Eventhough that is my functional title, I act more as a Information Technology (IT) architect. It is my first job where I am an IT architect. At my previous job I was a part-time XML data architect where I did alot of data modeling, data analysis and then defend why I modeled certain data structures a certain way. When I was not a XML data architect, I was a JEE developer. Eventhough developers aspire to be an architect because they can get to design the systems and leave the grunt work to other developers, this may not be true when the developer becomes an architect.

Couple of summers ago, I took a class to become a Java Enterprise Architect and it is there I learnt that an architect doesn't have a set role. As a developer or a project manager, your roles are pretty much defined but an architect's role is ambigous. In the class, I was taught that one of primary responsibilities of an architect is to see his system or project succeed. In some projects, he can be coding and developing reference architectures and in other projects, he is basically working with the project manager in refining requirements. After being an IT architect for the last six months, I have to say that the instructor was absolutely correct. An architect's role is ambigious to a project but every project must have an architect. An architect is a rare breed because:

1. he understands what is being built and why it is being built
   
2. he can look at code and have code level discussions about the software code.
3. he understands the business problem and why the system is a value to the customer
4. he can work with business analysts in refining requirements or make them more abstract which might give the development team more flexibility
5. he can sit with the project manager and hash out a realistic Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
6. he can recommend modifications to the project scope if the project is running behind schedule
7. he doesn't need to be the best programmer in the team
8. he doesn't need to design the system but rather review them
9. he doesn't need to write a test plan but he can evaluate it
10. he doesn't need to be a guy. Women can be architects too.

And the biggest trait an architect should have is that he or she should be able to

COMMUNICATE

with various stakeholders and he or she should be able to discuss the system in technical, non-technical, and business terms. Architects should be willing to exchange ideas with other architects and they should humble enough to accepts mistakes if they made them.

The role of an IT architecture will expand as more businesses go into collaborative modes of information exchange since they need to be aware of standards and they should understand the newer technologies. So for all aspiring programmers in the world, it's time to shelf the pocket protector, clean the stacks of burnt or blank CDs, get a haircut, stop living on Red Bull and be more social. Try to interact with your teams and peers since a great idea is bad idea if you cannot communicate it and a better idea is to have your good idea validated with others.