What is an Enterprise Architect?
When we hear the term architect, we probably picture a person wearing a hard hat and holding a blueprint on a construction site. This is hardly the case despite both having something to do with sites - one works on building sites while the other works to improve your business. Both architects are fundamentally designers. The one we are referring to works in the digital realm.
Similar to how construction architects draft designs and blueprints that guide the way we erected a structure; Enterprise architects create the blueprint for your organization to meet a digital challenge. The designs ensure flexibility, scalability, and security of the entire system while ensuring they align with the business and technical requirements of an organization.
An Enterprise Architect’s role is to translate all necessary characteristics of your digital enterprise into a blueprint shaping its components and defining the communication and coordination between them. All good architecture drives change. In fact, when you think about the analogy of blueprints and building plans, a good enterprise architecture will cover the regional development plan, transportation, zoning, education, recreation, and safety. Your enterprise is a complex system, effectively thinking about your digital transformation presupposes the existence of the elements and the structure that subsumes relations and connections.
Types of Architecture
Now that we are familiar with what enterprise architecture is, we can discuss the different types of architects. One thing that often causes confusion is how sometimes the different roles and responsibilities overlap.
Like with architects who deal with construction, there are different levels to coming up with plans for a structure. Each of these various levels of architecture and their systems needs to work in total harmony for the success of any business. Most IT projects are doomed to failure if there is discord between the different architects.
We break the enterprise architecture into domains because it is easier to analyze and describe like things. The same techniques and skills are used to analyze an architecture domain.
We make an enterprise architecture up of five classic architecture domains: Business Architecture, Application Architecture, Data Architecture, Infrastructure Architecture, and Security Architecture. Over time, new architecture domains arise so a specialist architect can use techniques and skills appropriate to new problems. We find new domains have evolved back in to the classic five as the new ideas become mainstream.
Each enterprise architecture domain is useful. However, it is incomplete. Sort of like describing only the circulatory systems of an animal. When you have an incomplete architecture you know that you are missing important parts of the system.
It is important to note that different types of architects work on the different enterprise architecture domains. There are four main types of architects: Enterprise Architects, Solution Architects, Security Architects, and Domain Architects.
Different Enterprise Architecture Jobs
Here is a deep dive into the different types of enterprise architects and their roles in an organization.
What is An Enterprise Architect
An enterprise architect is one of the senior-most positions in the Enterprise Architecture Team. Enterprise architects ensure that an organization's strategy aligns with its goals. Enterprise architects have the most overarching view of the organization and knowledge of its capabilities and potential. They help companies drive change - to cut costs, grow markets, introduce new products. To be better.
Enterprise architects analyze and keep up with current trends in technology architecture and disseminate their findings of new frameworks and best practices. They focus mainly on capability development, supporting the current operating model, enterprise software, and services. They are also in charge of crafting how the organization will evolve at a portfolio-planning level and are usually responsible for determining which changes will happen.
Enterprise architects work across the organization, determining the needs of a range of business units and processes. They also ensure that business units have the right tools to gear them up for success.
What is A Solution Architect
As the name suggests, solutions architects are required to provide solutions to businesses. Solution architects evaluate business requirements and constraints and turn these into solutions, products, or services through technology. They comprise quite a number of processes and sub-processes that are guided by distinct enterprise architectural perspectives.
Solution architecture involves broadening client demands to comprise business needs linked to technology. This includes carefully looking at how the various components of business, information, and technology can be applied to solve a specific problem. Simply put, solution architecture integrates technical business needs into real IT solutions while also outlining guidelines and directives for spot-on advancement and implementation.
Solution architects act as a bridge between IT and business operations by ensuring that everybody is on the same wavelength while developing and implementing technical solutions for business issues. They are the link between enterprise architects and technical architects. Moreover, they translate the design into a concept for IT operations and ensure that each solution developed has proper technical integrity.
Different Domain Architects
They are the most hands-on of the three types of architects. Most domain architects focus on a single architecture domain. Domain architects have a chief responsibility to ensure their part of the enterprise works with the other architecture domains smoothly.
Using their expertise and skills, domain architects put the identify what needs to change in their domain. Ensuring the complete solution support the strategy or portfolio defined by the enterprise architect. You should keep in mind that domain architects work as a team to provide recommendations and informing stakeholders about any potential risks.
They are the ones who define the structure of a system. Often during implementation projects, they will perform a key architecture governance role and oversee parts of the change program to achieve the result. They are also the closest to the organization's end-user among all architects.
Domain architects include:
- Security Architect
- IT Architect
- Application Architect
- Data Architect
- Business Architect
To understand the differences between different domain architects, you need to understand their domains.
Enterprise Architecture Domains
Domain architecture is the building block of enterprise architecture. Domains are often developed independently and then brought together to form a complete unit of enterprise architecture. So what are these different types of domains?
Business Architecture Domain
Business architecture creates the foundation for all other architectural domains. The business architecture domain will explain the operational practices, operating models, organization, and information flow of the enterprise. It aids the development of the target state and supports the improvement of business operations.
We have a strong example of a business architect in the Business Architect's Approach to Architecting the IT Department.
Security Architecture Domain
This is often also called information systems security architecture. Many people assume that this involves only the traditional security of a firewall, proxies, etc. but it also encompasses business and information security. Essentially, a security architect develops the controls that effectively manage the risk associated with information and information technology.
Information/Data Architecture Domain
This defines and describes the guidance, structure, standards, and relationship of the information with other objects in an organization. It usually encompasses applications, data, infrastructure, and other technology. You should keep in mind that data is the backbone of all organization activities. Applications exist to create, record, and manage data.
Application Architecture Domain
Application architecture focuses on critical constraints about your software and integration. It specifies whether your organization should use commercial software, large suites, or custom development to support different business activities. System boundaries and integration standards are critical for application architecture domains.
Infrastructure Architecture Domain
This is focused on the technology or infrastructure that supports applications, data, and communications. The main emphasis for this domain is usually on the non-functional characteristics of a solution. It outlays all infrastructure-related components needed to fulfill the non-functional requirements such as availability, stability, security, scalability, operability, and extensibility.
Newer domains are cropping up in the market every day and we have to continually absorb them. Some of these newer domains include:
Cloud Architecture Domain
The increasing popularity of cloud services has significantly altered how we address infrastructure architecture and application architecture. These domains are usually based on cloud infrastructure and are supported using cloud storage.
Service-Oriented Architecture Domain
These focus on providing impeccable service to the end client through a product. It focuses on how service can be improved and the criteria for improving the service through technology.
How Different Architects Collaborate
It is important to note that the relationship between the different architecture jobs is not one-way. There is natural feedback at every step from the more specialized analysis. Complete synchrony between the different levels is integral. Sometimes it is hard to achieve this in real-world scenarios, but studies have shown that there is a higher success rate for projects in organizations where different enterprise architects come on board and collaborate. Imagine, a team's success is improved if it works as a team.
So how does this work in the real world?
Enterprise architects take up the overarching role and have a broader outlook on the organization compared to their counterparts. This means that they have to know the intricate workings of the organization so that they can determine what works best for an organization. They coordinate with software architects to provide solutions that create a roadmap that directs the organization in the best direction currently.
Enterprise architects essentially find an area of improvement, or problem in the organization, and then the domain architects work to ensure the improvement is the best overall approach for an organization.
When faced with a problem in one domain, it is common for the solution to this problem to come from a different domain.
Solution architects also follow up and ensure that all the activities required for the successful implementation of a new application are put in place. They act as the link between the enterprise side of the business and the technical side.
Solution architects then usually take up the hands-on part of delivering the product. They use their technical know-how and technology to achieve this. Technical architects have a higher technology focus and less strategy focus, while it is the other way around for enterprise architects. Solution architects then act as the vehicle that drives the concept all the way to implementation.
Solution architects do not actively take up the design of the applications or products, but rather delegate these duties and ensure that the product comes out as stipulated. If there is discord at any stage between either of the architects, then it’s likely the entire project is doomed.
Software Engineers
I know this took a sharp turn because now we have gone from architects to engineers. The software engineers (developers) are the ones responsible for actually coming up with the product. The process involves designing both front end and back ends for these applications, the coding, testing, debugging, upgrading, modeling, and operation.
They are responsible for both hardware and software, building operating systems and networks as well as designing and introducing various IT standards. Updating the software to the latest versions is also a mandate of software developers.
Think of your organization as a machine with tiny moving parts that sustain the normal functioning of the whole contraption. Like small gears, each needs to turn sometimes in different directions but all result in the successful operation of the machine. That's the same way different architects work in your organization to propel it to greater success.
So essentially, at different levels, each person has to do their roles impeccably to ensure the maximum success of the project.
Basic Relationships
The various architects relate with one another differently on a project, some more directly while others passively. Let’s discuss some of these basic relationships.
Enterprise Architect vs Solution Architect
Enterprise architects are at the pinnacle of the hierarchy when it comes to different architects. They interact directly with stakeholders and the executive board of an organization. They ensure that the organization stays competitive by having the latest infrastructure and technology.
Solution architects interact more directly with implementers and are the ones responsible for getting the project from concept to execution. They also give feedback on any possible technological risks and ensure that the solution is consistent and meets all the necessary requirements.
Business Architect vs Enterprise Architect
Business architecture is a domain within enterprise architecture. Business architects help define the improvement of the business. The worst possible relationship is when the business architect takes on the role of translator or requirements gatherer. Neither of these roles is useful.
Business architects, as mentioned before, analyze the business and propose the best frameworks to keep the business competitive and achieve organizational goals. They conduct regular analysis for any possible areas of improvement.
Security Architect vs Domain Architect
Most of the time when we look at a potentially conflicting relationship, we discover collaboration. Security architects and other domains are no different. We cannot develop security architecture stand-alone. Opportunity and threat can arise in any architecture domain. Ensuring the opportunity and mitigating the threat often occurs in another architecture domain.
Security architects are the specialists who have a critical role in developing a complete enterprise architecture. Security architects will work across all architecture domains with every domain architect. Whether your security architects have a more holistic risk architecture approach, or specialize in cyber-security, they cannot succeed alone.
Conclusion of Different Enterprise Architecture Jobs
Digital transformation is happening at an extremely fast pace, meaning that organizations have to try keeping up with the changes in technology solutions. Architecture has steadily grown into an essential part of the IT department for any successful organization. These need to be working in perfect harmony for the success of business activities.
Businesses that have effective cooperation across the board have proven to be more successful in achieving their goals when compared to others. Fostering the working together for a common goal mentality is what sets apart successful businesses from failed ones. Each party might play a different role, but piecing them together, each of these efforts turns into the successful implementation of a project.
The variables of collaboration might be different depending on the company size, but the bottom line is they all ensure the project or product is successful. Similar to the moving parts of a machine, each piece serves a vital role, and it's sometimes impossible for the machine to operate when one is taken out.
Start Your Enterprise Architecture Journey
If you’re considering a career path in enterprise architecture, you can do it with us! The different Enterprise Architecture Jobs that make up a solid enterprise architecture team use a common industry standard framework, TOGAF. We use our 12-week architectural kick start program for every different enterprise architecture job. Build the skills to be a better architect.
Ready to get started? Get in touch with the consultants at Conexiam to learn more about how our TOGAF Certification Training and Enterprise Architecture Training can help you develop good architecture skills.