An enterprise architect creates an information technology strategy with a holistic focus. Unlike traditional information technology workers, who often deal with a company's current needs and short-term goals, enterprise-focused architects must take into account everything from long-term business goals to immediate growth objectives. Nexxt has a wide range of enterprise architect jobs, which you can adjust to find opportunities near you. But before you can become an enterprise architect, you might want to brush up on the skills that will make you a great candidate.
One of the most important skills for an enterprise architect is analysis. On the job, you will be bombarded with information about the current state of the market, resource limitations, sales goals, and IT assets. To be successful, you must be able to analyze the factors, both individually and as a whole. In doing so, you will spot patterns, knowledge gaps, and weak areas in the company’s current IT design. This is important because you'll have to work toward an ideal technology suite over the course of time.
For an enterprise architect, strategy goes hand-in-hand with analysis. The ultimate goal for any architect is to create an IT strategy that supports a company's immediate needs and long-term goals. As such, you need the ability to identify objectives and develop an IT roadmap that helps the company meet each goal in a timely fashion. Without strategic thinking, it is virtually impossible to succeed in enterprise-level IT design.
An enterprise architect works with people at all levels of a company, from programmers to CEOs. To be successful, communication is key. You must be able to speak fluently with each person in a company, adjusting your jargon and verbiage as necessary. When talking to a software engineer, you will be able to use more technical terms; a CEO, on the other hand, might be more concerned with overall sales goals and less interested in technological minutiae. For IT professionals who are accustomed to working solely with middle management, these conversational shifts can be difficult.
In order to keep track of the IT systems for an entire company, enterprise-level IT designers must be able to use project management and modeling software. The specific software suite may vary from company to company, so you must be adept at learning new programs. At a minimum, you should have experience with software for modeling, design, testing, management, and deployment of IT systems across a company. Before you become an architect, you must also be prepared to evaluate existing and new software for completeness and security and be prepared to defend it. As a recent story from FierceGovernmentIT demonstrates, the failure to do so can result in high-profile audits and public embarrassment.
In addition to planning IT solutions, an enterprise architect must possess the ability to motivate. Major technology changes often involve everyone in the company. When you can inspire and motivate your colleagues to adopt new systems, you can shorten the deployment schedule and reduce the amount of pushback from employees. Similar to a salesperson, you must be able to help your co-workers see the benefits of a new system from the beginning.
The skills required of an enterprise architect are different than those required of a traditional IT professional. The difference can add up to more responsibility and a larger salary. According to Nexxt's salary center, the average annual salary of an enterprise architect in the US is $135,965. By ensuring that your abilities are well rounded and comprehensive, you can increase your chances of success in enterprise-focused IT design.
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