How to Become a Solution Architect #2: Mindset
Tags: architecture, career
Published: 2023-03-05 08:57:31

As a Solution Architect, there are several areas that you would typically work on:

**1. Technical Architecture:** This involves designing a technical solution that meets the requirements of the business. This includes selecting the appropriate technologies and platforms to use, designing the overall system architecture, and ensuring that the system is scalable and maintainable.
**2. Application Architecture:** This involves designing the architecture of individual applications, including the data model, user interface, and business logic. The Application Architecture also includes designing the integration points between different applications and systems.
**3. Infrastructure Architecture:** This involves designing the underlying infrastructure that supports the applications and systems. This includes selecting the appropriate hardware, network topology, and storage solutions, and ensuring that the infrastructure is scalable and resilient.
**4. Security Architecture:** This involves designing the security architecture for the system, including authentication and authorization mechanisms, data protection, and compliance with relevant regulations and standards.
**5. Data Architecture:** This involves designing the data model, data integration, data storage, and data governance solutions for the system. This also includes designing the reporting and analytics capabilities of the system.
**6. Business Architecture:** This involves understanding the business goals and objectives and designing the system to meet those objectives. This includes designing the business processes, workflow, and user experience of the system.

As a Solution Architect, you may work on one or more of these areas, depending on the requirements of the project or organization you are working for.

But these areas are technical distinctions. The concept of Solution Architect is a generic concept. And in order to become a solution architect, the Mindset must first be changed and adapted.

#### Solution Architects are not Tool Selectors

A Solution Architect is more than just a tool picker. While technology and tools are important components of a solution, the role of a Solution Architect extends beyond tool selection. They have a comprehensive view of the system and are accountable for ensuring that the solution meets business requirements, and is scalable, maintainable, and secure.

A Solution Architect collaborates with stakeholders to understand business requirements before designing a solution to meet those needs. They assess various technologies and tools and select those that are best suited to meet the needs of the business. They do not, however, only concentrate on tools; they also design the architecture, define the integration points, create the data model, and ensure that the solution is scalable, maintainable, and secure.

To summarize, a Solution Architect is in charge of designing the overall solution and ensuring that it meets the business requirements, rather than just selecting tools.

#### Solution Architects should be Business-Focused rather than Self-Centered

Solution Architects should be more concerned with the business than with themselves. A Solution Architect's primary focus should be on designing solutions that meet business requirements and align with the organization's goals and objectives. 

A business-focused Solution Architect understands the business context in which the solution is being designed and ensures that it is aligned with the needs of the business. They collaborate closely with stakeholders such as business analysts and project managers to understand business requirements and design appropriate solutions. 

A self-centered Solution Architect, on the other hand, may prioritize their own interests, such as promoting a specific technology or platform, over designing a solution that meets the needs of the business. This can result in solutions that are not aligned with the goals of the organization and may not provide the desired value.

In conclusion, a Solution Architect should be business-focused and collaborate closely with stakeholders to ensure that the solution aligns with business requirements and provides the desired value to the organization.

#### Solution Architects Take a Long-Term View

Taking a long-term view of the solution is a key characteristic of a Solution Architect's mindset. A Solution Architect is in charge of creating scalable, maintainable, and adaptable solutions to changing business needs. They consider the solution's entire lifecycle, from development to deployment to ongoing maintenance.

A Solution Architect can design a solution that will evolve with the needs of the organization over time by taking a long-term perspective. When designing the solution, they take into account factors such as the organization's growth plans, future business needs, and emerging technologies. This ensures that the solution is more than just a quick fix and can provide long-term value to the organization.

Furthermore, taking a long-term perspective allows a Solution Architect to anticipate potential challenges and design solutions to mitigate them. They may, for example, design the solution to be modular, allowing components to be easily updated or replaced as technology evolves. They may also design the solution with security and data privacy in mind to ensure the solution's long-term security.

Taking a long-term perspective is an important characteristic of a Solution Architect's mindset. As a result, they can create solutions that are scalable, maintainable, and adaptable to changing business needs, delivering long-term value to the organization.

#### Solutions Architects are Adaptable 

Adaptability is an important aspect of a Solution Architect's mindset. A Solution Architect must be able to adapt to changing business needs, evolving technologies, and new requirements that arise during the solution's design and implementation.

A flexible Solution Architect can assess the impact of changes on the solution quickly and adjust the design accordingly. For example, if new requirements emerge during the development phase, an adaptable Solution Architect can assess the impact of those changes on the existing design and make necessary changes. They can also anticipate potential changes and design the solution to be flexible and adaptable in the future to accommodate those changes.

An adaptable Solution Architect can also work effectively in a variety of contexts, such as different industries, technologies, or teams. They can quickly grasp the specific requirements and constraints of each context and design solutions to meet those needs.

Overall, adaptability is an important aspect of a Solution Architect's mindset. They can quickly assess and adjust to changing requirements and constraints, design flexible and scalable solutions, and work effectively in different contexts to deliver value to the organization by being adaptable.

#### Solution Architects are Innovative 

Innovation is an important aspect of a Solution Architect's mindset. A Solution Architect must be creative and innovative in order to solve problems and deliver value to the organization.
An innovative Solution Architect can identify opportunities to introduce new technologies or processes that can improve the performance or user experience of the solution. They can also find new ways to use existing technologies to meet business needs in more efficient or effective ways.

Furthermore, a creative Solution Architect can think outside the box and consider alternative approaches to problem-solving. They are not afraid to take risks and experiment with new ideas if it means providing a better solution to the organization.

Furthermore, by fostering an environment of innovation and creativity, an innovative Solution Architect can inspire and lead the development team. They encourage team members to think creatively and share ideas that can improve the design and performance of the solution.

Overall, innovation is an important aspect of a Solution Architect's mindset. They can identify opportunities to introduce new technologies, processes, or approaches that can improve the solution's performance, and user experience, and deliver value to the organization by being innovative. They can also motivate the development team to think creatively and foster an innovative culture that will drive continuous improvement.

#### Solution Architects are Trend-Spotters, but with a Caveat.

While current trends and emerging technologies are important for a Solution Architect to be aware of, they must also be able to differentiate between hype and real value.

A trend observer The Solution Architect can identify new technologies or practices that have the potential to improve the design and performance of the solution. They can assess the potential impact of those trends on the organization and create solutions that capitalize on those trends to deliver value.

Nonetheless, a trend-spotting Solution Architect must also be able to differentiate between trends that are simply hype and those that provide real value. Before incorporating new technologies and approaches into the solution's design, they must assess their maturity, dependability, and security.

Furthermore, a trend-spotting Solution Architect should be able to predict future trends and design solutions that are flexible and adaptable enough to accommodate those trends in the future.
Overall, being a trend-spotting Solution Architect is important, but it necessitates striking a balance between being aware of current trends and assessing the potential impact of those trends on the organization's goals and objectives.

#### Solution Architects are Problem-Solvers

Being a problem solver is one of the key mindsets of a Solution Architect. Solution Architects face complex challenges in their roles and are responsible for designing solutions to those challenges.

A Solution Architect's ability to solve problems effectively is critical to their success. They must be able to identify the underlying causes of problems and devise solutions that address those underlying causes. They must be able to evaluate multiple options and make data-driven decisions that are in line with the goals and objectives of the organization.

Furthermore, Solution Architects must be able to identify and resolve issues that arise during the design and implementation of the solution. They must be able to analyze complex problems and deconstruct them into smaller, more manageable components. They must also be able to work with stakeholders to develop solutions that meet the needs of the organization.

A Solution Architect must also be able to anticipate potential issues and design solutions to mitigate them. They must be proactive in identifying and resolving potential issues before they become critical.

Overall, a problem-solving mindset is essential for a Solution Architect. They must possess strong analytical and critical thinking abilities, be proactive in identifying and addressing potential issues, and be able to collaborate with stakeholders to develop effective solutions to complex problems.

### Conclusion
 
In conclusion, a Solution Architect is an important role in organizations that necessitates a diverse set of mindsets. They must be strategic thinkers, customer-focused, collaborative, constantly improving, and problem solvers. Solution Architects must have a thorough understanding of the organization's goals and objectives in order to design solutions that meet those goals. They must be adaptable, innovative, and capable of distinguishing between trends that provide genuine value and those that are simply hype. To design and implement effective solutions that meet the needs of the organization, a successful Solution Architect must have a unique combination of technical and non-technical skills.