In my opinion, positions that need to be hired, with folks you have not worked with, into an "architect" title that has no clear roles/responsibilities is asinine. Ask 100 different people what an architect's roles/responsibilities are, you will get a 100 different answers.
I continuously get requests for a company looking for an architect. When asked what are the roles/responsibilities, some say "it's a management role", others say "heres a list of technical items you should know" with no clear understanding of the position itself. My favorite is "you do everything technical" <== I don't understand this. Does that mean product development? Managing tech projects/people? Development? Infrastructure? Building out systems? Doing drawings all day?
If the roles/responsibilities are unknown, then it's a failure on management to understand what the need is and what the expectations of commitment is from the individual.
Finally, hiring an architect that is an unknown without clear expectations puts the individual in a detrimental position, because they do not know the systems, the apps, or the business well enough to effectively do their job.
So, the organization is better off doing one of the following :
1) Hiring a senior developer that has the potential of being promoted over time to architect.
2) Make it a tech manager position, if that is the intention, and allow them to effectively manage.
3) If the hiring manager and the architect candidate that needs to be hired in have worked together before (either in a full time or a consultancy capacity), then it's an option to bring that individual in, as there are clear expectations from both sides on the role and, more then likely, the manager is in a similar industry/work environment as before to allow the architect to do his job effectively.
4) Hire an "architect" that is proven in industry through blogs, books, or speeches so that the manager understands their capabilities/expectations.
5) Be very clear on the roles/responsibilities of the individual coming in and stick to them, do not continuously re-prioritize.
However, don't ever make an "architect" role and hire someone in that's unknown without clear expectations. It will not work or will be excruciatingly difficult.
I continuously get requests for a company looking for an architect. When asked what are the roles/responsibilities, some say "it's a management role", others say "heres a list of technical items you should know" with no clear understanding of the position itself. My favorite is "you do everything technical" <== I don't understand this. Does that mean product development? Managing tech projects/people? Development? Infrastructure? Building out systems? Doing drawings all day?
If the roles/responsibilities are unknown, then it's a failure on management to understand what the need is and what the expectations of commitment is from the individual.
Finally, hiring an architect that is an unknown without clear expectations puts the individual in a detrimental position, because they do not know the systems, the apps, or the business well enough to effectively do their job.
So, the organization is better off doing one of the following :
1) Hiring a senior developer that has the potential of being promoted over time to architect.
2) Make it a tech manager position, if that is the intention, and allow them to effectively manage.
3) If the hiring manager and the architect candidate that needs to be hired in have worked together before (either in a full time or a consultancy capacity), then it's an option to bring that individual in, as there are clear expectations from both sides on the role and, more then likely, the manager is in a similar industry/work environment as before to allow the architect to do his job effectively.
4) Hire an "architect" that is proven in industry through blogs, books, or speeches so that the manager understands their capabilities/expectations.
5) Be very clear on the roles/responsibilities of the individual coming in and stick to them, do not continuously re-prioritize.
However, don't ever make an "architect" role and hire someone in that's unknown without clear expectations. It will not work or will be excruciatingly difficult.
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