Tag Archives: skills

The Buzz about TOGAF® Framework as an essential Transformation Framework tool kit for Architects

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Just saw the above job ad from my linkedin feed and this one talks about the company needing a security with a T skill profile.  Meaning have deep dive skills in one or two areas and broad based skills in other areas. Togaf that way has been mixed and matched with other architect skills like Security , Infra , Business , Data , Domain , Functional , Technology architecture domains. This helps a professional have a broad based skill or outlook when they reach a certain career progression path. So one typically gets into the question of what is needed to be an architect . Here is a link on what would be needed to become a good architect for the ones who may want to make that career progression. Steps to transition into an architect path .

The ancient definition of an architect was that he/she should be a many of letters , arts , science , literature , music , architecture ( building / landscape ) etc. Meaning that you should be a Da Vinci to really have that title. But it is not that bad if you are planning to become a solution , IT or enterprise architect. As we all can’t be Da Vinci’s to fill that slot.

If you are wanting to make that transition happen or be exposed to that body of knowledge to help you with having an architect’s mindset then TOGAF® framework comes to the rescue.

Mind you it is not really needed to have a certification to become a good architect. But certifications expose one to a body of knowledge that companies and peers value. You may possess this knowledge by virtue of being in a certain role or vantage point in a company.

Every skill you acquire doubles your odds of success. Scott Adams

 

RFP – What goes into it ?

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RFP in the age of pay as you use / On demand Software ?

As you could see above the Ruler of Dubai has floated an open tender on his linkedin page calling for a solution to traffic congestion . As part of an IT team we are most often tasked with the task of how to prepare an RFP how to respond it and what does it take to ensuring that you are putting your needs across to that prospective vendor or customer out there to whom it needs to go out to.

In the age of cloud and COTS ( Commercial Off the Shelf ) solutions or software there are customers who pick and choose which software solution to buy based on similar success stories and circumvent the need for a formal RFP. They would most often go with a pay as you use model where with a subscription model you have the software solution at your disposal . But this apart the RFP is not dead yet and there are many formal RFP which get circulated like the one above where the need for pick and choose the right solution from the customer makes sense.

Some of the qualities that you would need while responding to an RFP ?

Understand the customer problem as it stands.

Articulate your value proposition to the customer so that you differentiate from the competition ?

Just because there is a solution it would straight way fit the customer’s context.

How are you going to take of customization needs from a solution fitment point of view.

What is the type of language / taxonomy that you would use when you interact with the business folks . Is it same as the IT side of things ?

Do you understand the jargon and the nitty gritties referred to in the RFP ?

Are you technically competent to see the solution in its entirety or are you from the business side of things where you are looking at the solution from a viability perspective from a purely business angle.

Do you understand responding to an RFP has a direct relevance to the development or downstream chain of solutions being offered. Sales promise the world and the reality is delivered by the downstream people.

Ability to think in terms of abstraction is a key asset here . How would you hide the implementation details and look at  a reference architecture to solve these.

How will a reference architecture help you solve these issues , as these shall help creating repeated success in the company and also help iron out issues while solutioning with the client.  What other skills do you find to be lacking here ?

 

 

 

So What are the Qualities of a Solution Architect ?

So you want to transition from what you are doing to a role that helps you see customer solutions. There are many solutions for a given problem which one suits the solution the best given the customer context.Most often the tendency is to straight away jump to a problem and start solving it rather than step back and look at the big picture.

So what does the good solution architects have in common.

They are good at communication, good technical  / business background, have a breadth of experience across a spectrum of an area of the industry pie, have an appetite for plugging risk , they can see the high level picture as well go down to the nuts and bolts when needed, they are visionaries , stand for the proposed solution by backing it with a proper rationale and more importantly life long learners.

Here is leaving you with an article that has these thoughts on how to become a solution architect or be better at it if you are already one.

What make a good solution architect ?

What has been your experience that you find is missing among the architect community and what skills are needed to help them look good in front of their peers , stakeholders and customers ?.

What are the qualities of a Solution Architect ?

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So you want to transition from what you are doing to a role that helps you see customer solutions. There are many solutions for a given problem which one suits the solution the best given the customer context.Most often the tendency is to straight away jump to a problem and start solving it rather than step back and look at the big picture.

So what does the good solution architects have in common.

They are good at communication, good technical  / business background, have a breadth of experience across a spectrum of an area of the industry pie, have an appetite for plugging risk , they can see the high level picture as well go down to the nuts and bolts when needed, they are visionaries , stand for the proposed solution by backing it with a proper rationale and more importantly life long learners.

Here is leaving you with an article that has these thoughts on how to become a solution architect or be better at it if you are already one.

What make a good solution architect ?

What has been your experience that you find is missing among the architect community and what skills are needed to help them look good in front of their peers , stakeholders and customers ?.

SDET a step towards creating a self Organizing team…

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Who is an SDET ( Software Developer Engineer in Test / Software Design Engineer in Test) ? Initially started at Microsoft many companies have these job titles these days. Watch a short video on how this role forms one step towards moving self organizing teams. A pure tester alone or developer alone role is fast fading and instead one needs to be a mix of both. End goal is to ship highest quality code just as in engineering , we cannot say that the bridge has only 50 % quality , the engineers lacked focus when it was built. Similarly SDET is redefining the software engineering practice.