Thinking about a career in Software Architecture
We sat down and spoke with a locally known and respected Software Architect who has more than 15 years’ experience in software development and called Christchurch home for over a decade. They shared the challenges of their role, what they recommend for new graduates or people wanting to make a shift into software architecture, and where software architecture is likely to go in the future. If you are aspiring to work in Software Architecture, this article will share some great advice and tips to get started.
If you had to summarise what you do into a brief couple of sentences, how would you describe it?
Software architecture is about two main things. The first is automation of manual processes, this saves companies time and allows for people to focus on the more important aspects of their roles. The second is integration of two internal systems. Understanding which software, products, and procedures are a best fit for the intended project and making sure that we can extend the capabilities of these systems.
We are endeavouring to make this coexistence more manageable.
What excites you the most about the work?
The automation mentioned above is something I truly enjoy. I really like to see how complex, tedious, and long going routines can be replaced by swift and reliable computer logic.
It reminds me of the excitement I felt as a child when I completed and ran my first program somewhere in the late 80s. That same excitement remains with me today, although the complexity of the problems we solve has evolved over time.
What have your biggest roadblocks been?
I would say bureaucracy has been one of the major obstacles. It tends to impede any progress and it grows as a burden together with the company size.
In my opinion this is why many startups often succeed where large corporations fail, despite the latter having more favourable conditions on the market.
What would you like someone who’s interested in becoming a Software Architect to know?
For any recent graduates or people wanting to make a career switch into software development I would say to aim to start at a large company. While the work may not be the most exciting compared to greenfield projects, the structure, team size and knowledge, and scope of work are all bonuses. Working in a large company will allow you to understand what parts of the role you enjoy, learn from people experienced in the field, and get exposed to a wide variety of projects.
When thinking about your role remember to go for impossible and you’ll get the maximum possible.
What’s the best project you’ve worked on and why? What was rewarding about it?
There have been several really good projects I really enjoyed working on, each one interesting in its own way.
One that comes to mind is when I started at a company and noticed that a procedure done every morning could be automated. There was a manual review of documents and then this document had to be downloaded and uploaded to a different system. Sometimes this task would need to be done a dozen times per person in the morning. I was able to help integrate the two systems and now the files move automatically. This along with a duplication check process was a solid win in my eyes.
Where do you see the future of Software Architecture going – are there any trends you see coming up?
Software Architecture was always about designing complex systems out from high-level components. While ten and more years ago those building blocks were software components, today they are primarily cloud resources.
The software hosting model has changed significantly in the past decade, leading to a corresponding shift in the direction of software architecture.
I also imagine that AI will play a huge part in this going forward. As one of the main aspects of software architecture is automation and AI is incredibly efficient at automation. Regarding a process like duplication checking AI will be able to understand that two lots of information are related despite minor spelling errors, capitalisation, and punctuation. AI will understand that “John Doe”, “John-Doe”, and “Jhon Doe” are likely all related to the same person.
Many prominent industry sectors are already embracing AI as their primary analysis tool: security and surveillance, robotics and automation, as well as computer vision and rendering.
What books/podcasts/training/qualifications/professional development/etc. would you recommend for anyone aspiring to work in this space or is already in DevOps?
In my mind, Pluralsight is probably the best learning platform these days. It covers numerous topics by many authors, the topics and training courses have a variety of different complexity levels and details. The content is video based which is a preference for me. There is a free trial period you can use to see if it is something you would use.
In a previous company I worked for one, of the perks was a free subscription and the whole team used it. I believe the juniors spent the most time on it and got the most out of it. I would really encourage anyone who is wanting to stay up to date with software, to look into it.
Is there anything you would do differently second time around during your career?
I could have been a bit more proactive at some early stages of my career. There were situations where I saw opportunities for improvement in designs but lacked the confidence to persuade senior colleagues.
I would encourage anyone new to always suggest your ideas, in larger teams it is easy to fade into the background if you are not inputting suggestions. Suggestions that get denied are never a negative thing as you can learn from senior team members why your idea was not implemented.
What do you love about working in tech and being based in Christchurch? What’s your advice for anyone looking to relocate down here?
The pace of work is much more relaxed here compared to Europe, for example, making the work-life balance very comfortable. On the other side, Christchurch and New Zealand, in general, may lag slightly behind European trends. However, New Zealand is rapidly catching up. Commuting is also generally manageable.
What is something you recommend for someone to do in their first month in Canterbury/Christchurch?
Exploring the Port hills and Lyttelton are a must in my opinion. I remember the first time I came out of the tunnel into Lyttelton and I was blown away by the scenery.
For those who prefer a less hectic pace of life but still enjoy city amenities, Christchurch might be a great place to relocate. As a family we spent the first year exploring, there are so many options within a few hours of Christchurch. If you love to explore the outdoors, you can easily get to forests, bush, beaches, mountains, ski resorts, and much more from Christchurch.