Don’t Back Into Architecture Don Howard, CITA-F

Principal Solution Architect, Deluxe Corp

Setup

My path

Not alone in the feeling that the profession is not well

defined

The profession

Iasa’s contribution over last 10 years

Room for multiple IT architect professional groups

My purpose today: persuade you to make Iasa a big part of your

IT architect career

Problem

Young profession

Multiple paths in

Super-developer to architect

Super-DBA to architect

Development manager to architect

Business person with technical competence to architect

Operations and network specialist with business and

development competence to architect

Perception and other challenges of architecture

Unprepared in some areas, hit the wall

Solution

Make it a profession

Like medicine, law, dentistry, civil engineering, building architecture, etc.

That’s Iasa’s primary mission: advancing architecture professional excellence

Common body of knowledge (BOK), specializations, certified levels of mastery, education

Professionally excellent IT architect will look like…

Trusted advisor – strategic, visionary, technology breadth and depth, business acumen and strong in organization dynamics

Predictable results – design skills, solid tactics and execution

Multi-lingual – fluent in language of business, architecture and technology

Summed up: be a “technology strategist for the business”

Body of Knowledge (BOK) Pillars

Specializations and Scope

The Software Architect (examples: business

applications, LOB applications, work flow systems,

purchased applications, developed applications)

Comprehensive software and application strategy

spanning corporate and customer value chains

The Infrastructure Architect (examples: Network

topology, messaging, data centers, storage, backup and

recovery, directories, management frameworks,

repositories, monitoring, security)

Hardware, network and operational strategy delivering

optimized and agile enterprises

Information Architect (examples: Data

governance, Master and Metadata management, Data

storage, Data Warehousing and BI, Data provisioning

and delivery, security)

Storage, retrieval and integration of critical enterprise

information

Business Architect (examples: BP Modeling, BP

Management, Process Frameworks)

Integration of business and technical strategy related to

department and business capability delivery

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Source: Max Poliashenko, Iasa Fellow

Levels of Mastery

4. CITA-Professional

Certified IT Architect-

Professional

Industry level contributions

7-10+ years experience

Level Goal:

Develop new knowledge for

industry

Activities:

- Mentor and lead complex

initiatives

- Lead organization wide

change

- Research new areas of

architecture

- Teach and speak at

conferences

3. CITA-Specialist

Certified IT Architect-

Specialist

Enterprise level contributions

5-7 years experience

Level Goal:

Apply skills on complex

solutions

Activities:

- Continually expand skill

areas*

- Fill gaps in knowledge and

practice

- Mentor and contribute to

profession

* Continuing education

through Iasa and partners

2. CITA-Associate

Iasa Associate

Certification

Project level

3-5 years experience

Level Goal:

Acquire depth

knowledge

Activities:

- Training in

specialization*

- Practice knowledge

with oversight

- Identify an industry

mentor

*See Iasa Skills Taxonomy

1. CITA-Foundation

Iasa Foundation

Certification

Project level

1-3 years experience

Level Goal:

Acquire core terminology

and skills

Activities:

- Training in core skills and

terminology**

*Senior architects benefit

from comprehensive

knowledge and terms.

**Non-architects benefit

from key modules.

IT Architect BOK One Level

Deeper

Put the Solution into Effect

Join Iasa Global, join Iasa MN

Take self assessment, see where you stand

Take courses, pursue certifications, use self study materials, attend conferences, leverage the local and global network

Advance the profession: do your part individually

Advance the profession: take it to your company

Architecture engagement model: value, skills, progress, coverage

Connected architecture organization, recommended job descriptions

Generic architecture process

Where do Self Assessment Results

Place You? Scoring Standards for each pillar:

1% - 25%

Iasa recommends improvement to accomplish the CITA-F level.

Learning resources by pillar are listed below.

26% - 50%

Congratulations! According to your score you have foundation level knowledge of this pillar and may

be qualified to pass CITA-F level.

Iasa recommends improvement to accomplish the CITA-A level.

Learning resources by pillar are listed below.

51% - 70%

Congratulations! According to your score you have Associate level knowledge of this pillar and may

be qualified to pass CITA-A level.

Additional learning ressource are available below by pillar.

71% - 100%

Congratulations! Your knowledge level in the five pillars exceeds CITA-F and CITA-A level.

Depending on your actual work experience you are qualified to attempt the CITA-S or CITA-P

certification levels.

Learning resources :

Business Technology Strategy

Human Dynamics

IT Environment

Quality Attributes

Design

ITABoK

Conclusion

If we…

Understand IT architect BOK and our specializations

Know our skill levels and how to improve

And we make this happen individually and collectively

We’ll have better careers, a better profession, and we’ll

create better technology to improve business and people’s

lives