AWS Solution Architect Roles and Responsibilities

Introduction 

The Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform is one of the most popular enterprise-grade cloud computing platforms. Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced that its revenue in the first quarter of 2022 increased by 37 percent when compared to the preceding quarter. 

Amazon Web Services (AWS) generates over USD 62 billion in net sales per year, up from about USD 45 billion per year in 2020, making it one of Amazon’s strongest revenue segments. Over the next decade, AWS architecture technicians are expected to be in high demand due to the rapid growth in the cloud computing industry.  

It is no secret that many companies, from large corporations to small businesses, are undergoing digital transformations and moving their internal services to a cloud-based architecture. 

As a Cloud Solution Architect, you must possess a specific skill set and practical knowledge in order to qualify for Amazon Web Services certification. The chances of obtaining an entry-level position as a cloud architect are quite high. With experience, they can then move up the certification ladder as well as up the career ladder within the industry. 

What Does a Solutions Architect Do? 

What is a Solutions Architect? A solution architect manages a company’s cloud computing architecture. Their expertise covers technical cloud strategy development, workload architecture review, cloud migration efforts, and addressing high-risk issues. 

Architecting cloud-based solutions and migrating existing ones to the cloud is what an AWS Solutions Architect does. What do they do? Let’s find out. 

Business applications and critical infrastructure are designed, built, deployed, and maintained by AWS Solutions Architects. With their skills and expertise, they develop advanced cloud-based solutions and migrate existing workloads to the cloud. 

Many positions in the technology industry are in high demand, including that of a solution architect. It is their responsibility to build and integrate computer systems and information so that they can meet particular user requirements. Typically, integrated hardware and software components within these systems are designed to achieve the objectives defined by the customer. It is also one of their responsibilities to examine current systems and architecture in order to determine where they are headed. In addition, the roles of a solution architect also involve working with business and technical staff to recommend solutions to improve a system’s performance. 

The solution architect gets involved in the project as part of the solution architecture team after the computer systems analyst highlights the requirements. Afterward, they continue to be involved in the project throughout the remainder of its duration. During the systems development life cycle, they are responsible for organizing the software development task, and motivating and guiding its progress throughout the process. In the end, their main responsibility will be to outline the vision for the solution that will underpin the implementation and how that vision will be carried out. 

Besides developing the software systems and devices, a solution architect may also be responsible for testing and integrating these systems and devices. There are a number of processes used by them, which usually involve the selection of the most appropriate technology according to the problem at hand. In addition, it is also very important that they maintain a balance between architectural and enterprise concerns. Solution architects have decades of experience in the field of software development, which gives them an advantage when it comes to being more productive and efficient with the tools they have available to them. 

Difference Between an Enterprise Architect, a Solution Architect, and a Technical Architect 

Main Roles and Duties of a Solution Architect 

Listed below are some of the solution architect roles and responsibilities: 

• Designing, building, and maintaining cloud environments that are cost-effective, scalable, and reliable 
• Using digital transformation to move archaic systems to the cloud and increase productivity within an organization 
• Implementing cloud-based solutions to facilitate the company’s business objectives 
• Preventing downtime and security breaches by maintaining a secure cloud environment 
• Looking for ways to automate common tasks within the company in an effort to improve operations 
• Assisting the organization in selecting hardware and software that would be suitable for the project and organization based on the project’s needs and preferences 
• Assuring that their company or organization is up to date with best practices in cloud computing and improving its cloud infrastructure to meet the needs of the organization or company 
• Incorporating cloud computing into internal processes and data management 

How To Develop The Skills Required to become a Solution Architect? 

A solution architect’s responsibility is to translate functional requirements into robust solutions to make the business functions more efficient and effective. Suppose an individual intends to become a solution architect for Amazon Web Services. In that case, they should possess certification in AWS solutions architecture as well as a relevant degree in addition to certain skills, including: 

• AWS Skills: Being an AWS architect, your primary skill set should be AWS skills, so you must be familiar with AWS concepts and AWS services, such as creating an architecture, working with the architecture, and utilizing AWS best practices. 
• Communication Skills: As a solution architect in AWS, one must communicate directly with end users, as well as internal or external stakeholders. The ability to manage the business concerns of the organization while implementing and designing systems that are user-friendly requires excellent interpersonal and communication skills so that the organization can achieve its goals. 
• Linux/UNIX: The majority of websites and software on AWS are hosted on Linux-based systems, so if you are going to survive as an AWS solutions architect, you must have a good grasp of Linux-based operations such as shell scripting. 
• Desire to Learn and Flexibility: Solutions Architects must be able to adapt to the changing priorities of the organization. As a business leader, you are constantly tasked with learning about new technologies and best practices to find the right answer to your business problem. A Cloud Architect must have a thirst for learning and a willingness to adapt to emerging trends as the field of cloud computing and technology is constantly evolving. 
• Problem-solving skills: Solutions Architects are responsible for addressing business problems through the use of software and hardware. As a cloud architect, you must possess technical knowledge and business acumen to successfully design and build cloud infrastructure and applications. 
• Secure and cost-optimized architectures: It is imperative that the architect for AWS solutions be capable of both building cost-optimized architectures while maintaining security at the same time. Simply put, the AWS solutions architect must ensure that a hacker or attacker cannot breach the architecture or website they build for an organization. 
• Decisiveness: In order to present their proposals to stakeholders in a confident and informative manner, an efficient Cloud Solutions Architect can provide clear guidance on which decisions to make. A Solutions Architect is responsible for designing and building applications and infrastructure that are reliable, cost-effective, secure, scalable, and resilient. As an AWS Architect, it is important that you communicate effectively and recommend solutions that will meet the requirements of your project. 

Conclusion 

Regardless of whether an organization adopts solution architecture or not, solution architecture is at the heart of all IT projects. A strategic approach to solution architecture facilitates the development of a framework aligned with the skills, resources, and technology of defined business objectives. 

Mid-size and small businesses do not commonly practice solution architecture. The product and development teams share responsibilities for solution architecture problems. This is a good option if you are working on a small project with predictable outcomes. However, an enterprise architecture specialist will be needed if multiple software products are integrated into the ecosystem, resulting in a complex architecture. A solution architect best handles such needs. 

So you’re now aware of the roles and responsibilities of an AWS solution architect. However, if you’re willing to brush up on your knowledge, you surely need to check out the UNext Jigsaw for various related courses.