Sponsored Links
Hiring the phantom Java architect
Do you need a Java architect or a senior developer?
- Feedback
- Discuss
Page 2 of 2
Compared to other industries, when it comes to the discipline of clearly delineating job functions, software development is relatively immature.
Advantages to clearly defined roles
As we all know, in the software development lifecycle, the more perspectives you have of the problem domain, the more comprehensive and reliable your solution. The advantage to clearly defined roles between developers and architects within an organization is the way they will be able to view, and ultimately, solve problems based on their respective perspective.
To illustrate this point, imagine staring at a tree 50 yards away. When asked to focus on a single leaf on the tree, a developer would innately focus on the leaf's fine-grained details: its shape, color, texture, etc. An architect, on the other hand, would look at the same leaf, but not lose sight of the entire tree. Hence, when it comes to developing software, architects view components as leaves held together by guidelines and best practices, thereby freeing up developers to focus solely on developing the best components possible. In short, a developer's strength is in the ability to dive in and fine tune an existing implementation, such as Java, Enterprise JavaBeans, Hibernate, or C++, to solve a given problem. An architect's strength lies in the ability to develop an implementation to solve a problem's context.
Knowing how to solve a problem's context verses solving the problem itself distinguishes architects from developers. Thus an architect must be adept in object-oriented methodologies, design patterns, and UML, and, more importantly, have the discipline to enforce standardized guidelines while following best practices.
With all of that said, the intent of this article isn't to imply that an architect is more valuable than a developer, or vice versa. On the contrary, they complement one another. The goal is to push the IT industry forward by taking the time to learn the differences between the emerging Java roles. And hopefully now, whether you are a Java technologist or an IT manager seeking to hire one, you will have a better understanding of how and where a Java architect can be utilized within your organization, thereby saving you time and money.
About the author
Al Smith Jr. is a Sun-certified Java programmer and architect. He began his career in computers 11 years ago at IBM Global as an implementation consultant. Utilizing his object-oriented analysis and object-oriented development experience, he went on to become the founder of TheJavaArchitect.com. He specializes in the inception and elaboration of J2EE applications. In addition to consulting, Smith teaches Java programming to junior developers and provides mentoring during large-scale Java migrations. He currently resides in Southern California.- Feedback
Archived Discussions (Read only)
| Subject |
Forum migration complete By Athen
|
|
Forum migration update By Athen
|
|
urgent requirement on java/j2ee By AnushaReddy
|
|
in between, the microarchitect By Anonymous
|
|
Roles be damned By Anonymous
|
|
Follow up from the author By Al Smith, Jr.
|
|
Hiring the phantom Java architect By JavaWorld
(  1 2 all )
|
|
The subject of the article is wrong! By Anonymous
|
|
Requires maturity and vision By Anonymous
|
|
Mr. Smith would appear to be correct By Anonymous
|
|
In portuguese? By Anonymous
|
|
Re; Hiring the phantom Java Architect By angsuman
|
|
Ego driven By Anonymous
|
|
Flush my toilet Mr. Java Architect By Anonymous
|
|
java certification By Anonymous
|
Resources
- "Two Kinds of Java Engineers," Bill Baloglu (JDJ, January 2001)
http://jdj.sys-con.com/read/36201.htm - Conducting the J2EE Job Interview, Jeffrey M. Hunter, Don Burleson (Rampant Techpress, April 2004; ISBN0974435597)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0974435597/javaworld - "Java Certification Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How," David L. Hecksel and Marcus Green (Certification Magazine)
http://www.certmag.com/issues/jul00/feature_hecksel-green.cfm - Conducting the Programmer Job Interview, Janet Burleson (Rampant TechPress, April 2004; ISBN0974599328)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0974599328/javaworld - Browse the Certification and Training section of JavaWorld's Topical Index
http://www.javaworld.com/channel_content/jw-certification-index.shtml
About Us | Advertise | Contact Us | Terms of Service/Privacy
Copyright, 2006-2008 Network World, Inc. All rights reserved.
Well to be an architect ( no matter, software, enterprise ) sounds good but in most companies this role in not properly understoBy Anonymous on October 6, 2009, 6:57 pmWell to be an architect ( no matter, software, enterprise ) sounds good but in most companies this role in not properly understood. In software development companies...
Reply | Read entire comment
View all comments