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It might be harmful if it was universal, but it's really just another facet of the normal, perpetual tension between generalization and specialization. Large o

It might be harmful if it was universal, but it's really just another facet of the normal, perpetual tension between generalization and specialization. Large organizations working on grand projects benefit from slicing up roles so that experienced specialists can anticipate and prepare solutions for the uncommon challenges that arise in those projects (and so that the bureaucracy of large orgs can be managed at all). Meanwhile, smaller organizations, or groups working on more modestly scoped projects, benefit from generalists who can hold much of the project in their head and develop highly cohesive solutions that can be delivered efficiently. A skyscraper requires seasoned architects or its going to crumble under its own weight, but even an extensive residential home renovation can be planned by a general contractor and done way cheaper than if many specialists were brought in. It sounds like there are some organizations/projects you wouldn't want to be involved with, but that doesn't mean that those organizations/projects are doing something harmful or regressive. They just don't suit the way you want to approach work.

Aperocky 4y ago
But the existing situation is the reverse of what you described. The largest tech companies out there (usually? anecdotal) do not have this distinction, it's the smaller and older companies that continue to enforce this arbitrary divide.
- gabereiser 4y ago
  A quick Google search of software architect jobs for Google proves otherwise. Like the comment above, large orgs slice up these roles and have architects (like myself) to help guide software teams into cohesion on platforms that require high collaboration between services to support a multitude of products. Anyone who says architecture isn’t needed, isn’t doing anything at scale (or blissfully unaware that their ship is sinking). Great Architects work closely with the dev teams to give them reference diagrams, proof of concept code, and the art of the possible. Bad architects drop a big requirements doc and walk away. Almost every large organization has architects (enterprise, solutions, software, and cloud).
  - closeparen 4y ago
    You will see these kinds of titles in Silicon Valley's IT departments (these are different from Engineering) and in B2B sales related arms. Architect vs. dev is not normally how their core software engineering functions are organized. Everyone is a "software engineer" and everyone has a "design and architecture" competency to meet. It's more emphasized at senior levels, but it's always there.
    - gabereiser 4y ago
      I see these kinds of titles in product teams. I’m not disputing what you claim, that architects are primarily B2B in Silicon Valley. It’s just not true anywhere else. I’ve been a coder and engineer for a really long time. Now I’m an architect after finding management not to be my thing. I code. I build products. Any organization where the developers are also the architects are just flying by the seat of their pants and again, aren’t doing anything at scale (yet?). It’s extremely important to recognize the different areas of architecture. Enterprise and Solutions architecture is primarily B2B focused. Software Architecture and Systems Architecture can be B2C focused or product focused. I’ve worked as a software engineer at places where everyone did architecture and it always ended up in a hairball mess that some senior/principal would recommend rewriting after 2 years.
      - oaiey 4y ago
        This. Architects are needed once scale makes it impossible for the majority of engineers to understand the big picture.
      - pdhborges 4y ago
        > Any organization where the developers are also the architects are just flying by the seat of their pants and again, aren’t doing anything at scale (yet?). How did you reach this conclusion? Both Amazon and Google don't structure their software engineering teams around an 'Architect' title. I also searched the Google Carrera page for Architect positions and the great majority of them are customer facing roles with very few Architect positions assigned to specialized fields.
LAC-Tech 4y ago
I've worked as a grunt for tradesmen. Even in small residential jobs with teams of 4 or 5 there was a boss who was much less hands on.

Aperocky 4y ago

But the existing situation is the reverse of what you described. The largest tech companies out there (usually? anecdotal) do not have this distinction, it's the smaller and older companies that continue to enforce this arbitrary divide.

gabereiser 4y ago
A quick Google search of software architect jobs for Google proves otherwise. Like the comment above, large orgs slice up these roles and have architects (like myself) to help guide software teams into cohesion on platforms that require high collaboration between services to support a multitude of products. Anyone who says architecture isn’t needed, isn’t doing anything at scale (or blissfully unaware that their ship is sinking). Great Architects work closely with the dev teams to give them reference diagrams, proof of concept code, and the art of the possible. Bad architects drop a big requirements doc and walk away. Almost every large organization has architects (enterprise, solutions, software, and cloud).
- closeparen 4y ago
  You will see these kinds of titles in Silicon Valley's IT departments (these are different from Engineering) and in B2B sales related arms. Architect vs. dev is not normally how their core software engineering functions are organized. Everyone is a "software engineer" and everyone has a "design and architecture" competency to meet. It's more emphasized at senior levels, but it's always there.
  - gabereiser 4y ago
    I see these kinds of titles in product teams. I’m not disputing what you claim, that architects are primarily B2B in Silicon Valley. It’s just not true anywhere else. I’ve been a coder and engineer for a really long time. Now I’m an architect after finding management not to be my thing. I code. I build products. Any organization where the developers are also the architects are just flying by the seat of their pants and again, aren’t doing anything at scale (yet?). It’s extremely important to recognize the different areas of architecture. Enterprise and Solutions architecture is primarily B2B focused. Software Architecture and Systems Architecture can be B2C focused or product focused. I’ve worked as a software engineer at places where everyone did architecture and it always ended up in a hairball mess that some senior/principal would recommend rewriting after 2 years.
    - oaiey 4y ago
      This. Architects are needed once scale makes it impossible for the majority of engineers to understand the big picture.
    - pdhborges 4y ago
      > Any organization where the developers are also the architects are just flying by the seat of their pants and again, aren’t doing anything at scale (yet?). How did you reach this conclusion? Both Amazon and Google don't structure their software engineering teams around an 'Architect' title. I also searched the Google Carrera page for Architect positions and the great majority of them are customer facing roles with very few Architect positions assigned to specialized fields.

LAC-Tech 4y ago

I've worked as a grunt for tradesmen. Even in small residential jobs with teams of 4 or 5 there was a boss who was much less hands on.