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Well, in purely software shops, there's often people dreaming up the 'what to do' and a different group of people actually writing the code. Same with systems

Well, in purely software shops, there's often people dreaming up the 'what to do' and a different group of people actually writing the code. Same with systems design, we have 'architects.' This should be no different for statistical modelers or other disciplines. Employers are just cheap.

majormajor 4y ago
I've never worked on more painful codebases than when the "architects" don't have to bother writing actual code and so are ignorant of all the edge cases and special-case business rules that turn their pretty pictures into a horrific ball of mud.
- p1necone 4y ago
  The "architects" I've known also had a habit of giving you their grand perfect plan in a meeting that lasts no more than an hour or so, disappearing for the next 6 months without communicating with the people building the thing at all, and then being surprised when the final codebase looks nothing like the perfect system they'd designed in their head. Architects have to be involved in building the thing they're architecting. (It feels like the blueprint analogy fits here - actual building architects write blueprints, and then builders go off and build the house based on those blueprints. The code we write is effectively the blueprint, not the house. So what the hell are our architects making? We need to treat software "architects" more like building site foremen than actual architects)
  - pjmlp 4y ago
    Having some times taken architect like roles, I think the big problem is that architects is a very loaded term, like everything in IT. You have proper architects, those that design nice diagrams, have proper technical knowledge, and also code, even if small portions when compared with the rest of the team. These I would call proper architects, and tend to explicit mention Technical Architects to make the point. Then you have the "architects" that do diagrams, spend the time in meetings with customers, plan features per sprint, delegate activities, and so forth. This ones I call managers and always double check if the company isn't using architec as synomim for managers. At least some shops are more honest, by making use of business analyst or solution architect as synomim for high level management work.

majormajor 4y ago

I've never worked on more painful codebases than when the "architects" don't have to bother writing actual code and so are ignorant of all the edge cases and special-case business rules that turn their pretty pictures into a horrific ball of mud.

p1necone 4y ago
The "architects" I've known also had a habit of giving you their grand perfect plan in a meeting that lasts no more than an hour or so, disappearing for the next 6 months without communicating with the people building the thing at all, and then being surprised when the final codebase looks nothing like the perfect system they'd designed in their head. Architects have to be involved in building the thing they're architecting. (It feels like the blueprint analogy fits here - actual building architects write blueprints, and then builders go off and build the house based on those blueprints. The code we write is effectively the blueprint, not the house. So what the hell are our architects making? We need to treat software "architects" more like building site foremen than actual architects)
- pjmlp 4y ago
  Having some times taken architect like roles, I think the big problem is that architects is a very loaded term, like everything in IT. You have proper architects, those that design nice diagrams, have proper technical knowledge, and also code, even if small portions when compared with the rest of the team. These I would call proper architects, and tend to explicit mention Technical Architects to make the point. Then you have the "architects" that do diagrams, spend the time in meetings with customers, plan features per sprint, delegate activities, and so forth. This ones I call managers and always double check if the company isn't using architec as synomim for managers. At least some shops are more honest, by making use of business analyst or solution architect as synomim for high level management work.