Solution Architecture

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What is Solution Architecture?

Solution Architecture means different for different people.

Here are my views on what it means to do Solution Architecture.

The Solution Architecture is an artifact that documents the business problem, constraints, and architecture for a technology solution.? Its audience is broad, but primarily is the Enterprise Architect community. It is used as a common vehicle for communicating iterations of a technology solution.

Working from a standardized?Solution enables an Architect to effectively communicate key aspects of a technology solution and the reasons for making certain architectural decisions.

Typically, enterprise solutions tend to have long lifespans. Green-field development efforts are less common than enhancements to existing assets.?Capturing iterative?change?in a document is needed and the templates should be built to take advantage?of it.?

Identifying your "Solution Type" at the top of the document will enable reviewers to understand the type and scope of your solution and understand what content to expect.?

It should not be intended to be a full engineering or implementation document, though where relevant that content may be added. There should be questions and sections in the template that touch on these areas in an effort to identify issues or oversights that could be costly to the firm if not addressed early.

This should also our standard artifact used to support the "Architecture and Technology Governance" standards and dictates the following:

• All IT system designs must be reviewed locally to determine whether they need centralized review at Architecture Review Board.
• All new 3rd party software or hardware products must be approved at Technology Governance prior to contract and purchase.

RACI

The below RACI represents the roles and responsibilities for the?architecture decisions?captured in the Solution Architecture.?

• Responsible: Do the work to complete the deliverable

The assigned?Solution Architects?are responsible for:

The correctness and the completion of the Solution Architecture (including updating the threat model)?

Presenting the SAD to the Governing Boards.

Consulting and aligning with the Application or Application Platform architect, for every Application Platform impacted by the solution.

Board Members?are responsible for reviewing/approving the Solution Architecture

Note: The "Solution Architect" role could be a principal architect, application platform architect, application architect, a team lead, a tech owner, or anybody else as determined by the solution owner.??

• Accountable: Certify the deliverable meets the quality standards For Solution Architecture that are scoped within a single?Application Platform,?

Application Platform Architects?are accountable (Application Platform Architects are defined in APM).?

For Solution Architectures that span multiple Application Platforms, the?Chief Architects?are accountable.?

In the absence of designated Chief Architect,?the accountability lies with?the Org leader or their delegate.??

• Consulted: Provide input to deliverable (can be also a contributor) Teams who are consulted for their input and expertise during the creation of the Solution Architecture including 'Platform architects' of the impacted domains, other impacted teams/stakeholders, and subject matter experts.?
• Informed: Kept up to date on key deliverable efforts Teams who need to be kept informed of the progress and content of the Solution Architecture including leaders, business stakeholders, application architects of impacted applications, and project managers.?

Solution Architecture Templates:

This should be iterative document and should be updated as well when Solution Architectures evolve.

Goals for the Templates should be :

• Assist the author(s) in?effectively communicating the solution, using verbiage, diagrams and answers to specifically designed questions
• Provide Diagram examples and templates?
• Provide a consistent Solution Architecture look and feel, which enables the reviewers to quickly assess their area of expertise
• Enable Architects to be successful in presentations and in Governance?

The Template structured around four types of solutions, identified in Tabs below for easy access

• Enterprise Applications Architecture: An Enterprise Application is generally representing a code base and could also be using 3rd party technologies to provide a function at Schwab.?
• Technology Solutions Architecture: (3rd Party COTS) A Technology Solution is generally a representing a point solution, based upon 3rd party technologies
• Public Cloud Architecture: New proposed solutions that will be consuming Schwab Public Cloud resources
• Hosting Infrastructure Platform Architecture: (on-premises & cloud) A Hosting Infrastructure Platform is an implementation for a collection of elements that when aggregated create a processing system for enabling services and hosting applications. Think of this as the "Tiers" in which an application consumes; Web tier, App tier, Data tier, Caching tier, messaging tier, etc.
• Cost Driven Guidance Architecture:

For each area there are examples and template diagrams to assist in creating the vision or building upon an existing architecture.? ?

Basics Guidelines

• Understand your audience.??Provide enough detail for the reviewing audience to understand the story of the proposed solution in the form of a narrative with supporting diagrams.??This will enable each reviewer to provide guidance in their respective areas of expertise and identify any critical gaps or oversight in the proposal.?
• Don’t assume the audience knows anything about your area – instead use this document to help educate.? The Solution Architecture and presentations are about a two-way knowledge transfer, not just one way approval
• Bullets are favored over raw text, diagrams are favored over bullets
• Self-describing diagrams, balanced with narrative are favored over everything else
• Who are the stakeholders?

Domain Principals

Lead Architects

Enterprise Architects

IT Operations

Business Leaders

Business Analysts

• Ensure all the Architects involved understand the requirements as defined by the initiative owner
• Reach out for clarification if any area of the solution is unclear
• Share risks associated with the Initiative with the rest of the Architects and the project manager, scrum master, or Initiative lead, and discuss the impacts and mitigations to ensure alignment
• Create Architecture narrative, diagrams, and designs with the input of architecture peers?
• Get different viewpoints of the solution and create narrative that address the impacted areas
• Keep everyone updated and abreast of changes which may impact critical areas?
• Update the Solution Architecture with any requirements defined by the Governing Boards and work with Initiative team members to ensure the updates are clear and followed through on

Reviewers are technical and will be using the Solution Architecture information to assess the architecture for:

• Business Problem attempting to solve?
• Strategic alignment to BluePrint or Technology Strategy
• Fit for purpose
• Information Classification is appropriately assigned, and design is adherent to data security policies, standards and guidelines
• Known anti-patterns and use of deprecated/unapproved technology or cloud provider services
• Adherence to Policy and Standard
• Overall solution is supportable?
• Cost drivers and sustainability

In upcoming articles, I will zoom into multiple types of solutions mentioned above.

#solutionarchitecture #enterprisearchitecture #cots #hostinginfrastructure.

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