The four-letter term “DATA” is a powerful force behind today’s enterprises. Today, every organisation makes an effort to use data to solve problems, make wise decisions, effectively implement strategies, and maintain efficient and cost-effective corporate operations.

In order to gain operational insights for better decision-making, 52% of global firms actively analyse data, according to a Forbes article. According to 71% of these companies, organisational expenditure on data and analytics will pick up speed in the coming years.

In the middle of the Big Data and Data buzz, new organisational positions have evolved that are assisting businesses in everyday complicated data sourcing, processing, and assimilation from both within and outside the firm. In today’s data-driven environment, one such role that is extremely relevant is data architect or big data architect. Let’s first define data architecture before we get into more detail about what a data architect performs.

Decoding Data Architecture

The organisational framework that supports business processes and standardises the process of data collection, storage, transformation, distribution, and usage is known as data architecture. The framework is designed to protect sensitive data while making the most important parts easily accessible to authorised users when needed.

Data architecture is described as “A set of rules, regulations, and models that decide what kind of data is gathered and how it is used, processed, and stored within a database system” by Keith D. Foote of Dataversity.

The foundational concepts of data architecture treat data as an asset that can be shared, managed, and secured and is defined according to predetermined criteria.

Businesses use data architecture to manage the intricate flow of data and information within the firm, translate business demands into data and system requirements, and connect business processes with IT systems. Given the emergence of new business models and breakthroughs that are increasingly being driven by data and innovation, data architecture is described in a 2017 trends study as both a business and technological decision.

This brings up a crucial issue: Who creates this significant Data Architecture? A data architect conceptualises and designs data architecture in accordance with business needs.

Who is a Data Architect?

The duty of developing the rules, practises, models, and technological frameworks that will be utilised to gather, organise, store, and retrieve information for the company falls to data architects, who are IT specialists.

An expert who develops the organisational data strategy, together with standards for data quality, data movement within the company, and data security, is known as a data architect. This data management specialist’s vision transforms corporate requirements into technical requirements.

Data architects are in high demand because they are the vital interface between business and technology.

Only 3.9% of data management experts decided to work for themselves, according to a Recruiter.com poll, while a staggering 96.1% of them were hired by companies looking to use data for tactical business benefit. The same survey predicted that during the following few years, demand for data architects will rise at a rate of 15.94%. The average income for a data architect was $141,250 according to the Robert Half Technology 2020 Salary Guide.

Did we pique your curiosity about the position of a Data Architect? Let’s talk about the job description for a data architect in more detail, the abilities needed to be successful in the position, and how to become a data architect.

What Is the Role of a Data Architect?

A Data Architect “provides a standard common business vocabulary, expresses strategic requirements, outlines high-level integrated designs to meet those requirements, and aligns with enterprise strategy and related business architecture,” according to DAMA International’s Data Management Body of Knowledge.

An integrated framework of easily available, secure data that is in line with business strategy is built using a data architect’s understanding of the needs of the business, investigation of the existing data structure, and creation of a blueprint. The procedures involved in testing and maintaining the database are also specified by the data architect.

The terms “Data Architect” and “Data Engineer” are frequently confused, and worse, used synonymously. But a Data Architect’s responsibilities are significantly different from those of a Data Engineer. In this dispute between data engineers and data architects, the latter creates the blueprint for the data framework, and the former implements this blueprint to create a data framework.

A data architect develops a plan to integrate, centralise, and maintain the data after considering all data sources relevant to company activities. A data engineer, on the other hand, is in charge of creating and testing scalable data architectures for the company to facilitate simple data search and retrieval. To create a solid data architecture, data engineers and architects work closely together.