Software Architect

Software Architect qualifications to look for

Software Architects participate in the entire software development lifecycle so that it integrates seamlessly with existing platforms. 

Your best candidates will have coding skills in various languages and the ability to work on complex tasks. Hands-on experience is a must, and they should have an ample portfolio to show off.

It’s a good idea to put your candidates’ skills to the test by providing an assignment during the interview process.  

Keep an eye out for candidates who have:

• A solid technical background
• Strong communication skills
• A knack for collaboration  
• Practical skills
• The ability to handle complex problems
  

Top tip: Hire candidates willing to grow by making sure their personal career goals align with your company's mission.

Problem-solving interview questions

• Walk me through how to design a payment processing system. What would you change if this was a distributed system?
• What are the steps to deploy a newer version of a live website?
• How do you delegate responsibility for each task in a software project?
• How do you support a new team member?
  

Role-specific interview questions

• Describe the best way to pass configuration variables to ASP.NET applications.
• What is the process of gathering system requirements?
• What database management systems are you familiar with? What features would you add to your favorite one? 
• Explain scalability.
• Explain the purpose of clustering.
• What are the differences between object-oriented and component-based design?
• List the requirements for enabling a Java EE application session replication.
• What tools do you use to test code?
  

Behavioral interview questions

• How do you explain technical details to a non-technical audience? 
• Describe an innovative software you designed. 
• What’s the most challenging software development project you’ve worked on? What was your role? Who did you collaborate with?