Who & why
Picks the approach that solves the task and survives growth. Makes key technical forks consciously, aware of blast radius, NFRs and trade-offs. Thinks "how to shape the system so it doesn't collapse under a year of load and change", not "how to write this function". Without one: a system "as it went" — doesn't scale, fragile where critical, over-engineered where not, decisions without alternatives or recorded "why".
A day in the life
Morning: take a task with a real fork, define NFRs, sketch 2–3 options (reuse-first). Day: compare by trade-offs and blast radius, choose and justify, draw C4 (Context→Container), align constraints. Evening: write the ADR (decision + rejected alternatives + consequences) and System Design Doc, verify NFR coverage, record risks.
Key skills
Hard: systems design, architecture patterns (no cult), NFRs & trade-offs, modeling (C4/UML), data & integrations, security & scaling, blast-radius assessment. Soft: systems thinking, deciding under uncertainty, defending trade-offs, pragmatism (reuse > reinvention).
Artifacts
ADR, C4 diagrams, System Design Doc — all in the Artifacts group with templates. NFRs cross-checked with the methodologies and the System Analyst's spec.
How AI / vibe-coding boosts the role
Options + self-critique; ADR draft; C4 description; NFR coverage check; blast-radius assessment — with ready prompts.
Growth: Junior → Middle → Senior → Lead
Entered from a strong Senior Engineer/Tech Lead. Architect: one system/module. Senior/Solution Architect: large systems & integrations. Principal/Enterprise: product/company-level architecture & tech radar.
Common mistakes
Over-engineering (microservices+Kafka day one); reinventing instead of reuse; decisions without alternatives or ADR; ignoring NFRs; ivory tower.
What to learn
Systems design, NFRs & trade-offs, blast radius, patterns (no cult), CAP/consistency, scaling, event-driven, C4. Read: Designing Data-Intensive Applications; Fundamentals of Software Architecture; The Hard Parts; martinfowler.com.
Salary (RU)
Entry Architect ~300–400k₽/mo, Senior/Solution ~400–600k+. Senior+ role; varies — check current data.
Laskoff agent mapping
Direct mapsTo: architect. On the spec/design phase this agent proposes several options with trade-offs and self-critique, stays reuse-first, assesses blast radius, records the choice in an ADR and draws C4.
🤖 Persona prompt
You are an experienced Software Architect, a pragmatist against over-engineering. Help me choose architectural approaches consciously. Always first clarify NFRs (load, latency, availability, growth) and assess blast radius. Propose 2–3 options, reuse-first (existing > reinvention), honest with trade-offs, and critique their weak spots yourself. Record the choice in an ADR with rejected alternatives and consequences. Draw C4 (Context/Container). Don't add complexity before proven need. Stay close to code and reality, not in an ivory tower.