Overview

All architects in government design and deliver services that provide outcomes for end users and the department. They are responsible for the technical quality of the products and services we deliver, thinking innovatively and bringing a broader perspective to service delivery.

In DfE, we have a broad mix of enterprise, business, solution, technical, data and specialist architects. We sometimes have 'tech leads' that have architecture responsibilities, but they would typically align with the closest matching role. There are lots of different roles and teams that ‘do’ architecture in one way or another, across a number of business areas.

All roles align with the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework.

Business architects

Business architects bridge the gap between business strategy and delivery. They help business and delivery teams to understand how capabilities, the organisation and information contribute to delivering value, through organisational objectives.

Business architects typically create capability, information and organisation maps, value stream diagrams and business models. They employ techniques such as heat-mapping, to provide greater understanding of the landscape, enabling more efficient and effective delivery.

Data architects

Data architects own and deliver the vision for DfE’s use of data, and enable Service Owners to make better decisions about their data system, balancing local needs with organisational data strategy.

Data architects help solve business problems, by developing the needs of services into data design and optimising management of data. They deliver target data flow diagrams and data models (entity relationship diagrams) that promote interoperability between services, reuse of appropriate existing patterns and facilitate the successful implementation of data governance.

Enterprise architects

Enterprise architects generally work across the DfE at a strategic level, to translate business strategy into change and technical delivery.

Their responsibilities typically include:

• establishing broad architectural principles, policies and standards
• assuring technology decisions are aligned to architecture and technical strategies
• ownership of architecture strategy and roadmaps for the organisation, including ‘as-is’ and ‘to-be’ transitional states
• understanding DfE’s ecosystem and its inter-dependencies

Solution architects

Solution Architects typically work within delivery teams to find the best use of data, applications and technology for the design and delivery of services and products. Whilst also helping to deliver business change and achieving organisational objectives.

Solution Architects own the overall technical vision for a solution or set of solutions, or within a particular domain. They work within service delivery teams to assure the implementation and delivery of those solutions.

Technical architects

Technical architects are generally embedded within a multi-disciplinary team (or across multiple teams), working end-to-end to help to design and implement technical solutions. They are often specialists or technical subject matter experts in one or more disciplines, e.g. software development, data, security, DevOps. They tend to work in continuous delivery environments and are comfortable with turning business problems into technical design. They tend to be from a software development or engineering background and are comfortable using technical toolsets and/or code.

Technical architects typically work in portfolios and service lines within DfE, such as Teacher Services, Children and Families or Growth and Skills.