Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Software architect to ICT system architect

A software architect already meets 63% of what the ICT system architect role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From software architect
63 % overlap
Strong match
To ICT system architect
64 You already bring
12 Still to learn
92 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

52.4/ 100

1 How much of what an ICT system architect is expected to do is already part of a software architect’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the ICT system architect role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

An ICT system architect role treats 11 of its required skills as things a software architect already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • align software with system architectures
  • analyse business requirements
  • apply ICT systems theory
  • business process modelling
  • define technical requirements
  • system design

What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 64 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An ICT system architect role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a software architect background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held align software with system architectures working with computers
  • already held systems theory information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held apply ICT systems theory working with computers
  • already held system design information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held design cloud architecture communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held design database scheme communication, collaboration and creativity

All 64 carried skills, including the 11 the ICT system architect role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 28 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information and communication technologies (icts) 3 required, 6 supplementary
  • still to learn database development tools required
  • still to learn hardware platforms required
  • still to learn digital systems required
  • optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
  • optional, not held ICT system integration optional
  • optional, not held ICT system programming optional
  • optional, not held Oracle WebLogic optional
  • optional, not held information structure optional
  • optional, not held image recognition optional
02 working with computers 3 required, 4 supplementary
  • still to learn acquire system component required
  • still to learn implement ICT security policies required
  • still to learn integrate system components required
  • optional, not held develop with cloud services optional
  • optional, not held plan migration to cloud optional
  • optional, not held use object-oriented programming optional
  • optional, not held solve ICT system problems optional
03 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn design enterprise architecture required
  • still to learn design information system required
  • optional, not held design for organisational complexity optional
  • optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
04 information skills 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn create data models required
  • still to learn manage database required
  • optional, not held manage cloud data and storage optional
05 management skills 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn assess ICT knowledge required
  • optional, not held manage standards for data exchange optional
06 constructing 1 required
  • still to learn manage system testing required

2 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries an ICT system architect role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 64 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held align software with system architectures skill
  • already held analyse business requirements skill
  • already held apply ICT systems theory skill
  • already held business process modelling knowledge
  • already held define technical requirements skill
  • already held system design knowledge
  • already held systems development life-cycle knowledge
  • already held systems theory knowledge
  • already held use an application-specific interface skill
  • already held use markup languages skill
  • already held web programming knowledge
  • already held ABAP knowledge
  • already held AJAX knowledge
  • already held APL knowledge
  • already held ASP.NET knowledge
  • already held Agile project management knowledge
  • already held Assembly (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held C# knowledge
  • already held C++ knowledge
  • already held COBOL knowledge
  • already held CoffeeScript knowledge
  • already held Common Lisp knowledge
  • already held Erlang knowledge
  • already held Groovy knowledge
  • already held Haskell knowledge
  • already held ICT project management methodologies knowledge
  • already held ICT security legislation knowledge
  • already held Java (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held JavaScript knowledge
  • already held Lisp knowledge
  • already held MATLAB knowledge
  • already held ML (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Microsoft Visual C++ knowledge
  • already held Objective-C knowledge
  • already held OpenEdge Advanced Business Language knowledge
  • already held PHP knowledge
  • already held Pascal (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Perl knowledge
  • already held Process-based management knowledge
  • already held Prolog (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Python (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held R knowledge
  • already held Ruby (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held SAP R3 knowledge
  • already held SAS language knowledge
  • already held Scala knowledge
  • already held Scratch (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Smalltalk (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Swift (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held TypeScript knowledge
  • already held VBScript knowledge
  • already held Visual Basic knowledge
  • already held build business relationships skill
  • already held computer programming knowledge
  • already held design cloud architecture skill
  • already held design database in the cloud skill
  • already held design database scheme skill
  • already held design process skill
  • already held lean project management knowledge
  • already held manage staff skill
  • already held perform resource planning skill
  • already held provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
  • already held security engineering knowledge
  • already held task algorithmisation knowledge
The 2 learning areas not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held model based system engineering optional
08 services 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held defence standard procedures optional
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
  • optional, not held ICT system integration optional
  • optional, not held ICT system programming optional
  • optional, not held Oracle WebLogic optional
  • optional, not held defence standard procedures optional
  • optional, not held design for organisational complexity optional
  • optional, not held develop with cloud services optional
  • optional, not held information structure optional
  • optional, not held manage cloud data and storage optional
  • optional, not held manage standards for data exchange optional
  • optional, not held plan migration to cloud optional
  • optional, not held use object-oriented programming optional
  • optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
  • optional, not held image recognition optional
  • optional, not held model based system engineering optional
  • optional, not held solve ICT system problems optional
25 held skills the ICT system architect role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role Ansible knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Apache Maven knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Jenkins (tools for software configuration management) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Puppet (tools for software configuration management) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role SPARK knowledge
  • not needed by the target role STAF knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Salt (tools for software configuration management) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role WildFly knowledge
  • not needed by the target role analyse software specifications skill
  • not needed by the target role collect customer feedback on applications skill
  • not needed by the target role create flowchart diagram skill
  • not needed by the target role create software design skill
  • not needed by the target role define software architecture skill
  • not needed by the target role develop software prototype skill
  • not needed by the target role do cloud refactoring skill
  • not needed by the target role implement data warehousing techniques skill
  • not needed by the target role object-oriented modelling knowledge
  • not needed by the target role oversee development of software skill
  • not needed by the target role perform ICT troubleshooting skill
  • not needed by the target role perform risk analysis skill
  • not needed by the target role provide ICT consulting advice skill
  • not needed by the target role tools for software configuration management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role unified modelling language knowledge
  • not needed by the target role use query languages skill
  • not needed by the target role utilise computer-aided software engineering tools skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn database development tools required
  • still to learn hardware platforms required
  • still to learn digital systems required
  • optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
  • optional, not held ICT system integration optional
  • optional, not held ICT system programming optional
  • optional, not held Oracle WebLogic optional
  • optional, not held defence standard procedures optional
  • optional, not held information structure optional
  • optional, not held image recognition optional
  • optional, not held model based system engineering optional
Index

Other moves recorded from software architect

Full index of moves from software architect

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a software architect become an ICT system architect?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A software architect already covers 63% of what an ICT system architect is expected to do: 64 skills carry over, 11 of which the ICT system architect role treats as required.

What skills does a software architect need to become an ICT system architect?

12 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information and communication technologies (icts). The single most important is acquire system component.

How hard is the move from software architect to ICT system architect?

Its learning distance is 52.4 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.