Architect...Solution, Infrastructure, Software, Systems n Enterprise...which one you want to become?

Well...in my profession of architecture (not your conventional architeture...but ...yeah you guessed it right...IT Architecture),  i need to be on my toes all the time...in a sense to keep abreast myself of all things that goes into solving the business problem with the help of IT...Guess that's the one of the most important trait of an IT Architect...you gotta better develop the sense of urgency and integration.

When IT was not in a fashion...architect profession was about designing the buildings, complexes, bridges, damns, roads etc. Ayn Rand glorified the Architect Profession long ago (ealy 1900) in Howard Roark in her bestselling novel - Fountainhead i wonder if some novellist going to glorify IT Architect Profession the same way! 

Coming back to the point, there are so many sub-architectures - Systems Architecture, Software Architecture, Enterprise Architecture, Solution Architecture and newly introduced Infrastructure Architecture...husshhhh...thats a long list to get lost into. Some of the best examples of Systems Architecture is IBM System z which is kept evolving with the time without any major disruption...and yes we have a very good body of knowledge (BoK) of it. Similarly for Software architecture, Enterprise Architecture. Software architecture is all about building software by assembling, reusing the componentized pieces of small software programs. Enterprising architecture is about marrying business strategy to information technology. The lesser explored ones - Solution Architecture and Infrastructure Architecture - really pose a challenge in terms of common vocabulary and practices. 

IT Architect Certification from Open Group is supposed to provide a common platform for all above architectures. For at least a year, my speciality is going to be into Infrastructure and Solution Architectures....well it's an irony that you need to develop a "speciality" in this profession when IT Architect is supposed to be "jack of all" (in a very crude language...my apologies to fellow architects). It's like chasing wild goose. The one parallel i can sight - physicits trying to come up with Single Unified Theory which can describe everything about physical universe. The difference is - physical universe is made by God "The Master Architect" & IT architecture is made by Man. 

One more point - Is a well trained Computer engineer more likely to become an IT Architect than other Engineers? 

computer engineer or other engineer (electrical or mechanical or chemical), the most important aspect to becoming an IT Architect is "architectural thinking". If you got that and you are computer engg., then you got best possible shot at becoming IT Architect. Coz then you dont only think but also knows how to "engineer the IT" in great detail than other engineers.

Incidently, I'm also a computer engineer. It's Luck by Chance...to say the least!

Anyway