Insights from Industry Experts on Becoming an Architecture Engineer

"云+社区沙龙online" invited three experts: Tencent Cloud Cloud Server Vice President Li Lei, Tencent Cloud Most Valuable Expert (TVP) and Beike Gold Finance Small Enterprise Ecosystem CTO & TVP Sun Xuan, and Tencent Cloud Most Valuable Expert (TVP) and Founder & CEO of Nae Education Sun Xuan. They discussed architecture technology, the soft and hard skills required for architects, and provided insights for aspiring architects.

01 featured career stories:

Li Lei transitioned from an engineer to an architect through designing Tencent's self-developed large-scale task scheduling system VStation, leading to his role in cloud server and blockchain business.

Sun Xuan, after working at Baidu and joining 58.com, became an architect by handling IM platform responsibilities, later expanding to other business lines and founding Nae Education.

Sun Xuan emphasized the importance of solving real problems, not just technical challenges, and the need for a holistic approach to architecture.

Li Lei stressed the importance of foundational knowledge, recommending revisiting core computer science books and focusing on fundamentals over chasing new technologies.

02 discussed how to become an architect:

Li Lei advised that becoming an architect is often accidental, emphasizing the need to solve real-world problems and simplify complexity.

Sun Xuan outlined key steps: requirement analysis, architecture design, and architecture selection, stressing the importance of input and communication.

Sun Xuan highlighted the importance of understanding the gap between requirements and code, and the need for continuous input and exchange.

Li Lei recommended focusing on foundational principles and avoiding chasing new technologies, as fundamentals remain relevant.

03 explored what makes an excellent architect:

Li Lei noted that becoming an architect is challenging, but excellence requires solving real problems and making complex things simple.

Sun Xuan emphasized the importance of balance, context-specific solutions, and the goal of reducing costs and increasing efficiency.

Sun Xuan listed seven key aspects of architecture: understanding business needs, abstraction, solution design, resource management, system quality, scalability, and evolution.

Li Lei stressed the importance of foundational knowledge and the need to revisit core principles.

04 addressed skills and qualifications:

Li Lei suggested that skills are not prerequisites but rather a result of solving problems and gaining experience.

Sun Xuan highlighted the importance of soft skills like communication, self-motivation, and the ability to see through to the essence of problems.

Sun Xuan recommended continuous input, communication, and a mindset shift from programming to problem-solving.

Li Lei emphasized the importance of foundational knowledge and the need to revisit core principles.

Q&A included discussions on:

Recruitment requirements: Focus on solving problems and demonstrating skills in one area rather than being a generalist.

Good architecture: Context-specific solutions that reduce costs and increase efficiency.

Architecture under time constraints: Prioritize the most important goals and make trade-offs.

Building skills without real-world experience: Focus on understanding the essence of problems and studying industry examples.

Architecture vs. code quality: Strong code skills are foundational to good architecture.

Product manager and architect collaboration: Emphasize open communication and focusing on the problem, not the person.

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