The 'Software Architect' as a Profession

(1) Architectural design is inseparable from deep knowledge of implementation constraints - an architect working independently may specify architectures that are impractical or impossible to implement efficiently

(2) There is no agreed body of knowledge, certification, or professional standards for software architecture comparable to those in civil or structural engineering

(3) Responsibility and accountability would be unclear - if the architecture is flawed and the system fails, it is difficult to attribute responsibility between the architect and the implementer

(4) Software architects would need to understand the problem domain deeply, which requires close collaboration with developers and cannot be done independently

Explanation

Difficulties with establishing software architecture as a separate profession include: (1) architecture is deeply entangled with implementation knowledge - an isolated architect may produce unrealistic designs; (2) no agreed professional standards or certification body exists comparable to structural engineering; (3) accountability is blurred - if the architecture is defective, determining whether the architect or implementer is responsible is problematic; (4) effective architectural work requires close collaboration with domain experts and developers. The idea that architecture is fully automated is incorrect.