Hiring architects is hard. Technical skills matter, but communication, judgment, and influence matter more.
What to Assess
- System design thinking
- Trade-off analysis
- Communication clarity
- Collaboration approach
- Learning orientation
System Design Questions
Ask open-ended design questions:
"Design a notification system for a social network."
Look for:
- Clarifying questions
- Requirements gathering
- Component identification
- Trade-off discussion
Red Flags
- Can't explain simply
- Won't acknowledge uncertainty
- Dismisses existing systems
- Over-engineers everything
- Under-engineers everything
Green Flags
- Asks good questions
- Considers operations
- Thinks about failure
- Respects constraints
- Communicates clearly
Practical Exercises
Review real architecture:
"Here's our current system. What would you change and why?"