Prasad Narasimhan asked this question on LinkedIn and I responded as follows: Each of the various architect sub-types (e.g. enterprise, solutions, software, data etc) will have their own niche characteristics. In general however, I believe an architect should have the following skills: 1. Good communication skills up, down and across the enterprise 2. A passion for reaching, engaging and delivering to stakeholders 3. A broad and deep understanding of technology and its integration. 4. An ability to hold a good strategic appreciation of the business 5. Strategic appreciation of the IT industry and an understanding of how this can impact maturing technologies 6. Underpinning all this, a general experience in how IT works - hardware, software development, project management, business process management, product marketing - and finally, not forgetting the end customer. What do you reckon? Is this is a fair reflection of the essential skills?