Quais são as práticas recomendadas para projetar uma arquitetura de solução que ajude sua equipe a conquistar novos clientes?

Designing a solution architecture requires a deep underst&ing of the customer's context & needs. By following best practices, you can design a solution architecture that not only meets the specific needs of potential customers but also instills confidence in your team's ability to deliver value & support their business objectives. Conduct Thorough Customer Research Engage in Active Listening Customise Solutions to Address Pain Points Demonstrate Value Proposition Clearly Create Prototypes or Proof of Concepts (POCs) Provide Use Case Scenarios Align with Business Goals & Objectives Emphasise Ease of Integration Provide Clear Documentation & Training Offer Support & Maintenance Plans Stay Responsive & Available for Questions

Since the ask is for best practices, following are key practices I use: Comprehensive discovery Involve Key Stakeholders and ask questions which captures tribal knowledge Document, Document, Document Iterate and get confirmation from the customer

Customers will accept solutions only when solutions provide value addition. As an architect we need to train customers for technology and learn business objectives from customers. Any business objectives gathering techniques you could use to detailed down the requirements (specific task wise, infrastructure wise etc.).

Although the scenario posed may seem familiar at first, listen carefully and be empathetic. Be careful not to rush to propose/implement your solution, but the right solution.

Steps for effective designing of a solution architecture: - Get market intelligence around geography and customer specific operating models and solution needs around them - Do horizon scanning around best practices for enablers, tools and processes - Define solution strategies around how geography and customer specific business and IT challenges are solved using enablers, tools and processes - Identify components to adopt best practices / solutions for business and technology trends and create strategy for stitching them in an agile and flexible way for future proofing the outcome - Implement, measure and continuously improvise the solution architecture based on metrices gathered. - Present all the above steps to prospective customers

In my experience, an effective solution architecture that drives customer acquisition prioritizes user experience, ensuring it's intuitive and responsive. It's crucial to implement scalable and modular designs that can adapt to growth. Regularly gathering feedback for iteration and improvement is also key to success. #SolutionArchitecture #network

As the focus is acquiring new customers from solution architecture, I would suggest removing the barriers and making it easy to adopt would be key. Enable prospects to reuse what they have and gain greater value from their existing investments. Look for solutions that are native or integrated to strategic systems of record in the industry/vertical.

As this sounds very familiar, device strategy leveraging inhouse capabilities and external market intelligence sources to better understand the prospect by means of leveraging the prospect Info, demographics, household etc...before starting any solution/information architecture. Perform the business architecture before any solution architecture design.

Most of the time, we react to customer RFPs, RFIs, and RFQs with scant knowledge of their IT infrastructure and business requirements. In this context, the design and strategy of our solutions become crucial to creating win-win outcomes for both sides. I always adhere to the solution design philosophy, which calls for 20 to 30 percent modification to match the unique needs of the customer. The solution is developed with our delivery capacity and expertise in mind in order to satisfy customer needs and SLA.

Understanding the customer's needs with empathy and attentiveness, even to the unspoken cues, has been my key to crafting solutions that are creative, customized, and emotionally resonant with the customer.

As an Architect in sales situations this is familiar challenge we all face and I see this as an opportunity where we understand Customer's business problems and align it with sales strategy by collaborating across all teams and deep listening to the client.

The solution strategy should follow the sales strategy as designed in the Business Architecture which consists of - Business capabilities and its maturity level - Business processes - business roles/team hierarchy. The solution strategy should be iteratively built to launch as MVP to provide a end to end business function for a given business capability, else the fragmented user experience and solution rigidness will cause negative sensitive in the user feedback. Empowering the customers is one of key solution architecture attribute where the customer should able to customize the price mix suitable for their personal/family needs rather back and forth with Sales team for any change.

Synergy is the secret sauce for success 🤝🚀. Work on defining what makes your solution stand out, its competitive edge, and how it fits the customer's pocket.

I have seen a number of cases of an "us v them" between sales and the SE team, which is pointless ! Working together as a seamless team of how great solutions to customer problems are built. It is not just aligning with sales strategy but being a finely tuned machine to solve customer problems

Aligning with the sales strategy to me sounds more like the productisation of a service and aligning solution design with the supplier requirement not the customer. Solution architecture is fulfilling a requirement and going from a current architecture to a target architecture best fitting the requirement and needs of the client. Using exisiting Architectual patterns and reference models is however efficient use of proven design.

SEs and Sales account managers need to he partners in crime, every single solution offering should have a discussion and a strategy to go forward with parties. So it’s very important for both be very well aligned on the sales strategy, timelines, and the scope of the opportunity. Without alignment is very likely to have an opportunity on stale or not moving forward.

Misalignment with the customer needs and sales strategy may cause a good solution to fail. Also, the market differentiation offered in the solution and the sales pitch should not conflict.

If the architecture doesn't support the sales strategy and give a competitive advantage then the ROI or Proof of Value will not be realised. Solution Architects should be able to express the estimated quantifiable results - ie: the benefits to be achieved from a sales perspective

Following the established framework such as TOGAF has proven result to envision and deliver the business, application capabilities in order and SAFe framework will iteratively deliver with end user feedback governed model to enhance the user experience and solution.

Frameworks work in many contexts but be careful about trying to apply a framework to every company/product just because it seems like a good idea. Always consider what you are trying to achieve and what the benefits of the framework will be to your goal. Are you selling multiple product/solutions that will require integration ? If so then there are multiple frameworks that can help. If you are selling a single product then consider frameworks that the product might fit into for customer deployment.

Framework helps. But just don't bring in a framework for the heck of it. Many times, starting with a blank slate helps you see more. Understand and readjust the framework when necessary.

Make your architecture “green”. This means build re-usable and adaptive components. This will build flexibility and quick time to market capabilities to align with multiple business needs thereby paving the way for acquiring multiple customers.

A design should be simple to understand for all in the organizations - the same framework should be used throughout the organization to ensure consistency of approach

This is the ultimate outcome the customer is looking for. This is why the solution needs to be developed. So put the highest focus on making sure that the solution delivers the outcome when implemented. And upfront highlighting how the solution is capable of delivering the outcome is of the highest importance.

Focusing on the benefits is critical and they have to be benefits that matter, and matter sufficiently. Customers have many choices but finite time and funds, so it's important to communicate that the benefits in question are compelling.

One of my mantras is 'Show, Don't Just Tell.' I strive to back my claims with quantifiable data and evidence, using metrics, benchmarks, or projections to provide a clear picture of the benefits.

Avoiding selling features is the key, SEs should translate features to business outcomes, as these are discussed by the economic buyer, if possible even talking about possible ROi, savings, automation that the solution provide and etc.

Solutions should address a business problem; applying a technical fix to a business problem should be able to be able to be quantifiable and be able to me measured

Do you see an opportunity to reopen the envelope after submission? Being able to tune the solution based on the inputs/feedback shows the agility and the intent to serve the purpose. Demonstrate it to the customer, and show that you are all ears and empathetic.

Incorporating feedback into your solution architecture is where the rubber meets the road. Continuously iterate and adapt the architecture based on client feedback and evolving requirements. Also, feedback isn't just about refining; it's about fostering trust and rapport with clients, a key factor in acquiring new customers.

Business stakeholders need to be engaged early to ensure that the necessary internal support is there and accepted and agreed outcomes . Everyone has a perspective and the outcomes need to be agreed and stakeholders should be kept updated

A deep understanding of your target audience, including their likes and dislikes, is essential for a successful customer acquisition strategy. This knowledge allows you to create a solution that truly meets customer needs and connects with their goals. Scalability and flexibility are crucial factors in this effort. In a constantly changing business environment, having an adaptable architecture is vital to meet the growing demands of customers and the dynamic market.

To design an effective customer acquisition solution architecture: Understand your target audience thoroughly. Prioritize a customer-centric approach. Ensure scalability and adaptability for growth. Leverage data-driven insights for informed decisions. Provide a seamless user experience. Facilitate easy integration with other systems. Prioritize robust security and data protection. Automate processes to improve efficiency. Personalize marketing efforts and interactions. Optimize for mobile users. Monitor performance in real-time. Embrace agile development methodologies. Establish strong customer support and feedback mechanisms. Align marketing and sales efforts. Foster a culture of continuous improvement. Manage costs efficiently.