How to hire an architect

How to hire an architect, step by step

Here's a step-by-step architect hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an architect job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new architect
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an architect do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the architect you need to hire. Certain architect roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect architect also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of architect salaries for various roles:

   Type of Architect	Description	Hourly rate
   Architect	Architects plan and design houses, factories, office buildings, and other structures.	$25-65
   Job Captain	A Job Captain is responsible for overseeing the drafting process of a project and completing outstanding items or tasks that remain to be accomplished. They take direction from the Project Manager, the Project Architect, and/or the Architect of Record.	$24-46
   Architectural Internship	The job of architectural interns is to assist an architect with all aspects of architectural work. Their duties and responsibilities may include maintaining project files, conducting research on construction sites such as zoning laws and regulations, and preparing presentations for clients... Show more	$19-33

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Cloud
   • Java
   • Infrastructure
   • Azure
   • AWS
   • Digital Transformation
   • C++
   • C #
   • API
   • Project Management
   • Client Facing
   • Emerging Technologies
   • JavaScript
   • Web Services

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage Daimler resources for development of RFC programs
   • Manage overall testing activities withing the group including functinal, system and regression testing.
   • Manage the company website using HTML and CSS to produce an easily read website that customers can access more intuitively.
   • Manage GitLab and Jenkins deployment environment to support automate AWS- development software builds.
   • Lead re-architecture and implementation of cloud solution for enterprise auto-backup of individual computing devices.
   • Provide insight and manage all technology relate aspects with presentations and communications at Sr. management and CxO level.

   More architect duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your architect job description helps attract top candidates to the position. An architect salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for an architect in Indiana may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level architect usually earns less than a senior-level architect. Additionally, an architect with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average architect salary

   $86,635yearly

   $41.65 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level architect salary

   $54,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 5, 2025

   Average architect salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$107,962	$52
   2	Virginia	$101,054	$49
   3	Massachusetts	$99,878	$48
   4	Nebraska	$95,308	$46
   5	District of Columbia	$95,047	$46
   6	Colorado	$93,416	$45
   7	Washington	$91,244	$44
   8	Missouri	$91,163	$44
   9	New York	$89,453	$43
   10	Pennsylvania	$87,709	$42
   11	Georgia	$87,341	$42
   12	Illinois	$86,389	$42
   13	Minnesota	$84,415	$41
   14	Ohio	$84,127	$40
   15	Texas	$83,286	$40
   16	Florida	$78,671	$38
   17	North Carolina	$78,301	$38
   18	Arizona	$77,146	$37
   19	New Jersey	$75,520	$36
   20	Mississippi	$74,595	$36

   Average architect salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$171,415	$82.41	66
   2	Flexport	$166,338	$79.97
   3	The Citadel	$162,108	$77.94
   4	Anaplan	$161,530	$77.66	7
   5	eBay	$159,778	$76.82	1
   6	Google	$157,615	$75.78	76
   7	StubHub	$156,628	$75.30
   8	Sprinklr	$156,055	$75.03	1
   9	Levi Strauss & Co.	$155,886	$74.95	1
   10	PayPal	$154,835	$74.44	2
   11	Waymo	$151,358	$72.77	2
   12	Palo Alto Networks	$150,362	$72.29	1
   13	Apple	$150,340	$72.28	82
   14	Microsoft	$150,018	$72.12	70
   15	First Republic Bank	$149,967	$72.10
   16	Bridgewater Associates	$149,701	$71.97
   17	Zendesk	$149,286	$71.77	3
   18	Snowflake Computing	$149,042	$71.65	3
   19	Pluralsight	$146,265	$70.32
   20	Glassdoor	$145,397	$69.90

4. Writing an architect job description

   An architect job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of an architect job description:

   Architect job description example

   Minimum qualifications:
   
   + Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent practical experience.
   
   + 10 years of experience designing RF solutions for consumer electronics.
   
   Preferred qualifications:
   
   + Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, specializing in RF or electromagnetics.
   
   + Experience with scripting and automation tools for data collection/analysis.
   
   + Experience in an RF architecture capacity.
   
   + Knowledge of regulatory requirements (e.g., FCC, IC, CE), carrier specifications, and their respective certification processes.
   
   + Familiarity with simulation tools and/or circuit simulation capability such as ADS, HFSS, etc.
   
   + Excellent technical communication, presentation skills, and attention to detail.
   
   Our computational challenges are so big, complex and unique we can't just purchase off-the-shelf hardware, we've got to make it ourselves. Your team designs and builds the hardware, software and networking technologies that power all of Google's services. As a Hardware Engineer, you design and build the systems that are the heart of the world's largest and most powerful computing infrastructure. You develop from the lowest levels of circuit design to large system design and see those systems all the way through to high volume manufacturing. Your work has the potential to shape the machinery that goes into our cutting-edge data centers affecting millions of Google users.
   
   As a Radio Frequency (RF) Hardware Architect, you will define, design, and validate industry solutions for future generations of Pixel devices. You will be involved in cross-functional team engagement, defining overall product architecture, to achieve RF performance.
   
   Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Our Devices & Services team combines the best of Google AI, Software, and Hardware to create radically helpful experiences for users. We research, design, and develop new technologies and hardware to make our user's interaction with computing faster, seamless, and more powerful. Whether finding new ways to capture and sense the world around us, advancing form factors, or improving interaction methods, the Devices & Services team is making people's lives better through technology.
   
   + Define architecture, specifications, and system level performance goals for cellular systems.
   
   + Research RF components across the industry.
   
   + Lead vendors to develop RF blocks to meet architectural needs.
   
   + Design and optimize RF cellular solutions.
   
   + Manage printed circuit board (PCB) design on development boards and form factor devices.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right architect for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with architects they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit architects who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your architect job on Zippia to find and attract quality architect candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as aaonetwork, aia , ala , an jobs, archareer .
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit architects, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new architect

   Once you have selected a candidate for the architect position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new architect first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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