How to hire a senior software architect

How to hire a senior software architect, step by step

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

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

What does a senior software architect do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The senior software architect hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A senior software architect's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, senior software architects from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of senior software architects.

   Type of Senior Software Architect	Description	Hourly rate
   Senior Software Architect	Software developers are the creative minds behind computer programs. Some develop the applications that allow people to do specific tasks on a computer or another device... Show more	$44-85
   Software Design Engineer	A software design engineer or SDE is part of a software development enterprise. Software design engineers determine the problems or issues and figure out how to establish programs to ease and automate the situations... Show more	$35-62
   Software Engineer-Consultant	A software engineer consultant develops and recommends strategies to optimize a company's software engineering operations. Their responsibilities revolve around conducting extensive research and analysis to find new opportunities, performing software evaluations and risk assessments, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of existing processes, and developing solutions against problem areas... Show more	$40-73

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Java
   • Python
   • Cloud
   • Software Development
   • API
   • JavaScript
   • AWS
   • Scrum
   • Emerging Technologies
   • Enterprise Architecture
   • Microservices
   • C Net
   • Database
   • Azure

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage, design and develop the Java base EKNOC project that include managing a team of developers.
   • Work in the development operations team which oversee development of tools to automate continuous deployment and server monitoring in the cloud.
   • Develop web pages using HTML/CSS and JavaScript.
   • Establish daily builds, continuous integration, and TDD.
   • Object-Orient programming, Linux, and open source software guru.
   • Assist with and coordinate development team tasks throughout the SDLC process.

   More senior software architect duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your senior software architect job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A senior software architect can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, senior software architects' average salary in missouri is 39% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level senior software architects 48% less than senior-level senior software architects.
   • Certifications. A senior software architect with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a senior software architect's salary.

   Average senior software architect salary

   $129,435yearly

   $62.23 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level senior software architect salary

   $93,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 18, 2025

   Average senior software architect salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$157,290	$76
   2	Washington	$140,215	$67
   3	New York	$125,455	$60
   4	Arizona	$123,303	$59
   5	Massachusetts	$121,102	$58
   6	District of Columbia	$119,025	$57
   7	Nevada	$116,505	$56
   8	New Jersey	$115,427	$55
   9	Texas	$112,535	$54
   10	Pennsylvania	$112,344	$54
   11	Virginia	$109,613	$53
   12	Michigan	$108,474	$52
   13	Colorado	$105,488	$51
   14	North Carolina	$104,064	$50
   15	Illinois	$104,062	$50
   16	Georgia	$100,916	$49
   17	Florida	$94,540	$45

   Average senior software architect salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Netflix	$193,017	$92.80	21
   2	Apple	$184,115	$88.52	493
   3	Uber Technologies	$183,915	$88.42	2
   4	Dotdash	$183,577	$88.26
   5	NVIDIA	$183,085	$88.02	391
   6	Bloomberg	$178,041	$85.60	188
   7	Walmart	$177,620	$85.39	571
   8	Box	$176,134	$84.68	4
   9	McKinsey & Company Inc	$175,452	$84.35	33
   10	Amazon	$167,374	$80.47	1,209
   11	Hearst	$167,043	$80.31	13
   12	Cadence Design Systems	$165,545	$79.59	76
   13	Corsair	$164,921	$79.29	1
   14	Hulu	$164,723	$79.19
   15	Carbonite	$164,317	$79.00
   16	FedBid	$163,768	$78.73
   17	Shutterfly	$161,434	$77.61	9
   18	CarGurus	$160,337	$77.09	13
   19	Ford Motor	$159,560	$76.71	650
   20	BorgWarner	$155,658	$74.84

4. Writing a senior software architect job description

   A good senior software architect job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a senior software architect job description:

   Senior software architect job description example

   Business Unit:
   
   Cubic Transportation Systems
   
   Company Details:
   
   Cubic offers an opportunity to provide innovative technology for government and commercial customers around the globe, helping to solve their future problems today. We're the leading integrator of payment and information technology and services for intelligent travel solutions worldwide, and the leading provider of realistic combat training systems, secure communications and networking and highly specialized support services for military and security forces of the U.S. and allied nations. If you have an entrepreneurial spirit and thrive in an innovative environment, we want to talk to you about your next role at Cubic! We are seeking employees inspired by technology, and motivated by the rewards of hard work, commitment, teamwork, quality, integrity, and respect. We invite you to explore opportunities with Cubic.
   
   Job Details:
   
   Job Summary: Plays a critical role in ensuring that enterprise applications are designed, developed and implemented across the enterprise meeting the best practices and architectural patterns. Incumbents in this position will be involved in every phase of the project lifecycle from intake through delivery, and will be considered one of the leadership team members who have primary responsibility that a solution is well engineered, operable, and maintainable, delivered on schedule, aligns to enterprise vision and provides the anticipated business value. The Senior Architect is responsible for defining, documenting and leading the technical development of these applications. This position typically works under limited supervision and direction. Incumbents of this position will regularly exercise discretionary and substantial decision-making authority.
   Essential Job Duties and Responsibilities:
   * Researches the latest in industry trends along with the needs of the organization while also being a strong advocate for flexible and robust technology.
   * Experiments and provides proof of concept with emerging technologies, while developing enterprise-wide architectures, standards, design guides, processes, and other reference guides in a leadership role.
   * Provides architectural direction, 3rd party vendor evaluations, analysis of external party integration, detailed estimation, schedule development, assesses resourcing needs during proposal & bids, part of existing programs or R&D efforts.
   * Leads creation of and is accountable for system design documentation, including enterprise architectures, feature designs and interface specifications.
   * Oversees detailed technical designs created by development teams.
   * Analyzes customer requirements (functional and non-functional); participates in requirements capture meetings and workshops with customers as necessary.
   * Knowledgeable about SaaS software, software licensing and able to explain both the design and business model of a SaaS system.
   * Participates in formal meetings with subcontractors, customers and third party suppliers for technical clarifications.
   * Keeps up-to-date on the latest developments in systems engineering, computers, communications systems and software techniques relevant to the company's operation.
   * Participates in the training and mentoring of less-experienced members of the department as necessary. Mentors development, operations and program team members on architecture topics (e.g., issues, directions, guidelines, principles, etc.).
   
   Minimum Job Requirements:
   Four-year college degree (BS or BA) in computer science, engineering or related field plus a minimum of twelve years of related experience or advanced degree with eight years of related experience. Experience leading requirements analysis, design, development and operation of distributed, fault-tolerant applications with particular attention to security, scalability, performance, availability and cost/revenue optimization. Demonstrates expertise and leadership in working with business units, product management, development and operations staff to architect innovative solutions that meet the requirements with respect to functionality, performance, scalability, and reliability, realistic implementation schedules and adherence to architectural goals and principles.
   
   The description provided above is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all job duties, responsibilities and requirements. Duties, responsibilities and requirements may change over time and according to business need.
   Worker Type:
   
   Employee

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right senior software 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 senior software architects they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit senior software 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.

   To find senior software architect candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as dice, engineering.com, stack overflow, it job pro.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with senior software architect candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   While interviews are great, you will only sometimes learn enough from a conversation with a senior software architect applicant. In those cases, having candidates complete a test project can go a long way in figuring out who's the most likely to succeed in the role. If you aren't a technical person and don't know how to design an appropriate test, you can ask someone else on the team to create it or take a look at these websites to get a few ideas:

   • TestDome
   • CodeSignal
   • Testlify
   • BarRaiser
   • Coderbyte

   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 senior software architect

   Once you've decided on a perfect senior software architect candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your 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 employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

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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