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The differences between solution specialists and solutions architects can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a solutions architect has an average salary of $116,327, which is higher than the $76,424 average annual salary of a solution specialist.
The top three skills for a solution specialist include product knowledge, sales process and SQL. The most important skills for a solutions architect are cloud, java, and AWS.
| Solution Specialist | Solutions Architect | |
| Yearly salary | $76,424 | $116,327 |
| Hourly rate | $36.74 | $55.93 |
| Growth rate | -4% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 56,938 | 107,754 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 12 | - |
A solution specialist is responsible for selling and promoting goods and services of an organization to existing and potential clients through product demonstrations and professional sales pitches, typically on phone calls and e-mail communication. Solutions specialists must possess strong product knowledge to respond to customers' inquiries and concerns about the products and successfully close sales deals that would increase the company's revenues and profitability. A solutions specialist must have excellent communication and customer service skills, maximizing strategic techniques to build customer satisfaction.
A solutions architect specializes in creating and implementing software systems that improve business operations and resolve network issues. They are primarily responsible for conducting research and analysis to assess the business's needs, develop specific designs for the company, provide solutions should there be any system issues, and keep company officials informed with all changes and updates. Furthermore, a solutions architect must lead and encourage development teams, stay up to date with the newest trends to continue innovations within the systems, and implement its policies and guidelines.
Solution specialists and solutions architects have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Solution Specialist | Solutions Architect | |
| Average salary | $76,424 | $116,327 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $125,000 | Between $87,000 And $154,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | PayPal | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | - | Retail |
There are a few differences between a solution specialist and a solutions architect in terms of educational background:
| Solution Specialist | Solutions Architect | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | - | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between solution specialists' and solutions architects' demographics:
| Solution Specialist | Solutions Architect | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 58.4% Female, 41.6% | Male, 86.6% Female, 13.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.7% White, 54.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 11% |