While technical skills are important for a software architect, having soft skills is crucial to being effective in the role. Soft skills are not as easy to define and measure as hard skills and are more interpersonal in nature. Your personality traits play a role in how natural some soft skills come to you, but anyone can improve a soft skill by learning, practice, and experience.
This chapter looked at some of the soft skills that are particularly important for software architects, such as communication, leadership, and negotiation skills. Being an effective communicator is central to being a software architect. In addition to communicating your message, being a good communicator also involves being a good listener.
The ability to lead others is another soft skill that software architects should possess. Your responsibilities include providing technical leadership for...