For January’s ‘Meet the Team’, we have interviewed our Lead Solutions Architect: Richard Astley.
Thank you for joining us Richard. Can you tell us about yourself, why you chose to work for Condatis and your journey so far?
I studied Computing Bsc (Hons) at Abertay university and in 2010 I started my career in IT with the NHS. Working in healthcare gave me real satisfaction as I felt involved in contributing to society. After having worked for the NHS for three years, I joined Condatis.
Having gone from a Lead Developer to a Lead Solutions Architect, what do you feel has changed in your job role?
I’ve noticed that I have a lot more responsibility as a solutions architect. I enable our developers to take complex business requirements and create technical solutions. The collaborative aspect of this process is the main difference: rather than just participating, I am also making decisions and guiding developers.
As a Lead Solutions Architect, what is a typical day in the office like for you?
In the morning we have a short stand up – this allows me to catch up with projects and understand what the rest of the team is doing. I do a lot of exploratory work to evaluate the suitability of technology and its use within a project. I help the teams break down requirements and evaluate their proposed solutions.
What has been the highlight in your career so far?
The highlight of my career has been the ability to positively affect society through software. I’ve worked with Suicide Prevention, mental health projects, health and safety executives, the National Institute of Health Research and Digital Health and Social Care. As my career progressed, I kept a keen interest in helping society whilst shifting my technological interests to digital identity. I believe that digital identity will have a big impact on how society works in the digital world.
How do you think Digital Identity will evolve in the future?
I think we will see more collaboration between private and public sector organisations, with the user at the centre grouping all organisations’ identities into a single user’s digital identity.
Do you have any advice for other Solution Architects who want to specialise in Digital Identity?
The best advice I can give to any budding solution architects is to study any open standards being used in the digital identity space!