You design how data flows through enterprise systems — planning database architectures, data warehouse structures, and the infrastructure that lets organizations actually use their information. It's strategic work that shapes how the whole tech stack fits together.
Your day often involves mapping out how data should move through complex enterprise systems — designing database schemas, planning ETL processes, and architecting data warehouses that let organizations actually use their information. You might be working with business analysts to understand reporting needs, collaborating with DBAs and engineers to implement structures, or documenting data flows across dozens of interconnected systems. The work is strategic and architectural, requiring you to think several steps ahead about how decisions today will affect system performance and flexibility years from now.
At many organizations, you're balancing technical depth with business translation — understanding what stakeholders need from their data while knowing enough about databases, APIs, and infrastructure to design realistic solutions. You spend time in planning meetings, creating technical specifications, and reviewing implementations to ensure they match architectural intent. The consequences of poor planning can be expensive, because redesigning data architectures after they're in production is painful and disruptive.
People who thrive here tend to be systematic thinkers who enjoy solving structural puzzles. You need to understand both the technical constraints of systems and the business logic that data needs to support. If you prefer hands-on coding or get frustrated by abstraction and planning work, this might feel too removed from implementation.
An honest look at who tends to thrive in this role — and who might find it challenging.
Where this role sits in the broader career landscape — and where it can take you.
Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
Roles with similar work and overlapping career paths
View all Technology roles →You design how data flows through enterprise systems — planning database architectures, data warehouse structures, and the infrastructure that lets organizations actually use their information. It's strategic work that shapes how the whole tech stack fits together.
Median pay for an ADP Planner (Automatic Data Processing Planner) is about $136K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $82K to $210K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Complex Problem Solving, Judgment and Decision Making, and Systems Analysis.
Most people in this role hold a bachelor's degree.
Employment in this field is projected to grow about 8.7% through 2034, with roughly 64,770 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Computer Architect, Senior Computer Architect, and Information Architect.
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