SoC Architect — Job Description
Role Summary The SoC Architect owns the system-level architecture of the chip: how it's partitioned into subsystems/IP blocks, how area/power/timing/cost budgets are allocated across those partitions, and the tradeoff decisions that reconcile competing requirements from product, silicon, and software stakeholders. This is the technical "owner" of the chip's architecture from spec through tapeout, accountable for the coherence of the whole system even as dozens of teams work on the parts.
Key Responsibilities
Specification & Partitioning
Translate product/market requirements into a system architecture spec: block diagram, subsystem boundaries, interconnect topology (NoC/bus), memory hierarchy, and clock/power domain partitioning.
Decide what is custom silicon vs. licensed IP vs. reused block from prior designs, and define interface contracts (protocols, timing, power sequencing) between partitions.
Own the SoC-level floorplan intent (macro placement zones, I/O planning, hierarchy of physical blocks) in partnership with physical design leads.




Budgeting & Tradeoffs
Own top-down and bottom-up budget allocation for area, power (agile/leakage), timing (frequency targets per domain), and cost (die size, package, test time) across all blocks.
Run and adjudicate tradeoff studies (e.g., performance vs. power vs. area, cache size vs. latency, IP reuse vs. custom design) and make/own the final call when teams disagree.
Maintain the architecture "ledger" — a live tracking of budget vs. actual as blocks mature from RTL to layout to silicon, flagging overruns early and reallocating margin.
Cross-Domain Tradeoff Ownership
Balance competing needs from digital, analog/mixed-signal, DFT, verification, software/firmware, and packaging teams — SoC Architect is the tie-breaker when local optimization for one domain would hurt the system.
Own key architectural decisions: process node selection, IP sourcing strategy, memory/cache hierarchy, interconnect fa

📌 SoC Architect (Bengaluru)
🏢 HCLTech
📍 Bengaluru