Facilitating Software Architecture

The software architect role is evolving. As systems and their interactions with the teams that build, run, and evolve them become more complex, it’s often impossible for those playing the traditional architect roles to be everywhere they need to be. There’s simply too much architecture to be done, and the situation has reached a breaking point.

There’s a better way. Author Andrew Harmel-Law shows you how architects and development teams can collaborate to create and evolve more efficient architectures for their systems. Techniques in this book will help you learn how to create a mindset that allows everyone to practice architecture and build the best systems they’ve ever experienced.

With this book, you will:

• Understand the new dynamics that affect modern software delivery
• Learn a methodology that brings software architecture and development together
• Nurture the fundamental interplay of decisions, advice, architecture, and feedback from running systems
• Initiate practices that maximize benefits and mitigate risks
• Create an approach tuned to architecture, everyone’s skills, and your organization’s culture

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Centralized Architecture Practices in a Decentralized World

Part I. First Principles

Chapter 2. To Practice Architecture Is to Decide

Chapter 3. Decisions at Scale

Chapter 4. The Architecture Advice Process

Chapter 5. Rolling Out the Architecture Advice Process

Chapter 6. Architectural Decision Records

Part II. Nurturing and Evolving Your Culture of Decentralized Trust

Chapter 7. Replacing Hierarchy with Decentralized Trust

Chapter 8. An Architecture Advice Forum

Chapter 9. Testable CFRs and Technology Strategy

Chapter 10. Collectively Sourced Architectural Principles

Chapter 11. Using a Technology Radar

Part III. Finding Your Way Through the Decision Landscape

Chapter 12. The Art of Deciding

Chapter 13. Tackling Architectural Variability

Chapter 14. Variability and the Interconnectedness of Decisions

Part IV. Centering the “Social” in Your Practice of Architecture

Chapter 15. The Transition of Power and Accountability

Chapter 16. On Leadership

Chapter 17. Fitting the Advice Process Within Your Organization

About the Author

Andrew Harmel-Law is an enthusiastic tech principal at Thoughtworks, where he specializes in domain-driven design, Java/JVM technologies, Agile delivery, build tools and automation, and organization design. Andrew’s experience spans the software development lifecycle across many sectors, including government, banking, and ecommerce. What motivates him is the efficient delivery of large-scale software solutions to fulfill complex user needs, and he understands that people, architecture, process, and tooling all have key roles to play in achieving this. Andrew has a passion for open source software and its communities. He’s been involved with OSS to a greater or lesser extent since his career began, as a user, contributor, expert group member, and paid advocate–most famously as one of the Jenkins Job DSL originators. Andrew enjoys sharing his experience as much as possible, in formal consulting engagements but also informally through mentoring, writing blog posts, speaking at and organizing conferences, and open-sourcing his code.