Neal Ford

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June 29, 2026

Software Architecture Characteristics: Defining, Discovering, and Protecting Architecture

Defining, Discovering, and Protecting Architecture Software systems consist of designs to both satisfy requirements and architecture characteristics, also known as non-functional requirements. Identify and preserving architecture characteristics is a key responsibility ...

June 30, 2026

Software Architecture Styles

But you may not yet have been exposed to the breadth of architecture patterns, particularly if you’re early in your career as an architect. Join experts Neal Ford and Raju Gandhi ...

July 1 & 2, 2026

Architecture as Code

Architects are expected to not only design new systems but also continuously govern what they’ve already built and ensure that their architecture is aligned with the technical and business environment. Join ...

July 14, 2026

Software architecture by example

While you can learn a great deal about practices, patterns, coupling, cohesion, and all the other facets of software architecture, you don’t really understand them until you put them in practice. ...

July 21, 2026

Modern Enterprise Architecture Practices

Becoming effective as an enterprise architect Course outcomes Understand how enterprise architecture fits within an organization Learn why most enterprise architecture efforts fail Discover modern approaches to enterprise architecture and why ...

August 4, 2026

Designing Distributed Systems

To make things even worse, when analyzing transactional workflows, all three forces interfere with each other. Join Neal Ford to get expert guidance on how to analyze trade-offs in these situations. ...

August 6, 2026

Designing Microservices

Overcoming service and data granularity challenges Course outcomes Understand the architectural difference between modularity and granularity Learn the complexities of and techniques for breaking apart monolithic applications Understand the difference and ...

August 11, 2026

Mastering Technical Presentations by Example

It doesn't matter how good your ideas are—if you can’t present them in a compelling way, you'll never get to implement them. Join expert Neal Ford to learn techniques for building ...

August 13, 2026

Teach Your Agents About Software Architecture

Developers and architects who want to build ways for agents to determine success require a deterministic method of defining these important constraints. This is where architecture as code can be applied ...

August 18, 2026

Software Architecture Patterns and Antipatterns

Exposure to architecture patterns, and knowing how to leverage them appropriately, are critical foundational skills for all architects. Join Neal Ford and Raju Gandhi to gain a solid understanding of architectural ...

August 20 & 21, 2026

Architecture as Code

Architects are expected to not only design new systems but also continuously govern what they’ve already built and ensure that their architecture is aligned with the technical and business environment. Join ...

September 29, 2026

Software Architecture Superstream: Building Architectures for Agents (and Humans)

You want to build a reliable bridge between human goals and machine execution, ensuring that the AI functions as a predictable part of your overall system. Neal Ford et al. explore ...

Bio

Neal is Director, Software Architect, and Meme Wrangler at ThoughtWorks, a global IT consultancy with an exclusive focus on end-to-end software development and delivery. Before joining ThoughtWorks, Neal was the Chief Technology Officer at The DSW Group, Ltd., a nationally recognized training and development firm.

Neal has a degree in Computer Science from Georgia State University specializing in languages and compilers and a minor in mathematics specializing in statistical analysis. He is also the designer and developer of applications, instructional materials, magazine articles, and video presentations. He is also the author of 6 books, including the most recent Presentation Patterns and Functional Thinking. Given his degree, Neal is a bit of a language geek, with affections including but not limited to Ruby, Clojure, Java, Groovy, JavaScript, Scala and C#/.NET. His primary consulting focus is the design and construction of large-scale enterprise applications. Neal is an internationally acclaimed speaker, having spoken at over 300 developer conferences worldwide, delivering more than 2000 presentations. If you have an insatiable curiosity about Neal, visit his web site at nealford.com. He welcomes feedback and can be reached at nford@thoughtworks.com.