Facilitating Software Architecture

Chapter 10. Collectively Sourced Architectural Principles

In the previous chapter, I argued that while a technology strategy is essential for effective alignment, it is rarely sufficiently specific to guide day-to-day architectural decision making, specifically when answering the question “How will we do this?” For that, a greater level of detail about the shared agreement is required.

This chapter introduces one way of achieving that detail: explicitly capturing architectural principles—which are key commitments, the third alignment mechanism—that make clear how you collectively intend to construct and run your software systems. I’ll introduce you to what good architectural principles look like, how they fit into the advice process, how to source them from teams, and how they evolve as time passes.

Having architectural principles in place will mitigate the three warning signs of lacking essential agreement: decisions that lead to duplication of nondifferentiating efforts, repeated debates about the same fundamental points, and technical decisions taking precedence over functional ones.

Source Architectural Principles from Everyone Involved

Architectural principles are a means of capturing key agreements regarding how you collectively intend to design your software systems. They are a practical embodiment of your organization’s tech strategy that help keep everyone’s decisions aligned with the organization’s overall direction. They are another means of articulating your minimum ...