Lean Architecture for Agile Software Development

Chapter 1. Introduction

We are changing the Earth more rapidly than we are understanding it.

——Peter Vitousek et al. quoted in The Clock of the Long Now, p. 9.

A proper book isn't just a collection of facts or even of practices: it reflects a cause and a mission. In the preface we couched this book in a broad context of social responsibility. Just as the motivation section (goal in context, summary, or whatever else you call it) in a use case helps the analyst understand requirements scenarios, this chapter might shed light on the ones that follow. It describes our philosophy behind the book and the way we present the ideas to you. If you're tempted to jump to a whirlwind tour of the book's contents, you might proceed to Chapter 2. However, philosophy is as important as the techniques themselves in a Lean and Agile world. We suggest you read through the introduction at least once, and tuck it away in your memory as background material for the other chapters that will support your day-to-day work.

The Touchstones: Lean and Agile

Lean and Agile are among the most endearing buzzwords in software today, capturing the imagination of management and nerds alike. Popular management books of the 1990s (Womack et al 1991) coined the term Lean for the management culture popularized by the Japanese auto industry, and which can be traced back to Toyota where it is called The Toyota Way. In vernacular English, minimal is an obvious synonym for Lean, but to link lean to minimalism alone is misleading. ...