Software Architect's Handbook

Who are the consumers of software architectures?

When we create a software architecture, who is it for? There are a variety of stakeholders in a software system, such as the end users of the system, business analysts, domain experts, quality assurance personnel, managers, those who may integrate with the system, and operations staff members. Each of these stakeholders is affected by the software architecture to some degree. While certain stakeholders will have access to, and be interested in, examining the software architecture and its documentation, others will not.

Some of these stakeholders are indirect consumers of the architecture in that they care about the software, and because the software architecture is the foundation of the system, ...