Speaking Truth to Power

Whenever the author conducts an architectural assessment for software development projects, he endeavors to speak truth to power: those with true power never fear the truth. Sam Guckenheimer has observed that in software code there is truth. Code represents the stark reality of a software development organization´s labor. There is also truth to be found in a system´s architecture. Every system´s architecture is molded by the forces that swirl around it, and the collective concerns of all the stakeholders represent the most dynamic forces shaping a system. The software development organization´s unique task is to address all the essential concerns of all the important stakeholders and to ensure that they aren´t blindsided by unexpected problems and stakeholders. This is why employing a process that incrementally and iteratively grows a system´s architecture through the regular release of testable executables is so important. Such a process lets the software team engage the right stakeholders at the right time and to make the right decisions, neither too early nor too late. In creating a software-intensive system that´s both relevant and beautiful, every stakeholder, no matter how close or how far from the code, deserves the truth