My book, Facilitating Software Architecture has been included in the Gartner 2026 Reading Guide for Software Architects and Engineers by Peter Hyde. 😱🎉 Being selected is both humbling and energizing. Thank you everyone who contributed to what became the book. 📚

Yes this is something @roundcrisis.com @andrewhl.bsky.social and I discussed for one of our upcoming stories of facilitation. I also want to start experimenting with this pretty soon myself!Only worry I have is resulting: the tendency to equate the quality of the decision with that of the outcome.

You may possess wide contextual knowledge, but you lack the agency of implementation. If you are in an architecture role, how do you ensure your high-level choices actually align with where the resources are being allocated?

As an architect, you can select an option. But ultimately, the engineers implement that choice. If they encounter friction and pivot to an alternative solution during coding, your decision was never actually made—because the resources were allocated elsewhere. ...

However, consider the definition of a decision we use in our book, which originates from Gien’s work: a decision is a choice between two alternatives that involves an irrevocable allocation of resources. ...

Both works highlight that without these skills, architects often revert to command-and-control tactics, believing they are making decisions for the teams. ...

In Collaborative Software Design, the book I co-authored with @evelynvankelle.bsky.social and @gienverschatse.com, we argue that facilitation skills are critical to solving this. @andrewhl.bsky.social also explores this extensively in his book, Facilitating Software Architecture. ...

These architects are attempting to maintain system integrity across the organisation while trying not to block the teams' development flow. The challenge lies in shifting the approach from dictating to facilitating decision-making. ...

During a training session with tech leaders today, a familiar friction point regarding architecture decision-making surfaced. Participants consistently observed that architects operating outside the teams are perceived as controlling and micromanaging. This behaviour often stems from a paradox. ...

#GOTOpodcast w/ @andrewhl.bsky.social & Marit Van Dijk hits a nerve many of us know well: architecture ends up slowing us down. • Architects as facilitators • ADRs as lightweight documentation • Psychological safety as the hidden architecture layer 🎧 gotopia.tech/podcast

Do we need software architects? A question that always sparks debate. We held an open discussion on the role, its anti-patterns, and expectations. Missed it? You can rewatch the session or listen to the podcast on our website. buff.ly/fCTti5d

Holding another Developer Science Office Hour TODAY and the theme is Design-a-Study, a mini (very mini) workshop on imagining a study from the very beginning! www.eventbrite.com/e/design-a-s...

Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Harvesters, 1565 #themet #europeanart

“The hardest part (of deciding) is framing the problem. It is also the part we spend the least amount of time on.” This is _so_ true. 👏🏻 @gienverschatse.com closing #NewCrafts #Paris 2025.

“Anarchy doesn’t mean you can’t organise, but it should be done voluntary, functional, temporal and small”

At @newcrafts.bsky.social watching @andrewhl.bsky.social talk about anarchy and how we can organise ourselves differently in our company instead of the hierarchy we have gotten so used to.

For all of you who wonder why a perfect technical plan does not result in the perfect technical implemention #HolisticEngineering might be what you are looking for. Thanks @andrewhl.bsky.social and @gotocon.com for this interview.

Such an important idea, and one that’s not even that difficult to avoid, *if* you know what to look out for. Some really key insights from @vanessaformicola.bsky.social here. 💙🎉

. @andrewhl.bsky.social’s revolutionary approach to architecture is live! Learn how everyone can contribute without creating chaos. Watch his talk on democratizing decisions & subscribe for more perspectives! youtu.be/zp9Go2ChAdw #amaberlin

Blimey: downdetector.co.uk #hugops all around.

An important message to the people of New York City. More information at zohranfornyc.com/birthday

Lol that the London No Kings event is called No Tyrants because…you know… www.nokings.org#map

🏗️ Let’s talk #SoftwareArchitecture! @simonbrown.je & @andrewhl.bsky.social join #YOW25 to challenge how you think abt structure, scale, & collaboration in modern software systems. 📅 MEL 4-5 | BNE 8-9 | SYD 11-12 Dec yowcon.com

Me and @javujavichi.bsky.social “together” on stage. My favourite moment of #gsas25 captured here. First time I got quoted in a talk, achievement unlocked. ❤️

You want teams to take architectural decisions by facilitating but you are struck with silence or indecision. That was the story @roundcrisis.com and @andrewhl.bsky.social talked about in our latest Story on Facilitating Software Architecture & Design.

Time is a crucial element in modeling business workflows. In this video, @indualagarsamy shows how to implement your business policies in such a manner that it truly revolves around your business so you can realize the DDD dream

November 6-7 I will be at @newcrafts.bsky.social in hashtag #Paris. I love this conference, and this year I'll be sharing another new talk - this time about all the things you wanted to know about hashtag #anarchy but were afraid to ask. 🏴‍☠️ 🎉 Hope to see you there! ncrafts.io

Architecture isn’t about perfect diagrams - it’s about enabling teams to decide well when you’re not there. As @icooper.bsky.social, @hanneslowette.net & @davidwhitney.co.uk say: the best architects create culture, not constraints.

I'm excited to be talking next week @gotocon.com (Copenhagen) about how to make architecture work in todays complex, ever-evolving world. There will be lots about the Architecture Advice Process, and a wee drop of anarchy too. (But no chaos, promise.) Come and find me for a chat if you're there.

🏃‍♂️ I'm running the Berlin Half Marathon 2026 for Sea-Watch.org. They conduct vital search & rescue operations in the Mediterranean, saving lives when others turn away. 21.1km for me = solidarity with their life-saving mission. Please support me: sea-watch.org/en/join-us/m... #BerlinHalf #SeaWatch

With @kenny.weave-it.org and @andrewhl.bsky.social we are creating a series about our stories on facilitating software architecture. How to move towards decentralisation no matter how your organisation operates (because it might just improve things) We would love your stories too, questions welcome

Get the 25-book @oreilly.bsky.social @humblebundle.com to not only get my book, #CommunicationPatterns, but also @andrewhl.bsky.social's Facilitating Software Architecture & @dianamontalion.com's Learning Systems Thinking. This triad of books is what you need to boost your software! jcq.me/hbswarch

Time to talk about changing how we approach software architecture! Because, honestly, the usual ways often hold teams back and make things worse. But making the switch can be tough!

From bottleneck to facilitator: @andrewhl.bsky.social & @maritvandijk.bsky.social discuss transforming software architecture through collaborative decision-making

Together with @roundcrisis.com and @andrewhl.bsky.social, I’ve launched a new series on Facilitating Software Architecture and Design. We’ll share practical ways to decentralize architecture, no matter your role or context. Curious why you’d want to do that? The first episode is out now.

The Way of Ways Day 2/30 sharing my favorite doodles and drawings.

A key difference here is that while either can be incorrect, the structure of Wikipedia *creates context* and the structure of LLMs *destroys context* Wikipedia has linked sources and an edit history showing where information came from and who added it when An LLM just generates text

Have you learned about my favorite character prank, the Greek question mark? It looks identical to a semicolon. Just sprinkle it into a C codebase and have fun #define ; ;

Everyone should know about jury nullification! A jury has an absolute right to return any verdict it chooses. You can return a verdict of NOT GUILTY if you consider a law, punishment, or prosecutor unjust. Mind you, if you mention this during selection, you may not end up on a jury. Pass it on!

🗣️ Paging the Marshal Law and Boys universes…

Ooooffffffffff. (Also: 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻)

How do you empower teams to make great architectural decisions? @andrewhl.bsky.social will share strategies on facilitating #SoftwareArchitecture. Learn how to balance creativity & structure in complex systems & make architecture a team sport! #YOW25 MEL 4-5 | BNE 8-9 | SYD 11-12 Dec yowcon.com

Tebbit was one of the architects of Section 28 which sought to prohibit ‘the promotion of homosexuality.’ This law emboldened bigots and silenced many librarians and teachers, including some of mine. As a gay kid I was left without official support from my school. It was terrifying and cruel.

Java Conferences with closing CFP in the next 15 days: Devoxx Belgium Closes: 18 July 2025 Devoxx Morocco Closes: 09 July 2025 If you want to add your conference, please submit it at https://javaconferences.org/

"The four means of agreement, arranged to compare their relative directiveness and specificity" From Facilitating Software Architecture by @andrewhl.bsky.social Want to learn more about it? Join us at @virtualddd.com online book club WHEN: Tuesday 8th July at 7pm NZ time ti.to/book-club-vi...

Looking forward to SoCraTes Soltau and another 2 hour hands on session during the preconference training day. This is the 3rd permutation in a run that began at Explore DDD, followed by DDDEU.

Great advice on what to avoid when democratising architecture decision making from @andrewhl.bsky.social at BCS SPA London.

If your knee-jerk reaction to artists despairing over massive lay-offs and the further erosion of entire creative industries is anything but solidarity with the artists, rethink everything.

I guess for me if your model for improving "developer experience" does not take seriously the social constructs around human ability that will forever limit who we let into "software" if we don't face them, well, I can't take your model seriously. It won't solve problems it'll just move them