Our position
Architecture is the set of decisions that are expensive to reverse.
Diagrams and stack choices are the residue of architecture; the work is making and recording trade-offs under uncertainty, optimising for reversibility.
Everyone says
Architecture is the diagrams and the technology stack.
We think
Architecture is recorded decisions under uncertainty — optimise for reversibility, decentralise the deciding.
What we’ve observed
- Gartner projects ~80% of technical debt will be architectural by 2026; ADRs capture the rationale diagrams omit.
Confidence: Established
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Where this shows up