Software Architecture and Agile: Is it Unrequited Love?

SATURN Conference

Michael Keeling

IBM

@michaelkeeling

An Agile Practitioner’s Perspective

2Dante and Beatrice, by Henry Holiday, 1884

3Dante and Beatrice, by Henry Holiday, 1884

Hypothesis…

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The National Agile conference will have

fewer talks about software architecture

than SATURN has talks about Agile.

Implication: Architecture’s “love” for

agile is not returned.

How many speaker sessions might

work at either Agile or SATURN?

• Reviewed session keywords, titles,

abstracts, common speakers

– National Agile conference and SATURN

• Used some “expert judgment”

– Regular speaker and attendee

– Technical committee member for Agile and

SATURN since 2012 and 2013 respectively

– Master in Software Engineering5

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Session count...

Agile SATURN

2011 10 7

2012 6 8

2013 9 9

2014 5 11



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Agile SATURN

2011 7% 21%

2012 4% 18%

2013 6% 26%

2014 3% 24%

Percentage of total sessions…



By the numbers… Since 2011

• 5% of talks at Agile were likely relevant to

SATURN audience

– Approx 30 of 580

• 22% of talks at SATURN were likely

directly relevant to Agile audience

– Approximately 35 / 160

• Interesting aside: European Agile

conferences have greater focus on

architecture and design than in US8

SATURN “Best Presentation”

Awards presented by IEEE, SEI

• “Architecture in Practice” Best Presentation award started in 2010

– “Awarded to the presentation that best describes experiences, methods, and lessons learned from the implementation of architecture-centric practices.”

• Award decided by attendees

– Voting cards

• 4 out of 5 awards given to agile or lean topics since 2010

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10

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From whence doth this apparent

unrequited love arise?

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More Vision-Oriented

MoreDetail-Oriented

CEO,Product Management

Programmers

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MoreDetail-Oriented

Ideas

Implementation

“Realization Boundary”

Must cross to see ideas become reality

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MoreDetail-Oriented

Extremely easy to change

More difficult to change

Code

Detailed Design

Architectural Design

Vision / Ideas

Disturbing Implication…

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Worst Case Scneario...

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I had a great idea over the weekend

that we just have to get in the next

release!

Visionary Leader

Legitimate Business Scenario...

17Visionary Leader

There's a trend emerging we didn't anticipate and I need this feature in the next release so we can

remain relevant!

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Software systems are built on

easily changeable premises.

This is a good thing.

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Architecting for agility is the point.

National Agile Conference Focus

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MoreDetail-Oriented

Product management,Project management,Organizational change (coaching)

Agile process and practices,Team performance,Craftsmanship,Agile Coaching

"Throw it over the wall..."

SATURN Conference Focus

22


MoreDetail-Oriented

Product management, Project management, Organizational change...

through architecture

Development practices,Technology selection,Craftsmanship

SATURN Conference Focus

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MoreDetail-Oriented

Design methods and practices, Communication mediums,Foundations and concepts

Transitioning the realization boundary

Why does SATURN have

this focus?

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MoreDetail-Oriented

Software Architects must live in both worlds and cross the realization boundary freely!

CEO,Product Management

Programmers

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Hi, Agile, I'm ready to embrace

change!

*sigh* it's that software architecture again... he's just so...

structured..

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Agile promotes preserving choice.

Software architecture promotes preserving structure.

Natural tension between Agile and architecture…

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Lots of things have to work “just right” for a team to be agile.

We think software architecture is one of the more important and

interesting areas.

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SATURN is an amazing conference

for Agile Architects!

SATURN is for Agile Architects

• Smaller conference

– Greater engagement

– More meaningful networking

• Lower costs

– Better value – lower $$ / relevant knowledge

• Narrower focus

– Greater number of relevant sessions

– Higher density of usable software architecture

information29

Agile Highlights at SATURN 2014

• Joe Justice of WIKISPEED, SCRUM Inc

• Diane Marsh of Netflix

• Bill Opdyke, of refactoring fame

• Sessions hosted by Rebecca Wirfs-Brock

• Open Space facilitated by Diana Larson

• More…

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Hot Topics at SATURN and Agile

• Architecting for DevOps

– Continuous delivery

– Cloud concerns

– More…

• Micro-Services

• Technical Debt

• Design Thinking

• Organizational alignment (Conway’s Law)

• More…

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SATURN 2015 will continue to focus on architecting for agility.

Thank you!

Michael Keeling

@michaelkeeling

http://neverletdown.net

[email protected]

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Website: http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2015/

Call for Submissions: http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2015/call-for-submissions/

Rolling Acceptance until January 16, 2015

http://neverletdown.net/

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2015/

http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2015/call-for-submissions/