IASA - Architecture Hypothesis Canvas
Canvas Overview: The hypothesis card is used to brainstorm hypothesis development in experimentation.
This can help to:
Reduce Risk: By surfacing and testing assumptions early, architects can expose potential problems before significant time and resources are invested in an unsuitable architecture.
Improve Decision Making: The process of experimenting and analyzing results forces architects to gather data to support their decisions. This data-driven approach can lead to more informed choices throughout the development lifecycle.
Facilitate Communication: The Architecture Hypothesis Canvas provides a shared language and structure for architects to collaborate and communicate their ideas with stakeholders and development teams.
Experimentation is increasingly finding its way into architecture teams, particularly within software architecture. Teams experiment by building prototypes and simulations to rapidly test architectural models without full implementation. A/B testing compares the performance of different architectural options under real user loads, while shadow deployments allow observation of new components alongside a production system without causing disruptions. Even chaos engineering, the deliberate introduction of failures, helps assess an architecture’s resilience.
This experimental approach reduces uncertainty by validating assumptions, fosters innovation, and promotes data-driven decision-making. The result is improved system quality in terms of scalability, security, and maintainability. However, challenges like the cost of experimentation, the need for specialized technical infrastructure, and potential shifts in development culture need to be carefully considered when adopting these practices.
Types of Experimentation
Prototypes and Simulations: Architects can experiment with different architectural patterns and technologies by building small-scale prototypes or simulations. This allows them to visualize and test ideas quickly without committing to a full-blown implementation.
A/B Testing: When multiple architectural options seem viable, A/B testing can be applied. This involves rolling out different variants of an architecture to subsets of users and comparing key metrics (like performance, reliability) to determine the superior approach.
Shadow Deployments: New architectural components can be deployed “in the shadows” alongside existing production systems. This lets teams observe the behavior of the new architecture under real-world load and traffic without impacting users.
Chaos Engineering: Intentionally introducing failures or unexpected conditions (think server outages, network disruptions) into a system helps assess an architecture’s resilience and identify potential weaknesses.
Benefits of Experimentation for Architecture Teams
Reducing Uncertainty: Experimentation helps mitigate risk by turning architectural assumptions into testable hypotheses. Teams can make more confident decisions backed by data rather than relying solely on intuition.
Agility and Innovation: The ability to test architectural ideas quickly fosters a culture of experimentation, encouraging innovation and increasing the team’s responsiveness to changing requirements.
Data-Driven Decision-Making: Metrics gathered from experiments provide objective evidence to guide architectural choices, moving away from purely subjective preferences.
Improved System Quality: Through continuous experimentation and validation, architects can progressively refine the system’s architecture, boosting non-functional qualities like scalability, security, and maintainability.
How to use this card
Preparation
Select Participants: Assemble a small, cross-functional team. Include the lead architect, key developers, potentially a product manager, and any domain experts relevant to the project.
Distribute Resources: Send participants the blank Architecture Hypothesis Canvas template in advance, along with any background materials about the project (problem statements, existing architecture if applicable). Encourage them to come prepared with ideas and questions.
Set the Agenda: Clearly outline the meeting’s objective: to collaboratively fill out the Architecture Hypothesis Canvas. Allocate tentative time slots for each section to manage expectations.
The Meeting
Warm-Up and Context Setting: Begin by reiterating the problem the architecture is intended to solve. Briefly review any existing documentation or decisions that are relevant.
Situation and Hypothesis: Guide the team in defining the context—what’s the goal, and what other systems interact with this solution? Lead the discussion into the core hypothesis about the right architectural approach.
Experiment and Measurement: Brainstorm potential experiments that validate the hypothesis. Be specific about what needs to be tested and the metrics that will determine success.
Impact: Encourage the group to visualize the outcome of these experiments. How will the results support or refute the architectural decisions? What would a successful outcome enable?
Logistics: Fill in the header information (date, deadlines, owners) for easy reference.
About IASA Global: IASA Global is a non-profit association for ALL Technology Architects which was established in 2002.The association is committed to improving the quality of the BT architecture industry by developing and delivering standards, education programs and developing accreditation programs and services that optimize the development of the architecture profession. The IASA network and membership consists of approximately 70,000 people in over 50 countries.
IASA Global has created the world's first and only Business Technology Architecture Body of Knowledge, (BTABoK), which is a free public archive of Business Technology architecture best practices, skills, and knowledge developed from the experience of individual and corporate members of IASA.
IASA has added templates for over 30 of the most frequently used BTABoK structured canvases into the Miroverse to help accelerate how Technology Architects collaborate on the architecture of the future. Give one a try today, and learn more about IASA at https://iasaglobal.org/.
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