Today I watched Erik Dörnenburg’s excellent talk Architecture without Architects (recorded in December 2014). Some takeaways:

Erik explains how software “architect” is, in several ways, not a good metaphor. “Town planner” or even “gardener” might be better metaphors, considering that software architecture constantly needs to be adapted and reshaped.

He encourages vertical slicing with room for some experimentation in each slice, and he’s got some nice stories of architecture mistakes and evolution.

To Erik, the software architect is an experienced developer who can guide other developers, not making the rules but asking the right questions: “Interesting idea! I thought the same thing five years ago – and then that happened. Did you consider that?”

Highly recommended if you’ve got an hour to spare.