Key Benefits

Background

More and more organizations are creating the role of architect, recognizing that creating and deploying an architecture demands special talents and focus. Though this is a new field, we have been working with and studying world-class system and software architects for a number of years. Based on this experience, we have identified a number of critical domains within which the architect works.

Clearly, the role has a core technical aspect to it, but this is only sufficient to create a good architecture. To create the right architecture, the architect also needs a good sense of strategy--understanding business strategy and being able to translate that into a compelling technical strategy. And that is not sufficient to ensure that the architecture is successful. First, it requires organizational politics to gain and sustain the support of the management community throughout the architecture’s creation and deployment to the developers. In addition, to ensure the architecture doesn’t simply gather dust on the engineers’ bookshelves, architects need to act as consultants to the engineering community, helping them to understand the architecture and the rationale behind it. Lastly, architects need to be strong leaders, aligning the organization behind a powerful vision that motivates and guides.

Class Overview

• What skills do I need? Where should I focus my personal development?
• What have others learned in creating architectures? What works? What does not?
• What should we do to make our architecture successful?
• What should we communicate, to whom?

This class covers topics addressed in the report  we wrote for Cutter Consortium's EA Executive Report series, and more. See Cutter's site at  http://www.cutter.com/offers/greatarchitect.html to download the report.

This class focuses on the non-technical aspects of architecting. It will help you develop skills in areas central to the architect role, but not dealt with in other courses, academic programs or conferences.

Audience

Enterprise architects, system architects, software architects, process architects, and managers of architecture projects.

This workshop is generally taught by either Ruth Malan or Dana Bredemeyer.

Class Outline

This 3-day workshop covers the following topics:

• Architecting pitfalls and critical success factors
• The architecting process
• The role of the Architect

• Architect as consultant
• Interviewing Architecture Stakeholders
• Analyzing and synthesizing input
• Facilitation and the art of leading team processes
• Leading Architecture Reviews
• Taking criticism

• Architect as leader
• Stories and leadership
• How to create and sell an Architectural Vision

• Architect as strategist
• Context Maps
• Technology Roadmaps
• Scenario Analysis

• Architect as organizational politician
• Organizational networks and influence

• Building an Architecture Communication Plan

• Architect as technical lead
• Views, modeling and visualization
• Creativity tools and innovation

The 1-day version of the class covers much the same topics, but has fewer exercises and covers less of the concepts, models and techniques. It is a good companion to the 4-day Software Architecture Workshop, but can be taken on its own.

Open-Enrollment Workshop:

- TBA

Open-Enrollment Seminar: 
In the past we ran these seminars:

• Cape Town, South Africa on September 7, 2001 at the Sanlam Head Office in Bellville.

• Rochester, NY on October 12, 2001 at the Holiday Inn Rochester South.

• Germany on November 23, 2001 at the Marriot Hotel in Stuttgart/Sindelfingen.

• San Diego, CA on March 15, 2002.

• London, UK on April 12, 2002.

• Seattle/Tacoma, WA on July 26, 2002

• Wellington, New Zealand on September 6, 2002

• Indianapolis, IN, March 28, 2006

• Chicago, IL, August 2007

We do also run 1-day and 3-day Role workshops in-house.

On-site: If  6 or more people from your company would like to attend this class, you may find it more cost effective (taking travel costs into account) to hold the class at your company site.  Please call us at (812) 335-1653 or email training@bredemeyer.com for pricing and schedule.

Pricing

The cost for the 3-day open enrollment class is $1800 per student.   

We offer a discount for registrations received before the early enrollment cut-off date posted on the enrollment form. 

Note: We only accept a maximum of 16 participants, so register early to avoid disappointment.

Continental breakfasts, lunches and snacks will be provided, but workshop participants are responsible for dinners and their own accommodations.

Cancellation Policy

Workshops in the US: We will refund the registration fee less a 5% processing fee if cancellations are made more than 30 days in advance of the workshop start date. Cancellations made 30 days or less from the workshop start date are not refundable. However, student substitutions may be made any time prior to the start of the workshop.

Workshops outside the US: We will refund the registration fee less a 5% processing fee if cancellations are made more than 6 weeks in advance of the workshop start date. Cancellations made within 6 weeks of the workshop start date are not refundable. However, student substitutions may be made any time prior to the start of the workshop.

ABOUT BREDEMEYER CONSULTING|

Bredemeyer Consulting specializes in training and mentoring software architects. We typically work with architecture teams, providing training and mentoring to accelerate their creation or migration of an architecture. However, we do offer a limited number of Software Architecture and related workshops for open enrollment.