Grounded Architecture

Redefining IT Architecture Practice in the Digital Enterprise

by Željko Obrenović, Chief Architect at AVIV Group

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    Introduction

  • Introduction

    This book aims to share my approach to running an IT architecture practice in larger organizations based on my experience as Chief Architect at AVIV Group, eBay Classifieds, and Adevinta. I called this approach "Grounded Architecture," highlighting the need for any IT architecture function to stay well-connected to all levels of an organization and led by data.

  • Context: Fast Moving Global Organizations

    The grounded architecture approach has developed in the context of global, loosely coupled organizations that are diverse, with non-linear growth dynamics, and under transformation pressures. The work I present here reflects my experiences as a Chief or Principal Architect at AVIV Group, eBay Classifieds, and Adevinta.

  • Goals

    I identified the following needs that an architecture function should support: Executing At Scale, Increasing the Quality of Decision-Making with Data, Maximizing Organizational Alignment & Learning, Higher Adaptivity.

    • Structure

  • Grounded Architecture: Introduction

    I introduce three elements of Grounded Architecture: The Data Pillar, The People Pillar, The Architecture Activities Platform.

  • Data Pillar

    The architecture data pillar serves as a medium to create a complete, up-to-date picture of critical elements of technology landscapes of big organizations. The platform provides an architecture-centric view on data about a technology landscape based on source code analyses, public cloud billing reports, vibrancy reports, or incident tickets.

  • People Pillar

    We should not take our architectural talent for granted. Architects are bridging local business, product, organizational, and technology issues. Architects are difficult to hire talent as they need in-depth technical knowledge and domain-specific and organizational knowledge. Therefore, we need to make sure to support, organize, and leverage architecture talent.

  • Architecture Activities Platform

    The Architecture Activities Platform is the place where, by leveraging data and people pillars, we performed activities that help an organization to reach it goals. Here are some examples: supporting teams in their daily work; tracking tech debt, defining tech debt reduction programs; performing technical due diligence; standardization of processes and documentation; defining cloud, data, and platform strategies.

  • Value of Grounded Architecture

    When Grounded Architecture is in place, it can have a significant positive impact on the functioning of an organization: Executing At Scale, Increasing the Quality of Decision-Making with Data, Maximizing Organizational Alignment & Learning, Higher Adaptivity.

    • Being Architect

  • Being Architect: Introduction

    I introduce ideas and key lessons I learned about what it means to be an architect in practice.

  • Architects as Superglue

    Architects in IT organizations should develop as “superglue,” people who hold architecture, technical details, business needs, and people together across a large organization or complex projects.

  • Skills

    A typical skillset of an architects includes: hard (technical) skills, soft (people & social) skills, and business skills.

  • Impact

    Architects' work is evaluated based the impact they've had on the organization. They must demonstrate that they identify, tackle, and deliver on strategic problems, have a deep and/or broad influence, and deliver solutions that few others can.

  • Leadership

    My view of architecture leadership is inspired by David Marquet’s work and the Netflix’s valued behaviors.

  • Architects' Career Paths: Raising the Bar

    Architects' career paths ideally stem from a strong engineering background. Hiring architects requires constantly raising the bar to ensure a strong and diverse team structure.

    • Doing Architecture

  • Doing Architecture: Introduction

    I introduce ideas and key lessons I learned while developing ideas of Grounded Architecture in practice.

  • The Culture Map: Architects' Culture Mindfield Compass

    In multinational organizations, architects will need to work with many different cultures. I have found the work of Erin Meyer, The Culture Map, to be a very helpful tool for architects to work harmoniously with people from a broad array of different cultures and backgrounds.

  • Managing Organizational Complexity: Six Simple Rules

    Six Simple Rules emphasis that in today’s complicated business environment, you need to setup organisational structures based on cooperation. To deal with complexity, organizations should depend on the judgment of their people and on these people cooperating to utilize the organization's capabilities to cope with complex problems. This view is well aligned with the ideas of Grounded Architecture.

  • Understanding Product Development and The Build Trap

    The product trap occurs when businesses focus too much on their product’s features and functionalities, overlooking their customers’ actual needs and preferences. There are three bad product-development organizations: sales, visionary, and technology led companies. There are several bad product manager archetypes: Mini-CEO, Waiter, and Former Project Manager. Critical elements of successful product-led companies include: Understanding Customer Needs, Adopting a Customer-Centric Approach, Executing Iterative Product Development, Aligning Business Goals with Customer Needs, Embracing Innovation and Agility, and Measuring Success.

  • Architecture Governance: Mandates, Taxation, Nudge

    Grounded Architecture supports governance models that are adaptable to the complex and diverse needs of organizations. I see a technology governance model as a well-balanced hybrid of three different styles of governing: mandates and bans, taxes, and nudging.

  • Economic Modeling: ROI and Financial Options

    I sketch two answers to the question of the economic value of technology investments and architecture: the return on investment metaphor, and the financial options metaphor.

    • Summary

  • Summary

    This playbook aims to share my approach to running an IT architecture practice in larger organizations based on my experience as Chief Architect at AVIV Group, eBay Classifieds, and Adevinta.

  • Cheat Sheet

    Key points from all sections in one place.

    • To Probe Further

  • Bookshelf

    Overview of the background to probe further. External resources inspiring my work.

  • Tools

    Tools I've built and use in daily architectural work.

  • Favorite Quotes

    My favorite quotes about architecture.