Just got back from a grueling week at IDesign’s Architecture Clinic. ...read more Much like the Master Class, I feel this one propelled me ahead years (which explains why I’m so exhausted). I’ve struggled with what functional decomposition is, why it’s bad, and what’s the right way to decompose based on volatility. A couple days into the Clinic, I was still stuck and thinking that maybe my brain was just not wired right. However, after working with my team to decompose our third system, things finally clicked, lights flicked on, rubber met road, and I got it! I can just about guarantee if you’re struggling like I was, the Clinic is the solution to your problem. The two things the Clinic gave me that are tough to get in the real world were four opportunities to practice architecting a system – non-trivial, real systems BTW – and get my designs reviewed by master software architects. Those two things in conjunction made it worth every penny, and everything else – hearing eight other designs and reviews, the IDesign Method training, the process lecture, the bonus classes, lunches and dinners with the IDesign architects – made it that much better.

I’ve been practicing the IDesign Method for a while now, and over the years my solutions keep getting better. ...read more They are consistent, they meet the requirements, they are extensible, easy to maintain, scalable, robust, secure, and delivered on time. I will admit I still make mistakes, both technical and soft-skills, and I wish I had a world-class architect looking over my shoulder telling me what I was doing wrong, how to recognize functional design, how to spot process mistakes and how to resolve the issues. That is what the Architecture Clinic addressed for me. A week of having IDesign architects guiding and teaching me what I needed to do, techniques for how to do it correctly, how to spot mistakes early on and fix them, and how to present my ideas with confidence. The speed at which everyone attending the clinic learnt was phenomenal. There were people that weren’t full time architects and had no industry knowledge, designing the architecture for financial trading software on day three of the clinic!! The solutions presented by the groups on day 4 were what I would expect a top software architect with years of training and experience to produce. The transformation from day 1 to day 4 was truly amazing. In summary, I will never have to ask myself what I need to do again. I simply follow the mechanical process of the IDesign Method and apply the techniques of the Architecture Clinic, following its steps and at the end I will have captured the correct requirements, a beautiful architecture, an impressive presentation technique, and a software delivery process ready for success.

There are moments in life that stake claims to permanent spaces in our minds. ...read more Some are universally relatable; marriage, graduation, the birth of a child. Sometimes though these are uniquely personal, moments that can only be described as epiphanies. For me, a number of these moments were instigated by Juval’s no-nonsense, no excuses approach to Software Architecture. Awakenings like this don’t take place in some classroom, being led through scripted labs by a questionably-qualified instructor who fails to answer any question whose answer can’t be gleamed from the course materials or found by consulting Google. Your brain has to be stimulated and engaged enough to force this kind of introspection, and that’s what the Clinic delivers. I cannot begin to express how career-changing a course like this can be when it is led by a true master of the craft. The Clinic didn’t merely teach me new things, it taught me new ways to think about things I already knew and also to revisit things I thought I already knew. If you haven’t attended the Clinic, do it. If you’ve already attended the Clinic, send your team. You will produce software leaps and bounds ahead of your best prior to the Clinic.

There are a lot of great things to be said about the Architect's Master Class and the follow-up Architecture Clinic. ...read more The breadth and depth of information conveyed along with the flawless execution of the material, is something that must be experienced to be understood. If you don't leave the class without experiencing at least one epiphany I will be shocked. The information presented is fact-based, backed by years of practice and documentation and is presented with such focus and mastery that it should be worthy of an award. The IDesign architects are literally the masters of the art and science that is Software Engineering. If I had to sum up the entire experience in one sentence, it would be: This is the modern equivalent of an aspiring artist being taken under the wings of Da Vinci, Dali, or Monet.

Pour the IDesign Method out on the table, grab your hard hat, and get to work! That's the Architecture Clinic in a nutshell. ...read more Be warned, however: This awesome, multi-day, hands-on, team-oriented session is not for the faint of heart or brain. The stories you've heard are indeed true – grueling days and nights, intense design critiques, heated debates, walking on beds of hot coals, raised glasses. You'll come away thoroughly worked, molded, and evolved. You'll view distributed systems in a new light. You'll finally see how IDesign’s pragmatic approach and all of the great theory you've soaked up over the years fits together, how straightforward solving hard, complex problems can be, how it all makes sense. So what are you waiting for? You need this Architecture Clinic. Pull the ripcord. Sign up. Now.

Overall the clinic was awesome. ...read more I personally feel it provides more value for the $ than the AMC does (if you can imagine that is possible). Knowing there is a better way of architecting is great, which the AMC class helps bring to light - however I still found myself struggling with what it all meant prior to attending this clinic. The clinic is a special environment where like-minded peers can meet, work and learn together while surrounded with the attentive IDesign master architects. The result was a truly unique experience that has helped to elevate my skill set provided me with the tools and mindset to think outside the box. The clinic comprised of much more than just training on the IDesign method and architecture techniques. It provided invaluable experience and feedback on critical thinking, conducting interviews with clients and presentation skills, all while encouraging you to ask questions you normally have no hope of answering and is tailored to assist with your specific projects which makes it priceless. I also appreciated IDesign's patience with all the additional questions that were thrown at them outside off-hours. That was extremely helpful to the attendees. In short, the clinic is a must-do for any established or up and coming architect.

Veterans of the IDesign already value the knowledge gained at an IDesign master class. ...read more I attempted to apply The Method after taking the WCF and Architect's master classes in 2009 and 2010, and thought I was doing fairly well. However, I still struggled with identifying the volatile areas in real-world business systems. After attending the Architecture Clinic I now feel that I have truly seen the light. The IDesign Master Architects took us under their collective wing, and we architected four different systems. We also reviewed and critiqued twelve other architectures of the same systems. This clinic is more of a brief apprenticeship than anything else. An apprenticeship with world-renowned masters focused on boosting your knowledge and understanding to a level that is unattainable anywhere else. After only four time-crunched applications of The IDesign Method, we all progressed significantly. I feel that I moved ahead five or more years. On a personal note, if you are serious as a software architect, I implore you to become the change we desperately need to see in software architecture! Take this clinic as the first step. Then take again... I'll see you there.

I just wanted to let you know what a truly amazing week I had and how thankful I am to the IDesign team. ...read more From getting to meet my peers to designing real-world systems to your emphatic slaps of “FUNCTIONAL” and “APPROVED”, it was an experience I won’t be forgetting anytime soon! Having had a few days to step back, I think the biggest personal impact of the clinic was going beyond learning about the IDesign Method to learning how I could apply it and the realization that it is something I can actually do, and instruct others in executing. Of course, the flip-side of that is appreciating for the first time how much more there’s still to learn and practice. It was inspiring and real pleasure learning from IDesign, not just the design techniques but also the “softer” aspects of architecting a system such as customer interview and presenting a design for review. I can’t wait to see where IDesign takers the work of educating architects next.

The Architecture Clinic is an exceptionally well designed and organized week. ...read more The level of knowledge and experience available for consumption in the clinic was astounding. Each day from sun up, until well past sun down we worked through exercises and discussions on applying “The Method”. This clinic is a battle, through the fields of volatility fighting the functional thought process. You are not alone in this battle as you are led by world renowned Generals in the field of software architecture, and fight along side others of varying yet valuable skill sets. The final victory is an “Approved” sign stamped on your architectural design. There is nothing that can compare to the feeling of a panel of Industry leaders rewarding you for your work. The amount of hard forged experience available by attending this course is immeasurable.

The IDesign Architecture clinic was a truly unique experience which allowed me to be immersed in both time tested and the latest architectural concepts and trends all under the mentorship of true masters of the art. ...read more It was a rare opportunity to work so closely and share knowledge with other individuals in this field on real world architectural problems and solutions. The week long class far exceeded my expectations and I recommend it to any serious Architect who is interested in taking their knowledge of systems architecture to a higher level.

The IDesign Architecture Clinic was hands down the best training I have attended in my career. ...read more Juval's passion for architecture shines through and I learnt a great deal. It was refreshing to be challenged to think, rather than just being spoon fed course content. Running through the IDesign Method for a few real life systems gave me a good understanding of the thought processes behind the Method. The focus on decomposing a system into change resilient components is invaluable. If you want a thought provoking, challenging week of training, I highly recommend the IDesign architecture clinic.

Four weeks after the Architecture Clinic we have completed the design for a substantial project based on the IDesign Method. ...read more My journey started after the Architect's Master Class last year. The architect’s role was so much broader than I imagined. Would I be able to do all these unfamiliar tasks that I still hadn’t quite got my head around? Was that really my responsibility? Would I even be allowed to try? I was battling to get my everyday tasks done as it was. But the new perspective came with an obligation, and I started looking at old problems in a new light and talking about some of the concepts (don’t base design on the requirements because they will change, encapsulate volatility, separating orchestration from execution, etc.). I was pleasantly surprised at how receptive people were to the concepts (especially business people). Those conversations were noticed and in November last year I was asked to take on the architecture of the new project. The biggest stumbling block for me at that time was getting the decomposition of the Managers and the Engines right – I knew what I was supposed to do in theory, but I kept running into problems (I felt I needed another layer of managers above the managers). Through the most amazing luck the Architecture Clinic came to Australia at just the right time and working through real life examples helped it all fall into place. It was also great to have a refresher of some of the Architect's Master Class material (I could much better understand the significance this time around). It was invaluable to bounce some of our specific problems off Juval. At the time I thought the emphasis on presentation skills was a bit off-topic but it was a tremendous help when I found myself standing in front of a crowded room presenting our design just a few weeks later. It really drove home what an important role confidence plays at all levels.

When I attended the Architect Master Class several years ago I was literally blown away by all of the content covered. ...read more It was easily the most thought provoking week of professional training I had ever experienced. It was also a bit overwhelming similar to when you first dump a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle onto a table. The Architecture Clinic helps you to piece all of the theory learned in the Master class together by applying it to real live systems that the participants are working on, as nothing crystallizes theoretical concepts like the act of applying them to real-life scenarios. The ability to architect multiple systems side by side with your peers is invaluable—the level of expertise and knowledge contained in one room is profound. That alone is worth the price of admission but there is so much more. You spend an entire week with the IDesign architects whose credentials speak for themselves—not only are they teaching software design, they are your mentors—the key to your success. Success not only in architecting a software system using the proven methodology ("The IDesign Method") but success in selling your design to your boss and managing the project to its successful completion while both minimizing costs and risks. The Architect Master Class combined with Architecture Clinic creates a lifetime worth of training that any aspiring architect should not hesitate to attend. It was the best training in my lifetime.

The IDesign Architecture Clinic is a thought provoking in-depth look on how to properly architect software systems. ...read more The Architecture Clinic picks up where the Architect's Master Class leaves off by allowing you to apply the IDesign Method to real software projects under the tutelage and mentoring of IDesign. This is the kind of real hands-on experience that you can’t get anywhere else. If that was all there was it would be the best class I have ever taken, but it does not stop there. We practiced everything from the soft skills of communicating effectively to how to guide and execute the project to its conclusion. We had bonus night training sessions and an entire day devoted to process. If you want to know how to better decompose a system based on volatility or how to provide real answers to questions like “how long will it take and how much will it cost?” than this is the class for you. No fluff, no nonsense real world training presented in language that is simple to understand but deep in meaning. The IDesign Architecture clinic is a must for any software architect who is looking take the next step in building great software.

The combination of the Architect's Master Class with the Architects Clinic provides a great, well rounded approach for budding architects as well as seasoned professionals that want to get a handle on the task of design and implementation of service based architecture. ...read more I am glad I got a chance to attend both classes within a few months of each other. It’s not every day that you get to sit in a room with top of your peers and discuss designing systems on the fly, or presenting your designs to the group and having them critique your designs. In many teams there are few people to run ideas by, and having this forum was of immeasurable value to me. I’ve had similar comments from the other attendees from my company. In addition, it gave me a wealth of topics for research, as well as practical experience in all phases of creating architecture. From the interview, to the use case and areas of volatility identification, and on to the design diagrams and beyond, the clinic provides real world examples of the problems people are trying to solve daily, and a roadmap to accomplishing that in a standardized, rational way. I highly recommend these classes to any architect wanting to learn more about what today’s evolving technological landscape has in store for an architect, and how to meet those challenges head-on.