Architectural Katas

Considering the question “How do we get great designers?” Fred Brooks points out, “Great designers design, of course.” So how do we get great architects? Without the chance to try things, how can we improve as architects?

Architectural Katas are proven exercises designed to maximize the architectural effort, minimize the unnecessary overhead, and complete all the critical elements that any architectural exercise should include: changing requirements, a customer, project constraints, a deadline, peers, and a review process. Your moderator will lead a hands-on workshop where in small groups, you’ll answer an RFP, cook up an architecture, and present it for review. It’s the quickest way to experiment without risking your job.

No prior experience as an architect is required. In fact, having no experience might even be more beneficial—you’ll have no preexisting ideas about how it “should” be done. Best of all, participants will have a chance to win $50.

What is an Architectural Kata?