Architecture Trade-off Analysis Method (ATAM)

Last, but by no means least, is the fact that once you have laid out all relevant architectures in your Solution Blueprint, you need to re-evaluate the design and minimize the risk. One of the best practices is to apply ATAM.

ATAM was developed by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at the Carnegie Mellon University. Its purpose is to help with choosing alternative architecture for a software system by discovering trade-offs and sensitivity points. The method is a risk-mitigation process used early in the software development lifecycle and is most beneficial here because the cost of changing architectures is minimal.

Tools for the Solution Blueprint

You have the freedom to use whatever tool you are familiar with for the design and the format of the Solution Blueprint. I recommend a combination of Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint because, for example, you can list the processing catalog or cost-value matrix in the Excel file, slice and...