Architect's Master Class

Registration and Information


Overview

While many developers and managers have a clear idea regarding the characteristics, practices, and corresponding set of responsibilities of their roles, the picture is often vague when it comes to software architects. What is the single most important task facing the software architect? What is the division of labor and responsibilities between the architect and the project manager? How much the architecture should be tied in to the particulars of the underlying technology used, or for that matter, for the specifics of the business? Where is the hand-off point between the architect and the developers? What are the necessary skills and analysis tools employed by an architect? How do you validate the design before construction begins? How do methodologies such as service-orientation affect the design and development process? What are software architecture's best practices, guidelines and pitfalls? How do you go about designing world-class systems? How do you make the transition from abstract design patterns and concepts to concrete development decisions? How does the architect decompose the system into its subsystems and modules?

IDesign's flagship offering, the Architect’s Master Class, is the ultimate resource for the professional architect.

The class answers the above questions and more, by teaching the architect how to take an active leadership role in process, design, and technology. You will learn how to lead your team through the use of effective software processes, how to best leverage service-orientation, how to prepare your team and system for the next methodology and technology wave of actors, and how to apply the IDesign Method.

This five days training class is conducted by Juval Lowy who shares his vast experience and perspective with the students, imparting both knowledge and insight, ensuring your success as a modern software architect. Juval will provide the common foundation required by software architects, both technical and soft skills. The class sets the focus on the "why" and the rationale behind particular design decisions, often shedding light on poorly understood aspects.

Noteworthy is that this class is called the Architect’s Master Class (as opposed to the Architecture Master Class) because it focuses on the person behind the role, on the skills and techniques practiced by architects. The class presents the core body of knowledge required of today’s modern software architects, knowledge that transcends mere design patterns and architecture. The core body of knowledge comprises of three elements: development process, technology, and finally analysis & design. The class shows the architect how to take an active leadership role on all three aspects, as a continuum, since in order to deliver high-quality, affordable solutions, one cannot separate process from design from technology – all three have to work in concert. The class also points out classic mistakes and risk mitigations across the process, technology and design.

The first part of the class is devoted to the accompanying development process and the required project design skills. You will see how the development process itself needs to be modular, accommodating the complexity of the microservices as a system. The class shows how the various team members – the architect, the project manager and the developers – should work in concert, and their respective tasks and responsibilities.

The second part starts with an analysis of today's key design methodology and services contract factoring, showing how to design reusable services. Juval will next explain the IDesign original approach to system analysis and design called the IDesign Method - a battle-proven approach to software architecture providing a significant reduction in the effort and time required for architecting, designing, and implementing software solutions. The IDesign Method distils the IDesign's accumulative lessons learned over more than two decades of architecting systems across numerous projects, industries, countries, and teams. The IDesign Method has three elements: it is a method for decomposing a system into modules or services based on volatility, the IDesign Method offers a set of simple design guidelines how to structure the system, and a way to validate the design, to know it can handle any requirements, present and future, known and unknown. You will learn what motivated IDesign to lead the industry in calling for microservices almost twenty years ago and what is coming next.

The class concludes with a detailed projection of the next generation of development platforms, both from a technology and methodology standpoint, and how to best prepare for them.

In the class you will also receive the IDesign documents and diagram templates, tools and samples, and reference projects.

Don’t miss on this unique opportunity to learn and improve your architecture skills with IDesign, and share our passion for architecture and software engineering, gain from our experience of numerous projects and profound insight on architecture, process, methodology and their applications.

Target Audience

Any architect, project lead or senior developer would benefit greatly from the class.

Duration

Five very intense days.

Outline

The Architect

  • Software development as engineering
  • Types of architects
  • The role of the architect
  • Architects and technology
  • Architects and the business

Microservices Development Process

  • Design granularity effect on the project
  • The design and the team
  • Project design
  • Documentation
  • Composable design
  • Quality control
  • Design for performance
  • Services simulation and emulation
  • Peer reviews
  • Development and design standards
  • Metrics collection
  • Management visibility

Introduction to Service-Orientation

  • Why service orientation
  • Service-oriented architecture
  • Service-oriented applications

Service Contract Design and Factoring

  • Service contract design
  • Contract factoring techniques
  • Contract metrics

Design and Architecture

  • The IDesign Method
  • Classic mistakes
  • Volatility-Based decomposition
  • Universal design principles
  • The architect's challenge
  • Axes of volatility
  • Design sample
  • Volatility and the business 
  • Open and closed architecture
  • Structure with clients, managers, engines, resource access and utilities
  • Design validation
  • Containing changes
  • Design Don'ts

Service Granularity

  • Every class as a service?
  • Performance consideration and perspective
  • Benchmarks
  • The future platform

The Actor Model

  • Past and future of software engineering
  • Moore's Law demise
  • Mesh computing
  • What are actors
  • Actors market drivers
  • Messaging design patterns
  • Implementation guidelines
  • Actors misconceptions

Agile and Design

  • Agile in the wild
  • Skills and Agile development
  • Design as key to agility
  • Agile as assembly process
  • Agile and lean manufacturing
  • Compressing agile projects

Groupthink

  • What about Monday
  • The pitfall of Groupthink
  • Architect as agent of change

Upcoming Classes

Architect's Master Class
IDesign principal Juval Löwy conducts this unique opportunity for the professional architect, mastering the skills and techniques required of today’s modern software architects.
11/3/2025 - 11/7/2025
Online, PST

Testimonials

It is difficult with a short testimonial to capture what a pleasure the Architect’s Master Class was. ...read more My appreciation and applause. I have been in the technology business for 30+ years, with the last 15 as an Enterprise architect. I have had the opportunity to be in about every position in a technical organization, from a simple code monkey to a support call associate all the way to the Chief Technical Officer of a couple of companies. I attended many, many classes and seminars on a plethora of topics. So when I say the following, I know from whence I speak. I have never had the pleasure to attend a training class or seminar so completely packed with valuable, insightful information. I have had more than a few classes where I simply walked out and went home because it was simply a rehash of things we all already know, the topic or the presenter never lived up to the promises they made, or I simply couldn’t justify the time away from the office any longer just to get the reheated, pre-packaged information. Your outline promised an advance in my skills that I was simply unable to believe and I was obviously skeptical. Needless to say you delivered on that promise. I have felt stagnant in my position for a long time due to the dearth of fresh, new practical ideas in architecture and design. After the class, I have a feeling of hope that the discipline is neither dead nor dying and, that to the contrary, architecture and design is actually becoming something I can be excited about again. I cannot tell you how enthusiastic I am to find myself in the office again on Monday. This class has been the single best investment I have ever made in training and skills advancement. It far exceeds any class I have had in the past or I am likely to in the future (unless it is with you again).

Michael Emmerson , Chief Architect

I would just like to update you on the massive success we are having, after placing myself and two other regional architects on the Architect's Master Class. ...read more We are now practicing the Method on some highly complex software applications, and have developed a solid methodology around it. At first the developers were very skeptical, about this new approach. Today developers are asking why they have not done this before, so I have a complete turn-around in attitude and adoption. It is great to see my development team so happy, and so enthusiastic about all the new things. I am seeing them growing and becoming more productive. Nothing makes me happier. The bottom line is, is that the first integration points are starting to roll out, making the business very happy. We are starting to see how easy it is to measure progress, and to plan and predict, when the architecture is at the center of the universe. EVEN IF the architecture is not 100% it is still 100% better than without it, as all stakeholders consume the integration path and can monitor where we are. Please forward on to Juval, I would love him to know what a positive impact his life is having on others.

Shaun Kiesewetter , Chief Architect

The Architects Master Class would is light years ahead of the industry in terms of content and the sheer volume of knowledge the IDesign team presented. ...read more It’s a unique experience to be able to see the world through the eyes of world class architects, learn their techniques and way of thinking.

Stuart Snaddon , Software Engineer