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Kenny (Baas) Schwegler

@kenny_baas@mastodon.social

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Co-author Collaborative Software Design: How to facilitate domain modeling decisions. Independent consultant & trainer specialised in technical leadership, software architecture, and #sociotechnical systems design. #DomainDrivenDesign #TeamTopologies #DeepDemocracy

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Joined November 04, 2022

Website:

https://weave-it.org

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenny-baas/

BlueSky:

https://bsky.app/profile/kenny.weave-it.org

Collaborative Software Design:

https://collaborative-software-design.com

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Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 20, 2026

Replying to @inw@mastodon.social

@inw@mastodon.social Damn the wombo combo of not transparancy and no core skills like communication :(

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 17, 2026

Replying to @corstian@sunny.garden

@corstian@sunny.garden yeah I can see that happening. Did they also accept it was due to architecture? Or proper architecture. It think it relates back to what does Good look like....

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 17, 2026

Replying to @weltraumpirat@mastodon.social

@weltraumpirat@mastodon.social yes 100%. The problem with asking people if they are doing architecture is what we call in dutch container word. We might have a different understanding of what it is exactly. So first we must agree on what it is, before we can try and understand if it is valuable.

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 17, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

@internet_george@mastodon.social We adopt the frameworks, the job titles, the processes, but not the empirical thinking underneath them. So I'd say it's not that we're doing too much engineering. It's that we're not doing enough of the right kind of engineering.

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 17, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

@internet_george@mastodon.social The problem is that we copy-paste disciplines and ways of working from mechanical engineering without actually proving they work in the context of software. We skip the part that makes engineering engineering: the scientific rigour. Where's our OODA loop? Where's our hypothesis-driven approach? >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 17, 2026

Replying to @internet_george@mastodon.social

@internet_george@mastodon.social Fully agree that borrowing terminology and ways of working from mechanical engineering is damaging. But I think the problem isn't that we borrow. Borrowing is normal. Mechanical engineering has been around for ages (the pyramids still stand!), software is still relatively new. Of course we look at established disciplines for guidance. >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

What's your experience? Does architecture add value in your context, or does it mostly feel like overhead?

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

So what do you do when you don't have empirical proof for the better architectural decision? You make sure every voice shapes the architecture. You bring in the people affected, the people with relevant expertise, the people doing the building. And you facilitate a design decision together instead of imposing one from authority. >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

That's not a soft skill. That's the hard skill. Facilitating collaborative design decisions requires navigating conflict, managing cognitive bias, and creating space for disagreement. Empirical research like Barry O'Reilly's Residuality Theory will help us make better-informed decisions over time. But even then, someone still needs to bring the right people together and facilitate the conversation. That never goes away. >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

But we never measure the other side either: the cost of NOT doing intentional architecture. Look at the amount of legacy systems, the big balls of mud, the companies where every change takes months because nobody ever made deliberate structural decisions. That's unintentional architecture. And it's everywhere. Both sides are operating on experience and conviction, not evidence. That's understandable. We're doing the best we can with what we have. But we need to stay honest about it. >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

So architects end up promoting approaches with no empirical proof they work broadly. When engineers push back, it turns into an opinion war between people with positional authority and people doing the actual building. At that point it stops being architecture and becomes politics. No wonder engineers conclude the whole thing is a waste of time. >>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Apr 15, 2026

Engineers sometimes see architecture as bureaucratic overhead with no real value. And they might have a point.

Most architects got where they are because something worked for them in a specific context. Past success creates anchoring bias. What worked before becomes the framework you reach for next, regardless of whether the context is the same.
>>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Mar 30, 2026

Conference season is here, and AI talks are everywhere. No surprise there.

I use AI tools myself and I see genuine value in them as part of how we work. Not in the "use it or die" sense that the bandwagon market keeps selling. Not as the new shiny object that will solve everything if you just adopt it fast enough. But as a tool that, in the hands of someone with discipline and a clear understanding of the problem, can genuinely help.
>>>

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Dec 03, 2025

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

Visualising the interactions made it clear where we needed to shift from heavy collaboration to an 'X-as-a-Service' interaction mode in the future. In a recent conversation, Paul was happily surprised to hear how I am still using it. I consider it essential for bringing the implicit sociotechnical structure into the light, and it has been my default way of visualising the flow of delivery for teams since 2018. ...

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Dec 03, 2025

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

In another scenario, an organisation aimed to adopt a DevOps culture. I invited the existing Dev and Ops teams to map their current collaboration. The aggregate analysis allowed platform teams to identify exactly which new service would provide the most value in helping all teams improve their flow. Most recently, it helped me design the collaboration flow between four distinct teams—spanning infrastructure, cloud infrastructure, Re and stream-aligned groups—delivering new functionality. ...

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Dec 03, 2025

Replying to @kenny_baas@mastodon.social

Ever since Paul Rayner’s 2018 NewCrafts talk, 'Fighting the Invisible Enemy', this has been my default approach. I have used it extensively to visualise the 'as-is' situation, tracing the path from a business case decision all the way to production. ...

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Dec 03, 2025

@suksr@mastodon.social correctly points out in her book that optimising for fast flow involves assessing the current flow of change to identify potential blockers. For me, the most easiest, quick and effective way to visualise this is by using EventStorming.
...

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Sep 26, 2023

I still have some availability from November onwards for training/workshops/consultancy. If you or someone you know is looking for #DDDesign #technicallead #softwarearchitecture expertise, please feel free to reach out. Checkout this post for more info: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kenny-baas_eventstorming-wardleymapping-domainstorytelling-activity-7109551691854696448-esBn?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

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Kenny (Baas) Schwegler @kenny_baas@mastodon.social · Sep 25, 2023

To truly grasp a business problem, we need to view it from multiple angles. No single tool or method can provide all the answers. Each collaborative modeling tool we use offers a unique perspective, helping us abstract and simplify the intricate realities of the business world.

Remember, there's no one-size-fits-all solution. No silver bullet. No golden hammer. But by embracing a variety of tools, we can gain a holistic view of the challenges at hand and make well-informed design decisions.

Kenny (Baas) Schwegler

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