A community for Domain-Driven Design, software architecture and designhttps://virtualddd.com/en-gbhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/surviving-a-national-blackout-with-offline-first-architecture-emilio-carrion/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/surviving-a-national-blackout-with-offline-first-architecture-emilio-carrion/Emilio Carrión on what happens when a nationwide power cut leaves warehouses dark and the cloud unreachable — and designing for that from the start.Wed, 05 Aug 2026 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architecturechaos-engineeringhttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/externalising-decisions-not-alignment/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/externalising-decisions-not-alignment/Michael Joyce on externalising decisions: why three months of talking lost to one day at a whiteboard, and how harmony over precision hides real disagreement.Tue, 21 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignCollaborative ModelingStakeholder AlignmentADRSocial Dynamicstechnical leadershipConsensushttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/the-reluctant-architect/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/the-reluctant-architect/Larisa Feldman spent years watching architects lose their spark—then became a reluctant architect herself. On why good architecture serves engineers.Tue, 07 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSoftware ArchitectureEnabling ArchitectureHands-on ArchitectIvory-Tower Architecttechnical leadershiphttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/problem-isnt-technical-ddd-europe/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/problem-isnt-technical-ddd-europe/At DDD Europe, nine practitioners agreed the problem isn't technical. Discover why facilitation, power structures, and the right people decide outcomes.Tue, 23 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignCollaborative ModelingSociotechnical SystemsPower DynamicsDomain-Driven DesignStakeholder Alignmenthttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/impact-mapping-before-architecture/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/impact-mapping-before-architecture/When a vendor said Kubernetes would fix everything, Kim Kao used impact mapping to uncover the real problem first. Learn to solve the right problem.Tue, 09 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignDomain-Driven DesignLegacy ModernizationStakeholder AlignmentCollaborative ModelingImpact Mappinghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/its-like-10000-streams-when-what-you-need-is-a-queue-chris-simon/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/its-like-10000-streams-when-what-you-need-is-a-queue-chris-simon/Chris Simon on a team that adopted event-driven architecture and hit head-of-line blocking on day one — and when a queue was what they actually needed.Tue, 26 May 2026 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessionevent-driven architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/cultural-resistance-collaborative-modeling/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/cultural-resistance-collaborative-modeling/Why EventStorming and collaborative modeling fail against cultural resistance — and why a real mandate matters more than the right method.Tue, 26 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignCollaborative ModelingPsychological SafetySociotechnical SystemsPower DynamicsEngineering CUlturehttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/turning-architecture-conflict-into-collaboration/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/turning-architecture-conflict-into-collaboration/Laïla Bougria on turning clashing opinions into decisions — reframing the problem before the solution, and retrospectives that build evidence.Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSoftware ArchitectureConflict Managementteam collaborationGovernanceSocial DynamicsSociotechnical Systemshttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/rethinking-software-development-insights-from-20-years-in-the-field/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/rethinking-software-development-insights-from-20-years-in-the-field/Twenty years in the field, told as a journey: what holds up, what does not, and what the profession keeps having to relearn.Mon, 11 May 2026 17:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware architecturerefactoringsoftware developmenthttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/drawing-same-system-different-architectures/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/drawing-same-system-different-architectures/Ask four architects to draw the same system and you get four diagrams. Externalising those mental models is what surfaces the disagreement.Tue, 28 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSoftware ArchitectureCollaborative ModelingPsychological SafetySocial Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/method-wars-hide-real-problem/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/method-wars-hide-real-problem/Simon Wardley on how mapping the evolution of components ended the methodology wars on HS2 — context matters more than picking the right method.Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSoftware ArchitectureGovernanceSociotechnical SystemsStakeholder AlignmentPower Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/psychological-safety-incident-response/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/psychological-safety-incident-response/When a Google Cloud outage was fixed by someone no one paged, the real lesson was psychological safety. Learn how Liz Fong-Jones built resilient teams.Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignPsychological SafetySociotechnical SystemsEngineering CUltureteam collaborationSocial Dynamicstechnical leadershiphttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/when-explaining-more-isnt-the-answer/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/when-explaining-more-isnt-the-answer/Diana Montalion on why "explain more" fails architectural resistance—and how designing experiences creates breakthroughs that talking never will.Tue, 17 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignCollaborative ModelingPsychological SafetySociotechnical SystemsDomain-Driven DesignEngineering CUltureSocial DynamicsEnabling Architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/loudest-voice-architectural-decisions/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/loudest-voice-architectural-decisions/What happens when a team makes architectural decisions with no one to facilitate them? Gien Verschatse on burnout, bad choices, and lessons learned.Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignPower DynamicsCollaborative ModelingPsychological SafetySocial DynamicsEngineering CUlturecollaborative software designhttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/slow-clap-hierarchy-kills-workshop/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/slow-clap-hierarchy-kills-workshop/Evelyn van Kelle on a CTO slow-clapping through a vulnerable moment, how hierarchy kills collaboration, and what a facilitator can do about it.Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSocial DynamicsPower DynamicsPsychological SafetyCollaborative ModelingConflict Managementhttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/workshop-agreement-without-action/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/workshop-agreement-without-action/Xin Yao on two workshops where everyone agreed and nothing shipped — how to surface the real concerns behind the success theatre.Tue, 03 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and Designcollaborative software designPower DynamicsPsychological SafetyEnabling Architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/critically-engaging-with-models-a-conversation-with-rebecca-and-mathias/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/critically-engaging-with-models-a-conversation-with-rebecca-and-mathias/Rebecca Wirfs-Brock presents her essay Critically Engaging With Models, followed by a group discussion on how we choose and question the models we use.Wed, 28 Jan 2026 19:00:00 GMTOnline sessionCritical Thinkingsystems thinkingsoftware modellingcognitive biashttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/misaligned-expectations-goals-dont-align/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/misaligned-expectations-goals-dont-align/Beija Nigl on what to do when the sponsor's goal contradicts the team's — discovered 48 hours before a legacy modernisation kicks off.Sun, 18 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesCollaborative ModelingSoftware ArchitectureSociotechnical SystemsFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignStakeholder AlignmentDomain-Driven Designhttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/legacy-system-modernization-empathy/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/legacy-system-modernization-empathy/Michael Plöd on why respecting the original developer's intent turns resistance into progress when modernising a legacy system.Tue, 06 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesLegacy ModernizationSoftware ArchitectureFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSociotechnical SystemsSocial Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/hidden-weight-rank-improvement-sessions/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/hidden-weight-rank-improvement-sessions/Paul Rayner on a well-intended improvement session that ended with a developer quitting — a candid lesson in unseen authority and power dynamics.Tue, 23 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignEngineering CUlturetechnical leadershipPower Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/true-cost-simplest-thing-to-do/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/true-cost-simplest-thing-to-do/Krisztina Hirth on how choosing 'simple' technical events over real domain events produced 90% noise and an eight-month cleanup.Tue, 09 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignDomain EventsTechnical DebtLegacy ModernizationEngineering CUltureEvent-Driven Architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/patterns-of-bdd-automation-a-fireside-chat-with-seb-rose-and-gaspar-nagy/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/patterns-of-bdd-automation-a-fireside-chat-with-seb-rose-and-gaspar-nagy/Seb Rose and Gáspár Nagy on what happens when two long-running community conversations meet: automation and patterns.Tue, 25 Nov 2025 16:00:00 GMTOnline sessionbehaviour-driven developmentAutomationcollaborative modellingpatternshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/architects-disagreement-team-decision/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/architects-disagreement-team-decision/What an architect can do when a team decides something they fundamentally disagree with: shift from control to influence, and build guardrails instead.Tue, 25 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignPower DynamicsConflict Managementtechnical leadershipSocial Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/team-led-architecture-advice-process/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/team-led-architecture-advice-process/Elena Stojmilova on Open GI's shift to team-led architecture — from strong opinions to a culture where engineers own decisions and give advice.Tue, 11 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSoftware ArchitectureADRArchitecture Advice ForumTeam-Led ArchitectureTeam Autonomyhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/see-the-forest-for-the-trees-trond-hjorteland/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/see-the-forest-for-the-trees-trond-hjorteland/Trond Hjorteland asks whether you understand what the rest of the system is doing — coding, testing, UX, product — or only your own part of it.Mon, 03 Nov 2025 19:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsystems thinkinghttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/governance-after-incident-decision-reversal/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/governance-after-incident-decision-reversal/A decision made under incident pressure gets reversed afterwards. Why governance, supportive leadership and written decisions prevent the frustration.Tue, 28 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesGovernanceFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignSocial DynamicsPower Dynamicsleadershiphttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/architectural-indecision/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/architectural-indecision/What to do when a team stays silent and no decision gets made — a real story about giving developers ownership of their own technical choices.Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesSoftware Architectureteam collaborationFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignADRtechnical leadershipcollaborative software designhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/slow-down-to-speed-up-your-decision-making-gien-verschatse/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/slow-down-to-speed-up-your-decision-making-gien-verschatse/Gien Verschatse on why reaching for Kubernetes is not a strategy, and how slowing a decision down gets you to a better one faster.Thu, 02 Oct 2025 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessiondecision-makingarchitect decisionssociotechnical systemshttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/uncovering-ghost-decisions-architecture/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/uncovering-ghost-decisions-architecture/How to find the undocumented 'ghost decisions' shaping your architecture, and how Architecture Decision Records bring them into the open.Tue, 30 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesADRSoftware ArchitectureSocial DynamicsFacilitating Software Architecture and DesignPower Dynamicshttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-paradox-or-polarity-between-decentralised-and-centralised-decision-making/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-paradox-or-polarity-between-decentralised-and-centralised-decision-making/Team autonomy asks for trust, and trust gets delicate when a team's decisions land on everyone else. Treating the tension as a polarity rather than a problem.Tue, 23 Sep 2025 07:00:00 GMTOnline sessiondecision-makinghttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/systems-change-transparency/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/systems-change-transparency/How Architectural Decision Records turn architecture from a bottleneck into something a whole team can see, question and contribute to.Tue, 16 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesADRSoftware ArchitectureSocial DynamicsFacilitating Software Architecture and Designhttps://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/stories-on-facilitating-software-architecture-design-because-the-old-ways-arent-cutting-it/https://virtualddd.com/facilitating-archdes/stories-on-facilitating-software-architecture-design-because-the-old-ways-arent-cutting-it/Why architecture bottlenecks persist, and what collaborative approaches actually change — the opening episode of the Facilitating Stories series.Tue, 02 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMTFacilitating StoriesSoftware ArchitectureIvory-Tower ArchitectHands-on ArchitectFacilitating Software Architecture and Designhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/escaping-the-enshittification-trap-systems-thinking-for-sustainable-quality/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/escaping-the-enshittification-trap-systems-thinking-for-sustainable-quality/Quality as an emergent property of teams, tools and processes rather than something tested in at the end — and how systems thinking keeps it sustainable.Wed, 20 Aug 2025 07:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsystems thinkingqualityhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/impact-mapping-the-secret-sauce/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/impact-mapping-the-secret-sauce/Impact mapping: a lightweight collaborative planning technique built on user interaction design and outcome-driven planning.Wed, 02 Jul 2025 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessionhands-onsoftware modelingdiagrammingsoftware architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/how-autonomy-saved-one-of-spotifys-most-loved-features-from-being-killed/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/how-autonomy-saved-one-of-spotifys-most-loved-features-from-being-killed/Daniel Ek would have killed Discover Weekly himself. The story of how team autonomy saved one of Spotify's most loved features.Wed, 14 May 2025 08:00:00 GMTOnline sessionhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-innovation-of-cumulative-cultures-and-developer-problem-solving/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-innovation-of-cumulative-cultures-and-developer-problem-solving/Crows out-perform toddlers at generating novel solutions. What cumulative culture explains about how developers actually solve problems.Tue, 15 Apr 2025 08:00:00 GMTOnline sessionhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/team-topologies-workshop-with-luke-and-andy/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/team-topologies-workshop-with-luke-and-andy/A hands-on workshop on the key ideas from Team Topologies, and how to apply the four team types and three interaction modes to your own organisation.Wed, 05 Mar 2025 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessionteam topologiesteams and organizationssociotechnical systemshttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/abstractions-as-bridges-with-hazel-weakly/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/abstractions-as-bridges-with-hazel-weakly/Hazel Weakly on what separates a good abstraction from a bad one, and why some take hold across an organisation while others quietly die.Tue, 21 Jan 2025 05:30:00 GMTOnline sessionhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/introduction-to-domain-driven-design-and-collaborative-software-design-kenny-baas-schwegler/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/introduction-to-domain-driven-design-and-collaborative-software-design-kenny-baas-schwegler/Kenny Baas-Schwegler introduces Domain-Driven Design and collaborative software design: meeting user and business needs with an architecture that stays adaptable.Thu, 12 Sep 2024 06:00:00 GMTOnline sessioneventstorminghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/decoding-paradoxes-why-are-many-good-ideas-in-software-delivery-counter-intuitive/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/decoding-paradoxes-why-are-many-good-ideas-in-software-delivery-counter-intuitive/Why does deploying more often improve quality? Why does slack time make a team more reliable? On the counter-intuitive ideas that keep turning out to be right.Tue, 16 Jul 2024 18:00:00 GMTOnline sessioncomplexity thinkingsociotechnical systemsystems thinkingagile coachingteam topologycomplexity theorysociotechnical systemshttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/systems-thinking-intro-with-lorraine-steyn/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/systems-thinking-intro-with-lorraine-steyn/Lorraine Steyn introduces systems thinking: a system always produces what it was designed to produce, even when that is not remotely what anyone meant.Thu, 27 Jun 2024 16:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsystems thinkinghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/ddd-domain-modeling-using-ai-to-accelerate-design-with-staffan-palopaa/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/ddd-domain-modeling-using-ai-to-accelerate-design-with-staffan-palopaa/Staffan Palopää on using AI to shorten the learning curve for DDD and domain modelling, and where the machine helps rather than hinders the design.Tue, 02 Apr 2024 17:00:00 GMTOnline sessionaisoftware architecturesoftware modellinghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/managing-domain-knowledge-with-chris-simon/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/managing-domain-knowledge-with-chris-simon/Chris Simon on the range of tools for building domain knowledge together — example mapping, BDD, EventStorming, domain storytelling — and how to keep it.Thu, 14 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMTOnline sessionuxdesign patternssoftware developmentux/ui designhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/soft-skills-for-technical-professionals-by-jacqui-read/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/soft-skills-for-technical-professionals-by-jacqui-read/Jacqui Read on why the strongest technical skills alone do not carry you, and which soft skills multiply the influence you already have.Thu, 22 Feb 2024 18:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware architecturesoftware developmentdiagramminghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/practical-residuality-by-barry-m-oreilly/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/practical-residuality-by-barry-m-oreilly/Barry M O'Reilly on residuality theory in practice — hands-on work with matrices to stress-test the architectures participants are building now.Tue, 29 Aug 2023 17:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architecturecomplexity theoryevent-driven architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/orchestration-and-choreography-with-laila-bougria-udi-dahan/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/orchestration-and-choreography-with-laila-bougria-udi-dahan/Laïla Bougria and Udi Dahan on coordinating work across services: implementing complex business transactions without losing the thread.Wed, 26 Jul 2023 16:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architectureevent-driven architectureorchestrationchoreographyhttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/domain-experiments-with-mike-wojtyna/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/domain-experiments-with-mike-wojtyna/Mike Wojtyna on designing for requirements nobody can foresee: treating the domain as something to experiment against rather than specify up front.Thu, 29 Jun 2023 17:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architecturehttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-power-of-personal-engagement-by-rozemarijn-evelien/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/the-power-of-personal-engagement-by-rozemarijn-evelien/Rozemarijn Bergevoet and Evelien Roos on what makes a team thrive, and how personal engagement changes what a team is able to do together.Tue, 07 Feb 2023 18:00:00 GMTOnline sessionbehavioral scienceteam buildingsoftware developmentagile coachinghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/sharing-your-systems-knowledge-with-bytesize-architecture-sessions-with-andrea-magnorsky/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/sharing-your-systems-knowledge-with-bytesize-architecture-sessions-with-andrea-magnorsky/Andrea Magnorsky on Bytesize Architecture Sessions: a short, repeatable format for teams with inconsistent views of their own systems.Thu, 17 Nov 2022 18:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architecturediagrammingsoftware modelinghttps://virtualddd.com/sessions/an-introduction-to-residuality-theory-by-barry-m-oreilly/https://virtualddd.com/sessions/an-introduction-to-residuality-theory-by-barry-m-oreilly/Barry M O'Reilly introduces residuality theory, which models software as interconnected residues — an alternative way to design for complex business environments.Tue, 25 Oct 2022 17:00:00 GMTOnline sessionsoftware designsoftware architecturecomplexity theory