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On October 3rd and 4th, 2022, Apiumhub organized the second edition of the Global Software Architecture Summit, an event that brought together hundreds of software architects from all over the world. Besides having talks from experts, the event also featured hands-on parallel workshops on the first day.
One of the workshop facilitators was Nathaniel Schutta, a software architect and author of the book Thinking Architecturally. His workshop quickly filled out with over 200 attendees who were interested in learning more about new technologies, architectural decisions, and the value of fitness functions.
After his workshop, we had the opportunity to ask him a few questions to get to know more about his job and the software architecture metrics he normally uses.
Interview with Nathaniel Schutta
Briefly introduce yourself
My name is Nathaniel Schutta. The best way to describe me is as an architect as a service because I get to go places and talk to people about architecture. Now, I will admit that the first time someone called me, I did sound the acronym out in my head and realized it might not have been a compliment, but I try to take it in the best light I possibly can since everything is a service these days.
What can you say about the Global Software Architecture Summit this year?
I am so happy to be here in one of my all-time favorite cities, Barcelona, with hundreds of other very interesting architects. It’s just a really awesome opportunity to get people together to talk about architecture, how we do this better, and how we grow this space. I am really happy to be here at the event. It was a lot of fun, a great city, an awesome environment, and great weather.
What software architecture metrics do you normally use?
In terms of software metrics, I know that´s something we think a lot about. I am a big fan of fitness functions; this is something I learned from Neal Ford in sort of how we test architecture to make sure that it still does what we need it to do. We put all this time and effort into coming up with these well-thought-out architectures, but we don´t think a lot about how we actually maintain that architecture over time as we inevitably refactor, add new features, and change things.
The thing that I love about fitness functions is that they help us make sure that we are adhering to those important principles that we identified as architects early on. That´s the kind of stuff that I am really excited about, and I am just delighted to be here in this amazing city with hundreds of dedicated architects who are trying to get better at the craft.
Want to learn more about the Global Software Architecture Summit? Check out this recap of the event. The third edition of GSAS will take place on October 9-11 in the Axa Auditorium in Barcelona. Also, if you are interested in watching more interviews like this one with Nathaniel Schutta, you can head to Apiumhub’s YouTube channel.
