Architecture decisions that survive turnover

Every long-running program eventually loses the people who made the original architecture calls. When the rationale leaves with them, teams either re-litigate decisions endlessly or quietly drift from the design.

We've standardised on a one-page Architecture Decision Record that captures context, options considered, the choice, and the consequences. Nothing fancy — just enough to give the next team a fighting chance.

The discipline matters more than the template. Write the record when the decision is fresh, link it from the code or design that implements it, and review the open set at every architecture forum.