Summary

Successful design requires a simultaneous balance between desired strategic, economic, technical, and risk attributes. Complex designs are not necessarily better and can introduce additional risk rather than mitigate it. Defined requirements are where design starts, not where it finishes. As architectures are designed, evaluated, and compared, insight is revealed. Insight often provides a feedback loop for requirements to update or change. Updated requirements lead to new design scenarios and, potentially, more insight. When strategy, economics, technology, and risk align, objections will subside or will be negotiated away. Only add design complexity if non-negotiable requirements dictate it.