Software Engineering Institute

In this presentation, we discuss architecture-centric methods that have been developed and used with DoD, federal, and commercial customers. The architecture-centric methods include the Quality Attribute Workshop (QAW), Mission Thread Workshop (MTW), Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method (ATAM), System ATAM, and System of Systems (SoS) Architecture Evaluation. The conceptual flow of each method with its inputs and outputs is presented to provide a foundation for the participants. We demonstrate how the methods are used to support requirements elicitation, evaluate architectures, and identify potential risks. The methods, especially when used together, provide lightweight, flexible processes to address systems, SoS, and software architectures. We discuss examples that show how the methods have been combined and where variations can be made to support different situations. Applying these methods early in a program’s life cycle to clarify requirements and identify potential risks enables the program to address and mitigate potential issues before finalizing designs.