Session Brief: Quality Attribute Workshop

Goal

Artifact: Quality Scenarios

Working Question

Which Quality Attributes with which concrete scenarios are architecture-critical for the system, and in which order must they be addressed?

Context

Architecture context, planned or existing system sketch; known SLA/SLO; legal and compliance constraints; business goals; learnings from similar systems.

Setup

• Format: Method session
• Duration: 1 day (6-8 h) for a medium-sized system
• Mode: Workshop
• Participants: One facilitator with QAW experience; architect; one representative per stakeholder group; scribe; decider with mandate for priorities.
• Owner: One facilitator with QAW experience
• Participation mode: Team round, shared work and alignment
• Outcome logic: Finish artifact

Participation Logic

Use the session for shared understanding. Contributions are collected visibly, assumptions are aligned, and open differences remain traceable in the artifact.

Outcome Logic

The session works directly toward Quality Scenarios. After the session, the artifact should be shareable, reviewable, or reusable.

Input

Whiteboard or Miro board with columns (Stakeholder, Quality Attribute, Scenario, Priority); template for Quality Attribute Scenario (Source, Stimulus, Environment, Artifact, Response, Response Measure); list of established QA categories (Performance, Availability, Security, Usability, Modifiability, Testability, Interoperability).

Preparation

Quadrant board for scenarios. Make definition of Quality Attributes visible. Print scenario template large. Rule: scenarios are measurable and concrete, no wish lists.

Agenda

1. Phase 1: Business context and drivers (45 min) Owner: Facilitator Action: Architect presents system context and architecture goals (max 30 min). Stakeholders add business drivers (growth, risks, compliance, cost). These become the source for Quality Attributes. Hint: If the presentation takes 90 min, the architecture package is not ready yet. Pause workshop and complete Inception Canvas. Output: Quality Scenarios

2. Phase 2: Quality Attribute brainstorm (45 min) Owner: Facilitator Action: Prioritize Quality Attributes per stakeholder, for example with Quality Tree. Go through at least 7 categories, focus on 4-6 architecturally relevant ones. Hint: If all 7 attributes are weighted high, they are not prioritized. Forced distribution (for example 2 High, 2 Medium, rest Low) forces decision. Output: Priority List

3. Phase 3: Generate scenarios (120 min) Owner: Facilitator Action: 3-5 scenarios per top attribute. Strict template: Source, Stimulus, Environment, Artifact, Response, Response Measure. Example: "At 5x load spike (Stimulus) during peak (Environment), checkout API (Artifact) responds with p95 below 800 ms (Response Measure)." Hint: If Response Measure is missing, it is not a scenario but a hope. Measurability forces clarity. Output: Architecture Concerns

4. Phase 4: Prioritization (60 min) Owner: Facilitator Action: Assess scenarios against business priority and technical risk (for example High/Medium/Low x High/Medium/Low matrix). Mark top-10 scenarios as architecture-critical. Hint: Decider must decide visibly. Consensus decision in this phase leads to dilution. If uncertain, prepare separately and run second session. Output: Quality Scenarios

5. Phase 5: Followups and tactics (60 min) Owner: Owner Action: Sketch first architectural tactics per top scenario (caching, replication, auth pattern, decoupling). Owner and deadline for detailed elaboration. Link to Architecture Decision Records. Hint: QAW does not deliver design, but requirements plus first hints. ADRs arise separately, with scenarios as input. Output: Priority List

6. Publish artifact (10 min) Owner: Owner Action: Check the artifact for completeness, define location, set version or status, and name review recipients. Output: Quality Scenarios

Closeout

• Update result artifact: Quality Scenarios
• Define location, version, and review recipients.
• Define owner, next step, and review date.

Quality Scenarios: Quality Attribute Workshop

Working Question

Which Quality Attributes with which concrete scenarios are architecture-critical for the system, and in which order must they be addressed?

Context

Architecture context, planned or existing system sketch; known SLA/SLO; legal and compliance constraints; business goals; learnings from similar systems.

Participants

• Owner: One facilitator with QAW experience
• Participants: One facilitator with QAW experience; architect; one representative per stakeholder group; scribe; decider with mandate for priorities.

Input

Whiteboard or Miro board with columns (Stakeholder, Quality Attribute, Scenario, Priority); template for Quality Attribute Scenario (Source, Stimulus, Environment, Artifact, Response, Response Measure); list of established QA categories (Performance, Availability, Security, Usability, Modifiability, Testability, Interoperability).

Template

Quality Attribute Workshop Working Template

Goal

A structured workshop for architecture-critical quality attributes and scenarios.

Context

When and for what do we use this method?

Input

Which data, observations, decisions, or materials are available?

Execution

Short notes along the runsheet.

Output artifacts

• Quality Scenarios:
• Priority List:
• Architecture Concerns:

Assumptions and open questions

• ...

Decision / Next step

Owner, date, and success signal.

Completion Check

• Quality Scenarios is complete enough for review:
• Location:
• Version / status:
• Review by:
• Next step:

Next Step

• Review result
• Mark open questions
• Schedule review or decision