Implement Architecture Decision Records early to prevent microservice sprawl and circular dependencies
As engineering teams scale from founders to 10+ developers, undocumented architectural decisions create tangled microservice dependencies. Mandatory Architecture Decision Records (ADRs) force teams to justify and document technical choices, preventing the accumulation of architectural debt that becomes exponentially harder to fix.
When to use
When your engineering team is growing beyond the founding developers and you notice increasing service complexity, circular dependencies, or new hires making decisions that conflict with existing architecture.
Don't do this
Letting each developer make independent architectural decisions without documentation, leading to excessive microservices with circular dependencies that require expensive rewrites.
1 Founder Who Did This
Initially built with too many microservices and circular dependencies. Introduced mandatory ADRs that dictate tech stack, code organization, and preferred patterns for the entire company.