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Pattern for systematically documenting decision reasons, alternatives and consequences to increase transparency and traceability.
Decision Rationale records the technical, organizational, and business reasons behind an architectural or design decision. It captures assumptions, evaluated alternatives and expected consequences, making choices traceable, aiding governance and supporting later reviews and change impact analysis across the system lifecycle.
Percentage of important decisions with a formal rationale entry.
Average time from problem identification to documentation of the decision.
Number of review findings indicating incomplete or faulty rationales.
Repository with architecture decision documents for orientation.
Condensed minutes summarizing decisions and their rationale.
Documentation to demonstrate decisions to auditors.
Create and publish a template for decision rationale.
Appoint decision owners and conduct training.
Integrate rationale into review process and link artifacts.
Establish archive and maintenance process.