New Curriculum Version of CPSA‑A® Module FLEX Published

The new version of the CPSA‑A® FLEX module focuses on addressing modern demands for flexible software archi­tec­tures. With updated learning objectives, new chapters such as “Software Modules and the Organi­zation”, and expanded content on topics like chaos engineering and incident management, the curriculum is more practical and forward-looking than ever. In this interview, curators Alexander Heusingfeld and Falk Sippach share insights into the revision process and explain the key skills partic­i­pants can expect to gain.

1. Why is the topic of “flexible archi­tec­tures” more relevant today than ever before, and what challenges does the module address in practice?

We are facing an increas­ingly complex world, charac­terized by VUCA (Volatility, Uncer­tainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) and global­ization. Complexity means that results are influ­enced by factors that we cannot fully control or may not even be aware of. In order to build reliable software systems in this environment, we have to focus on flexi­bility and adapt­ability to enable ourselves to react to unpre­dictable occur­rences. Important quality attributes are resilience, replace­ability and observ­ability. These attributes entail special challenges in the areas of modular­ization, integration and runtime behavior, which are covered in the FLEX training.

2. What were the main reasons or impetus for revising the curriculum? Were there any particular trends or techno­logical devel­op­ments that you took into account?

We often received feedback that the previous curriculum was more like a microser­vices training. But that was not the intention. After an in-depth analysis with some trainers, we realized that the curriculum left a lot of freedom in terms of focus, which led to very different inter­pre­ta­tions and imple­men­ta­tions. In the new version, we have defined the learning objectives more clearly and struc­tured and specified the relevant subject areas.

3. What major innova­tions have been imple­mented in the curriculum? How do these contribute to making the content more practical and up-to-date?

The learning objectives have been funda­men­tally revised and adapted to the current style of the iSAQB Advanced syllabus. The “Case Study” and “Perspective” chapters have been removed, but the use of a case study is still recommended.

A new chapter, “Software Modules and the Organi­zation”, has been added, which takes a closer look at team struc­tures, socio-technical aspects and the effects of commu­ni­cation struc­tures in an organi­zation on decom­po­sition and architectural style. Chapter 5 (Instal­lation and Roll Out) has been funda­men­tally revised under the new name “Deployment & Runtime/Platform Methods”. The same applies to Chapter 6 (Opera­tions, Monitoring and Error Analysis), which is now called “Service Operation Models” and covers many more topics in addition to observ­ability and fault analysis, such as service level objectives, incident management, disaster recovery and chaos engineering. 

Due to the wide variety of topics, some learning objectives have been marked as optional in order to provide flexi­bility for training design. Some new terms and modern architectural concepts not previ­ously addressed have also been intro­duced and the refer­ences (books and links) have been updated to bring the curriculum up to date.

4. How does the updated module differ from other Advanced modules of the CPSA, and which target group does it partic­u­larly appeal to?

The FLEX module builds on the knowledge of the Foundation Level and is aimed at archi­tects who want to establish connec­tions between organi­za­tional devel­opment (partly in AGILA, SOFT and DDD), cloud-based web systems (CLOUD­INFRA, WEB and WEBSEC) and the existing legacy systems and processes (partly in IMPROVE and EAM). The FLEX module empha­sizes the relation­ships between systems and the people involved as well as the concrete imple­men­tation through organi­zation and technology. 

5. What compe­tencies or skills can partic­i­pants expect after completing the FLEX module and how does it help them to success­fully design complex architectures?

Partic­i­pants will learn how to design modular and flexible archi­tec­tures that meet both current requirements and future devel­op­ments. This enables them to create robust and adaptable systems. We start with the quality goals that motivate flexible, distributed systems and look at modular­ization options and adaptable architecture concepts. Partic­i­pants will learn how commu­ni­cation struc­tures between teams and their organi­zation decisively influence their architectural decisions and how they can control this macro-architecture.

6. What was the biggest challenge for you as curators when revising the curriculum?

The thematic breadth of the curriculum was a challenge. It was important to limit the scope to the essential content that could be taught in a three-day training course. Careful consid­er­ation had to be given to which topics were covered directly and which were referred to other curricula in order not to overburden the partic­i­pants and to ensure that they could success­fully implement the relevant content in their practice.