Which two practices help ensure good application architecture in Scrum?

Good application architecture in Scrum is fundamentally supported by guiding architecture principles and conducting Sprint planning discussions. Guiding architecture principles provide a framework and set of criteria for assessing design decisions and ensuring alignment with broader objectives, making decisions more consistent and strategic. These principles help the Scrum Team to maintain a coherent structure and direction for the application as it evolves, contributing to long-term maintainability and scalability.

Sprint planning discussions are crucial for facilitating communication among team members about the architectural considerations of the work being undertaken. During these discussions, the team collaborates on how to best approach tasks and adapt the architecture as needed based on current goals. This practice not only fosters a shared understanding of the architecture but also allows for necessary adjustments to be made in a timely manner, leveraging the collective expertise of the team.

In contrast, while regular refactoring, thorough testing, code reviews, and automated testing are valuable practices within a Scrum framework, they predominantly focus on maintaining code quality and ensuring functionality rather than directly guiding architectural decisions. Hiring specialized architects and constant redesign can lead to siloing expertise and potentially disrupt collaboration within the Scrum Team, which can undermine the sprint goals and the agile process itself. The emphasis in Scrum is on collective ownership and cross-functional teamwork, making the principles and discussions outlined here