2025-10-03 · Minseo Park
Writing ADRs that mentors can actually review
Three sections every architecture decision record should include when you want async feedback that lands.
Tags: writing, architecture
Mentors are not mind readers. Async review works when your ADR states context, decision, and consequences in that order—without burying the actual choice under five paragraphs of history.
We ask for explicit non-goals too. That is where hidden coupling likes to hide, especially when a diagram looks clean but omits operational ownership.
If you are worried about polish, ship a rough ADR early. Mentors at ArcFoundry Cloud Prep are instructed to comment on risks, not typography, unless clarity blocks comprehension.
Large enterprise teams using our private cohort track often adopt the same template internally; that was an unexpected but welcome side effect.