Speaker
Abstract
In today's fast-paced and interconnected world, the friction between product and technology teams often feels inevitable. Misaligned mindsets, priorities, and contextual biases create obstacles that slow progress, stifle innovation, breed frustration and encourage blame.
Instead of fostering collaboration, we resort to tighter controls and increased separation, widening the gap even further. However, effective collaboration is crucial for delivering impactful results and driving success.
Diana Montalion (systems architect) and Cat Morris (product manager) will examine the distinct yet interconnected concerns of product and architecture, unraveling why friction arises and how it can be mitigated. Drawing from 30+ years of combined real-world experience, they will show how the flow of data and information—when presented in the right way and context—can bridge gaps and generate shared knowledge.
Attendees will gain practical strategies for designing systems and processes that enable knowledge flow. Empowering teams to make informed decisions and deliver impactful outcomes. Together.
Interview
Diana: Designing relationship patterns in software systems and the people who build them.
Diana: Pain. Years and years of painful gaps in thinking and decision making.
Diana: Software professionals who need to think with other software professionals. (Especially those whose work needs cross-functional perspectives to deliver value. Which, I would argue, is everyone.)
Diana: Designing knowledge flow will improve your work life remarkably.
Topics
QCon London 2025 is a three day conference for senior software engineers, architects and team leads. An international program committee of working engineers selects every session. Patterns and practices, not products and pitches.
From the same track
Wednesday 9 April
10:35 Churchill (Ground Fl.) Session architecture Holistic Engineering: Organic Problem Solving for Complex Evolving Systems Vanessa Formicola Principal Architect and Head of TASC (Technology, Architecture and Software Craft) @Prima, Ex Thoughtworks/Microsoft Every day developers have to work with code influenced by past decisions made by non-technical departments. Every day there are defects and other obstacles caused by non-technical factors that are nonetheless reflected in your code. 11:45 Churchill (Ground Fl.) Session architecture The Friction Fix: Building Collaborative Relationships Between Teams Cat Morris, Diana Montalion In today's fast-paced and interconnected world, the friction between product and technology teams often feels inevitable. 13:35 Mountbatten (6th Fl.) Session architecture Security and Architecture: To Betray One Is To Destroy Both Shana Dacres-Lawrence Senior Principal Architect @6point6 | Part of Accenture, Founder for ArchitectHer Flawed architecture introduces vulnerabilities that even the best security cannot mitigate. Likewise, a well-architected system without robust security remains a ticking time bomb in the face of modern threats. 14:45 Fleming (3rd Fl.) Session architecture Empowering Teams: Decentralizing Architectural Decision-Making Peter Hunter, Elena Stojmilova In today’s rapidly evolving tech landscape, centralised architectural decision-making can become a bottleneck to delivery performance and innovation. 15:55 Windsor (5th Fl.) Session Panel: Taking Architecture Out of the Echo Chamber Architecture is increasingly about ensuring that the right conversations are happening at the right time and involving the right people in the right ways.