Plan before you build: discovery-led architecture decisions

Late architecture decisions are expensive: the wrong stack, brittle third-party integrations, or “quick” shortcuts can force refactors, delays, and security exposure years later. In this interview, DECODE’s Solution Architect explains how product discovery turns business ideas into a buildable MVP plan: feature prioritisation, integration evaluation, non-functional requirements, and early budget/timeline estimates. She stresses disciplined handover (risks, assumptions, documentation, trade-offs) so delivery teams understand what they’re building and why. For tech leaders, it’s a reminder that planning is a risk-mitigation investment—not overhead.