Well-Architected 2 - time for a new framework?

Over ten years ago I helped launch¹ 𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭-𝘈𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 to help people build better systems. It set a standard - and others followed. Fourteen plus frameworks later, most haven't kept pace with how we really build and operate technology today.

So... is it time for Well-Architected 2? (WA2)

Those who know me know I don't trust my instincts or opinions too much - I'd never write a new version without data. So, a quick poll²:

Should we create Well-Architected 2? https://well.architected.to/³

• ✅ Yes - time for a new one
• 🤔 Maybe - needs discussion
• 😐 No opinion / unsure
• 🚫 Please don’t - sequels fail

Comment if you think something's missing - or what you dislike about today's frameworks. I'm also keen to hear how you'd want to access it: book, mobile app, or dev tooling? And whichever you choose - what's the one thing you'd want from it?

Many of the current frameworks suffer from the same issues:

• Overly complex, vendor-biased
• Too large, not bite-sized or actionable
• Slow to adapt to platform engineering and AI realities
• Certification grind over actual learning
• Tooling: missing, lacks dependency and visualisation
• Not reacting to industry learnings: Wardley Maps, Residuality Theory, vibe coding
• Missing key focus areas like:
  • Platform engineering / developer experience
  • AI / Data
  • Business and product alignment
  • Governance / ethics
  • Multi-cloud / cross-platform and vendor
  • Brownfield refactoring ignored
  • Requirements / Compliance/ Specification

If we're going to create Well-Architected 2, it has to be data-driven, cross-vendor, lean, and effective - the sort of framework that just works.

Naming

Full name is "Well-Architected 2", which we can shorten to "WA2"