Decision Memo Patterns for Engineers

TL;DR

Writing clarifies thinking. Standardize decisions to avoid expensive reversals.

Patterns

• Reversible vs. irreversible: timebox experiments vs. RFCs.
• Memo template: context, options, tradeoffs, decision, review date.
• Decision log: searchable, linkable, PR-linked.

Checklist

• What is the blast radius if wrong?
• When will we re-evaluate this decision?
• Who is the Directly Responsible Engineer?