Architectural Review
A point-in-time read of your system by senior engineers. You walk away with a risk-ranked plan of what to rewrite, what to keep, and what to watch.
A point-in-time read of your system.
Post-PMF engineering teams accumulate Day-One Legacy faster than ever. Code that technically works, but that nobody has read end-to-end. Before you invest in the next feature, the next hire, or the next fundraise, you need an honest account of what is actually in the repo.
An Architectural Review is that account. Senior engineers read the entire system and return a risk-ranked plan. Not a checklist from a scanner. A diagnosis from people who have scaled systems like yours before.
What we review
- Architecture and boundaries. Where the system’s core decisions live, and which ones won’t survive the next 10× of load or complexity.
- AI-generated surface area. Which parts were written by agents, how that code was reviewed, and where the verification debt lives.
- Security posture. Authentication, authorization, data handling, secrets management, dependency risk.
- Data flow and scalability. Query patterns, caching, N+1s, the shape of the bottleneck at the next stage.
- Operational drag. CI/CD, observability, deploy risk, developer experience.
- Team and velocity signals. How the code reflects the team’s size, history, and current capacity.
How we work
Scope (1 day). We start with a conversation about the decision the review informs. Fundraise, acquisition, scale event, rewrite. That determines what we prioritize.
Review (3–5 days). We read the system. Tools are the starting point, not the conclusion. We trace data flows, evaluate architectural decisions in context, and identify the patterns that cause problems six months out.
Report and walkthrough (1 day). We deliver a written report with every finding ranked by severity and effort, plus a live walkthrough where we answer questions and help you prioritize.
What you get
A risk-ranked remediation plan your team can start executing. An architectural diagram that maps the system as it actually is, not as it was intended. An executive summary for anyone who needs the state of the codebase without the jargon.
If the review surfaces work that is bigger than your team can absorb, we can pick up where the findings leave off through an Architectural Partnership.
When it fits
- Before a Series A or B, ahead of the incoming technical due diligence
- After a period of rapid AI-accelerated shipping, when nobody can confidently narrate the system
- Inheriting a codebase from a prior team, acquisition, or departing lead
- Before a major platform decision: rewrite, migration, or scaling event
Schedule a review
Get in touch to scope the engagement. We’ll tell you what we find, what it means, and what to do about it.