Domain-Driven Design (DDD)

The tech industry has a dirty secret: most software projects fail not because of bad code but because of bad communication. While we obsess over frameworks, languages, and architecture, we neglect the most critical aspect of software development—creating a model that actually reflects business reality. I've seen nine-figure projects crash and burn because nobody ensured that technical and business teams spoke the same language. Domain-driven design isn't optional in complex domains—it's the price of admission if you want software that matters.

What Is Domain-Driven Design, Really?

Eric Evans introduced Domain-Driven Design in his 2003 book (a brick of knowledge that most people claim to have read but haven't). At its core, DDD is about modeling software to match the business domain according to what domain experts tell you matters.

Here's what most people miss: DDD isn't about UML diagrams or fancy architecture patterns. It's about having your technical team actually understand the business problem they're solving instead of building elaborate solutions to the wrong problems.

I've watched too many teams obsess over microservices architecture while completely misunderstanding what their customers are trying to accomplish. That's like spending hundreds of hours planning the plumbing for a house you're building on quicksand.