Real systems contain awkward edges.
Where this breaks
An immaculate diagram can signal that operators, identities and failure paths were excluded.
The operating move
Trace live workflows and compare evidence to every clean boundary.
Value object — The operational card
- Claimed component
- Observed dependency
- Exception path
- Diagram owner
The test
Select one critical transaction and walk it physically and technically. Update the diagram with every unshown handoff.