I think it comes down to the personality of the veteran. If they're the "i've seen some shit, so I'll 'architect' the fuck out of this to handle any type of change" type veterans, then it's likely to fail. But if they take their knowledge of how the system has grown over time and architect to handle the types of changes they've seen, then there is likely a greater chance of success.
Personally, I think a having some junior and mid-level engineers on the rewrite is good because it's a good way to see how the system is all put together (as opposed to just one area) and they'll be able to have conversations with the veterans about how the system has evolved as it grew and that is valuable information.
Meh. I’ve met brilliant juniors and worthless veterans. I think it’s more important to recognize brilliance in people… That spark of hard work combined with vision and creativity.
I think it comes down to the personality of the veteran. If they're the "i've seen some shit, so I'll 'architect' the fuck out of this to handle any type of change" type veterans, then it's likely to fail. But if they take their knowledge of how the system has grown over time and architect to handle the types of changes they've seen, then there is likely a greater chance of success.
Personally, I think a having some junior and mid-level engineers on the rewrite is good because it's a good way to see how the system is all put together (as opposed to just one area) and they'll be able to have conversations with the veterans about how the system has evolved as it grew and that is valuable information.