Friday, June 1, 2012

Reading Notes: Professional Software Development (Part 1)

Book: Professional Software Development
Author: Steve McConnell

Project Failure
  • 25% of all projects "fail outright".
  • 50% of all projects are late, over-budget, or compromised in functionality.
Focus on Quality
  • Projects that focused on a low defect count have the highest chances of finishing on target.
  • 95% defect removal is found to be the most effective target. The remaining 5% is usually not cost-effective to fix.
Organizational Development Styles
  • Process Oriented vs Commitment Oriented.
  • Common pitfalls include:
    • Teams that follow process for process's sake.
    • Teams that make members commit long hours, again for its own sake.
  • Bottom line is that good people are key ingredients in both cases.
  • Whichever style is used, strong understanding of how to wield it effectively is needed.
  • It's not "process vs commitment", it's "competence" vs "incompetence".

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