World Leader in IT Management http://www.itmpi.org/ en (c) 2006 04:00:00 GMT, ITMPI. All rights reserved. http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ The intended audience for this article by Gary Gack includes C, V, and D level leaders, both inside and outside the IT organization - if you have a stake in the outcome of software and IT projects this paper is intended for you - it's about MANAGEMENT, not technology. Whether your organization builds software or you buy it, the realities we examine here WILL impact your business - these issues are endemic in the industry! (15 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/Gack-CEOKnow.pdf 8 Dec 2009 04:00:00 GMT Many different metrics have been proposed and sometimes used, but most organizations have great difficulty agreeing on a core set that provide an overall perspective. This White Paper by Gary Gack proposes "Cost of Quality" metrics that get to the heart of organizational efficiency and effectiveness in software and IT organizations. These metrics facilitate (but are not a pre-requisite for) effective application of Lean Six Sigma in software and IT organizations. Part 1 of this paper defines Cost of Quality metrics as they apply to software and IT organizations. Part 2 discusses application of these metrics to process improvement. (9 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/Gack-CoQ.pdf 8 Dec 2009 04:00:00 GMT The concept of a "Project Office" has been applied successfully in the Construction and Defense industries for many years as a tool to manage risk on major projects. In these days of outsourcing and business process transformation, the Project Office can help you manage the business risk inherent in any significant change initiative. While the examples discussed here deal with exceptionally large-scale situations, the key ideas apply to any important initiative where you face "bet your job" risks. Whenever you're doing something that "can't be allowed to fail" the Project Office provides valuable insurance. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Gack-ProjOffice.pdf 8 Dec 2009 04:00:00 GMT Process Fusion http://www.process-fusion.net/ 8 Dec 2009 04:00:00 GMT It's easy to confuse the disciplines of project manager and product manager. Simply put, the development of the product or service falls to the project manager, while the market success of software and system products depends on the skills and competence of the product manager. This article provides an overview of software product management and the role of a product manager, and describes concrete practices that can boost an organization's software product management and thus the success rate of products in terms of predictability, quality, and efficiency. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Ebert-ProdMgmt.pdf 24 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT The success of any product depends on the skills and competence of the product manager. This article evaluates the relevance of good product management on the success of a product. The empirical study is supported by data from 178 industry projects from telecommunication industry over a period of three years throughout which the product management role and competency was defined, deployed and improved. The behaviors and project performance before and after strengthening the product management discipline are compared. We found that with increasing institutionalization of a consistent and empowered product management role, the success rate of projects in terms of schedule predictability, quality and project duration improves. To allow better transfer of achieved results to other settings, the article provides concrete guidelines about key success factors for good product management. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Ebert-Impacts.pdf 24 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Many enterprises view time to market and schedule performance as the key differentiators between market leaders and followers. By maintaining schedule commitments and shortening cycle times, companies become more reliable suppliers and can optimize profitability. Pressed to accelerate project handover and new-product commercialization, companies have improved R&D execution over the years with instruments such as CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration). A field study involving many industry projects revealed that only those that took a requirements engineering perspective in four key product lifecycle management activities were successful. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Ebert-4Requirements.pdf 24 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software Product Management Network http://www.softwareproductmanagement.org/ 24 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Now that you have spent some time planning your improvement effort, it is time to make those plans a reality. Implementing your plan may feel overwhelming. It includes building and deploying solutions, selling ideas, and overcoming resistance. In this article, you will find guidance on how to proceed. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Potter-Implementing.pdf 10 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Organizations can make significant and sustained progress when a senior manager leads by example and coaches his or her organization in the adoption of new practices. In this article we describe a small example of one manager performing this role. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Potter-Improvements.pdf 10 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT If you are a software engineer or IT professional, your group has very likely shown a strong interest in reducing costs, improving quality and productivity. Your group might also have looked at various pre-packaged frameworks, such as Agile (e.g., Scrum and Extreme Programming), CMMI?, and Six Sigma. At first glance, each of these frameworks might look at odds with each other, making it difficult to use two or more. This typically occurs because much of the information shared regarding these frameworks is from success and failure stories, rather than understanding the specifics of each framework. Multiple frameworks can be implemented successfully depending on how well they are integrated before and during deployment. In this article we use the examples of CMMI and Scrum and show that the Scrum methodology implements many of the CMMI practices. Understanding the content and similarities of each framework is essential before either or both can be deployed. Integrating similar changes, and deploying them as one, streamlines the change cycle. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Potter-ScrumCMMI.pdf 10 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Process Group http://www.processgroup.com/ 10 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used by Peter Block http://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Consulting-Guide-Getting-Expertise/dp/0787948039 10 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT The mission of an IT organization is to provide an information processing capability that benefits the business. In order to fulfill this mission IT must provide the following services while managing costs and prioritizing requests to optimize value. This document by Nick Spanos of CAI identifies 100 data elements for measuring IT performance by related categories. Some of the metrics represent averages while others are reported in the form of a graph. By reporting these metrics on a regular basis (monthly is the minimum recommended reporting period), trends can be observed across the reporting periods. In many cases the trends are more important than the actual value. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Spanos-Metrics.pdf 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT The purpose of this article by Nick Spanos of CAI is to define a strategy for improving quality and reducing effort as related to the development of software applications. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Spanos-Development.pdf 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT An effective I/T Service Delivery organization has clearly defined expectations and utilizes proactive management techniques to meet or exceed expectations and minimize costs. Performance expectations include a variety of factors such as the frequency and priority of problems, the number of completed service requests, responsiveness, lack of customer complaints, and cost-effectiveness. This article by Nick Spanos of CAI examines the challenges associated with managing expectations, measuring performance delivery, and continuously improving performance. (3 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Spanos-Delivery.pdf 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT CAI: World Leader in IT Metrics and Productivity http://www.compaid.com/ 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT IT support processes designed with a focus on productivity, hard dollar value savings, increased capacity, and reduced risk will ultimately result in improved business alignment and improved application quality. Read on to find out 25 time-tested truths about IT application support services in order to reap better productivity, service and overall performance. http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/280392/25_Time_Tested_Truths_About_IT_Support?taxonomyId=14&pageNumber=1 13 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT An international drug firm shifted its approach to application support by instilling a focus on service-level metrics and increased quality. By switching from a head-count approach to a service-level approach, this organization trimmed its vendors while also increasing the quality of services and cutting costs. Take a look at how this company made it happen. http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/312784/Quality_Over_Quantity 13 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT For what seems like decades, IT organizations have recognized the need to better align their support effort with business requirements. To do this, they must qualify the business's needs, measure against those needs, and take appropriate action when results don't meet expectations. Find out how! http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/329643/Service_Level_Agreements_ITs_Value_Proposition?taxonomyId=&intsrc=kc_feat&taxonomyName= 13 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT Ensuring IT alignment with the business has traditionally been viewed as the CIO's job. However, successful IT/business alignment entails more than executive level communication and strategy translation. It requires a structured framework and value-based processes. While this article does not specifically address application support, the details provided will reinforce your understanding of what IT needs to do to gain the business's respect! http://www.cioupdate.com/insights/article.php/3446591/The-Four-Phases-of-ITBusiness-Alignment.htm 13 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software Maintenance: Best Practices for Managing Your Software Investment by Thomas Pigoski on Application Support What is important and not important in lifecycle maintenance needs? This book by Thomas Pigoski gets to the heart of the matter providing real life experiences and lessons learned. http://www.amazon.com/Practical-Software-Maintenance-Practices-Investment/dp/0471170011/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253129951&sr=8-1 13 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT This article by Barbara Halle and Larry Goldberg introduces the Decision Model as an emerging new business asset of high business value, and how the business may best capitalize on that value. The audience for this article includes business leaders, business architects, requirements analysts, use case modelers, business process modelers, and agile developers. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/DecisionModel1.pdf 29 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT This article by Barbara Halle and Larry Goldberg explains how the Decision Model revolutionizes today's business processes and requirements management. The audience for this article includes business architects, requirements analysts, use case modelers, business process modelers, and agile developers. This article establishes the Decision Model, not only as a new business asset, but also as a new requirements artifact and an imperative element in decision-aware business processes. (15 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/DecisionModel2.pdf 29 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Decision Model can shorten the testing and development cycle drastically. That's because the Decision Model separates the business logic from other concerns and therefore test cases can be driven directly from the content of a Decision Model. Test cases can be developed for individual Rule Families within a Decision Model or for part or all of a Decision Model. The Decision Model also assists in scenario testing for a business process. The target audience for this article is business people, business architects, developers (agile and conventional), and testers. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/DecisionModel3.pdf 29 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Knowledge Partners International http://www.kpiusa.com/ 29 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Decision Model: A Business Logic Framework Linking Business and Technology by Barbara von Halle and Larry Goldberg The Decision Model adds simplicity and rigor to the way we view, leverage, and automate business rules in much the same way the Relational Model did for data. In "The Decision Model: A Business Logic Framework Linking Business and Technology" authors Barbara von Halle and Larry Goldberg have created a reference guide that will change the game between business managers and IT professionals while delivering the foundation for a new generation of software. Their book provides a model of business logic with a well-defined structure and three forms of normalization, structural and integrity principles. http://www.kpiusa.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=60&Itemid=122 29 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Traditional business cases focus on cost containment and reduction as the primary means of achieving an attractive ROI. While these are important, even crucial aspects, test automation should be viewed through perhaps a wider lens. In this article, Bob Galen explores a slightly wider view to the test automation business case—one where time to market, cycle time, and even creativity are examined as components. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Galen1.pdf 15 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Testing teams continue to invest in test automation tools & training in an ongoing effort to reduce the overall effort and cost associated with testing. It's exacerbated by our focus on iterating software development in ever shorter cycles—thus increasing the pressure on the testing team. However, few test teams approach their automation efforts as true software development projects, which causes no end of frustration and failure. Join Bob Galen as he establishes a Test Automation SDLC to connect to your Product Development SDLC. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/galen2.pdf 15 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT So you've exhaustively evaluated products and selected your test automation tool. You've also received budget sign-off for the tool and some training, so you're ready to go. However, depending on your environment, you have another even more crucial decision-point facing you. If you have a large repository of existing manual test cases, then deciding where and how to begin automation—may be the most daunting decision you've faced. Here Bob Galen will explore decision criteria and strategies for determining where to begin your automation journey. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Galen3.pdf 15 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT RGalen Consulting Group http://www.rgalen.com/publications.html 15 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software Endgames—Eliminating Defects, Controlling Change, And The Countdown To On-time Delivery by Robert Galen In software development, projects are won or lost during the endgame -- that final stage between release for testing and release to customers. Software Endgames presents realistic strategies for delivering working software to your customers. Focusing solely on the endgame, the book provides hard-won, hands-on practices you can implement right away. In the endgame, effective management of defect repairs is crucial. Experienced project manager and consultant Robert Galen shows how to conduct effective defect triage -- analyzing, categorizing, and determining the priority of defects for repair. Readers learn how to transform the endgame from a time of rampant defects and utter chaos into a time of focused repairs, effective teamwork, and change management. You'll set release criteria, establish endgame release plans, and utilize a variety of change reduction and endgame management techniques. http://www.amazon.com/Software-Endgames-Eliminating-Controlling-time/dp/0932633625/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225710756&sr=8-1 15 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT The IFPUG IT Performance Committee's objective is to define a framework for sizing non-functional requirements that can be used to establish a link between non-functional size and effort. Functional requirements in software development and maintenance are covered by the functional size measure known as IFPUG function points and are defined in the IFPUG Counting Practices Manual. David Garmus will discuss the on-going effort by IFPUG to size non-functional requirements, including both technical and quality aspects of software development, in a more consistent and repeatable process. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Assessment-Garmus.pdf 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT IFPUG's method for function point analysis is an ISO standard and must be conformant to ISO/IEC 14143-1:2007. Functional Size is a size of the software derived by quantifying the Functional User Requirements which are a subset of the User Requirements. These are requirements that describe what the software shall do, in terms of tasks and services. IFPUG's Counting Practices Committee (CPC) continually works to adapt the CPM to conform to the ISO standards. Janet Russac will discuss CPM 4.3, to be released in the last quarter of 2009, and the changes made to further evolve the methodology of sizing functional requirements. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Sizing-Russac.pdf 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Certified Function Point Specialist (CFPS) designation is a formal recognition of a level of expertise in the area of Function Point Analysis (FPA), specifically expertise in both knowledge and application of the IFPUG counting rules according to the IFPUG Counting Practices Manual (CPM). Certification is achieved by passing a rigorous test of both the knowledge of the counting rules laid out in the current release of the CPM and the ability to apply those rules. Janet Russac will discuss both the content of the exam as well as test-taking techniques. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Certification-Russac 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software Measurement Expertise http://www.softwaremeasurementexpertise.com/ 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Private Archives of David Garmus http://www.itmpi.org/default.aspx?pageid=510 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT Certified Function Point Specialist Examination Guide by David Garmus and Janet Russac The Certified Function Point Specialist Examination Guide prepares individuals by reviewing every key section of the Counting Practices Manual . Every chapter covering the manual concludes with a series of questions to reinforce key concepts and techniques. The guide also explains how to use the manual while taking the examination to ensure that correct information is quickly found. The guide ends with a sample examination to fully complete the study and preparation process. http://www.routledge.com/books/Certified-Function-Point-Specialist-Examination-Guide-isbn9781420076370 1 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT We have constantly searched for appropriate diagrams and design methods to express the design of information systems. We longed for a design approach for information systems which would be analogous to the blueprints for a building. We like blueprints because finished buildings always look very similar to the drawing - an unusual experience for information system developers. We have even been led to believe that costs can be accurately estimated from these drawings. We may have spent the last decade searching in the wrong part of the library for useful analogies, however. The development of information systems may resemble the development of a city more than the building of a house. Some innovative new techniques being used in urban planning may provide more useful analogies for designers of large information systems than anything we have previously investigated. The intent of this article by Tom Love is to explore this possibility. (12 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/tomlove/TimelessDesign.pdf 18 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT In this colorful and entertaining article, Dr. Tom Love reveals the secrets of extreme software engineering. (12 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/tomlove/ExtremeSWEng.pdf 18 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT When we begin to design a software product we should never imagine that we are building somehow that will remain unchanged and intact until it is replaced. Instead, we are building something that contains the seeds of all subsequent change and that must be designed to accommodate those changes without destroying the original design. How does this related to an airplane take-off? Dr. Tom Love explains. (10 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/tomlove/takeOffs.pdf 18 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Shoulders Group http://www.shoulderscorp.com/ 18 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Louis Poulin describes a method used to measure the expected quality of products and services developed by IT organizations. The approach described herein is based on a sample of 40 comprehensive appraisals conducted in South America, Europe and North America, and shows that an IT organization should focus on improving and deploying processes that exploit the opportunities it has of meeting its business objectives and prevent the potential problems to which it is exposed from occurring, and degenerating into crises. Process maturity is meaningless without having this objective in mind. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/poulin1.pdf 4 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Louis Poulin summarizes observations made in the course of 58 assessments in based on the CMMI and on its predecessor, the CMM. It stresses, among other things, the challenges faced by these organizations in optimizing ways to improve the quality of their products and services using the CMMI as a starting point.(4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/poulin2.pdf 4 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Louis Poulin explores the concept of operational risk rating in order to determine the capability of an organization to deliver its technology-based products and services, using existing models, possibly adapted to the organization, or new models specifically developed for the organization. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/poulin3.pdf 4 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT GRafP Technologies http://www.grafp.com/ 4 Aug 2009 04:00:00 GMT The objective of this paper by Ricardo Vargas is to present the main components of the development of a project team, the motivational characteristics inherent to the team work and an interrelation proposal between the earned value analysis and team development through the SPI and CPI indexes obtained by the tool and team development models and the compensation and reward in the project, allowing to reduce the evaluation subjectiveness of the human resource in the project. The paper presents a brief report about the team development and compensation policies, as well as an introduction to the earned value concept aiming to align the approached concepts. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ricardovargas1.pdf 21 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT The aim of this article by Ricardo Vargas is to present a proposal of interconnection between models and probabilistic simulations of projects as possible ways to determine EAC (Final Cost) through Earned Value Analysis. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ricardovargas2.pdf 21 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT The objective of this paper by Ricardo Varas is to present and discuss the main obstacles and benefits of the use of the Earned Value Analysis in projects, including factors to be improved and implemented during the project plan and actions to be taken while the project is accomplished and controlled. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ricardovargas3.pdf 21 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT David Herron is a Founder of The David Consulting Group. Mr. Herron is an authority in areas such as Functional Measurement and Software Process Improvement. He has over 25 years of experience in software development. During the past ten years he has served as a consultant to Fortune 1000 companies in the areas of software metrics, software process improvement and applications outsourcing management. He is an acknowledged authority in the measurement and estimation of software productivity and quality, specializing in the determination of software project size, effort and cost. His engagements have supported clients on the use of metrics to monitor the impact of IT on the business, on the advancement of IT organizations to higher levels on the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model and on the governance of offshore outsourcing arrangements. Mr. Herron is also the author, along with David Garmus, of Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/davidherroninterview.pdf 7 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT In summary, we know that the challenges encountered by today's project managers are greater than ever before. A project manager needs to have both the technical expertise as well as an ability to manage an often diverse group of individuals. Project manager's success is based upon their ability to properly set and manage expectations within their IT community as well as outwardly with their business partners. The key is control. And the control mechanism project managers are using is measurement. Size make standard project measures more meaningful. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/herron-sizematters.pdf 7 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis (FPA) is an industry accepted sizing technique that was developed by IBM in the mid-seventies. It has been adopted worldwide and is supported by a user group, The International Function Point Users Group (IFPUG), which maintains the defined FPA methodology, supports the current counting practices and certifies professional counters. However, not everyone has adopted FPA as their sizing technique of choice. Past criticisms of the methodology have included concerns that it takes to long, it requires too much detail, it is too difficult to implement and it cost too much. A recent study has shown that an adaptation of the FPA methodology - FP Lite™ - is a reasonable alternative to the detailed FPA method and in fact addresses many of the criticisms that have been levied in the past. This paper introduces the FP Lite™ methodology, the results of two studies designed to statistically understand the accuracy of the FP Lite™ methodology in contrast to the detailed FPA method.(10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/herron-fplite.pdf 7 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT The David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 7 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT Over the past 20 years, there has been considerable progress in the design and implementation of software quality programs, process improvement techniques, and metrics initiatives. Empirical evidence gathered on these topics has revealed that socio-political, cultural, and human factors are crucial to the metrics ecosystem as they can influence the social climate, attitudes of developers and the credibility of gathered data. The industry doesn't yet have a clear grasp on the impact of the human element and how it affects challenges like developer buy-in. A better understanding could transform our approach. The MAM framework (Metrics Acceptance Model) developed by Medha Umarji and her colleagues at the University of Maryland Baltimore County have developed a framework for predicting developer acceptance of metrics and other process improvement programs. We invite you to contribute to the evaluation of the MAM by taking the Metrics Acceptance Survey. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=hJrZhsdMDoc1tkktmqxaMQ_3d_3d 23 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT There is plenty of good advice available on best practices and enablers of successful measurement programs. Planners and implementers of these programs, however, continue to grapple with push back from developers. This resistance often stems from developers' distrust of the metrics process and a lack of belief that metrics will be useful, amongst other factors. To help organizations pin-point the problems they are likely to encounter in getting buy-in from their developers, we compiled a diagnostic survey that gathers opinions and attitudes directly from developers. The survey, and underlying framework, is based on problem areas identified in metrics and process acceptance literature. To evaluate the effect of these problem areas on developer motivation, we applied our survey to 98 metrics practitioners. We learned that four factors: metrics usefulness, fear of adverse consequences, expectations of managers and colleagues, and attitude towards metrics were significantly related to the motivation to collect metrics data. In this paper we present our assessment framework, the results of the survey, and the implications for planners and implementers of metrics programs. (15 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/understandingresistance.pdf 23 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT In the past decades, there has been considerable progress in the design and understanding of software quality, process improvement, and metrics initiatives. However, much of the potential of such initiatives might be hindered due to social and psychological factors causing resistance. Metrics initiatives are particularly prone to such resistance. The study presented in this paper is part of a larger investigation that aims to understand the social, behavioral and cultural obstacles to getting the buy-in of developers and their project managers to software metrics programs. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gaugingacceptance.pdf 23 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT This Spamcast online interview is the first part of a two part interview conducted between Tom Cagley, President of the International Function Point User's Group, and David Garmus, Founder of The David Consulting Group (DCG). David is an acknowledged authority in the sizing, measurement and estimation of software application development. He is a Past President of the International Function Point Users Group (IFPUG) and a member of their Counting Practices Committee. He has an MBA from Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration. David is the author of "Function Point Analysis". http://www.spamcast.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=264578 10 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT Part 2 of an online interview between Tom Cagley, President of the International Function Point User's Group, and David Garmus, author of "Function Point Analysis." http://www.spamcast.libsyn.com/index.php?post_category=Function%20Points 10 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT This article by David Garmus will consider the use of a basic estimating model utilizing functional sizing as one of the key components. The value to be gained from utilizing a functional sizing technique, such as Function Points, is primarily in the capability to accurately size and estimate a project early in the development process. (7 pages). http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/garmus-principlesofsizing.pdf 10 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT Private Archive for David Garmus http://www.itmpi.org/default.aspx?pageid=510 10 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT The software industry lacks standard metric and measurement practices. Almost every software metric has multiple definitions and ambiguous counting rules. There are also key topics with no metrics at all, such as quantifying the volume or quality levels of databases, data warehouses, and web sites. The result of metrics problems is a lack of solid empirical data on software costs, effort, schedules, quality, and other tangible matters. This report by Capers Jones analyzes some of the key software size metrics and the underlying technical problems associated with software measurement. (17 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/capersjones/StrngWk2006.pdf 26 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT A successful measurement program is of necessity a multi-faceted activity. This report by Capers Jones summarizes the measurement practices of Software Productivity Research (SPR) clients who have built successful businesses and are also technical and market leaders within their fields. As business practices change under the impact of the internet and world-wide web, new measurements and metrics must evolve to meet new situations. Currently there are no effective measurements or metrics for dealing with data quality, data base volumes, the quality of knowledge-based systems, or with the quality or costs of web content. (39 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/capersjones/MeasuresMetrics2007.pdf 26 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT The topic of data quality has been largely anecdotal rather than empirical. A key reason for this is the lack of any standard metric for quantifying either the volume of data in a data base or the number of defects contained within data. However, it may be possible to construct a "data point" metric based on the structure and concepts of the software function point metric developed by IBM in the 1970's. Article by Capers Jones. (9 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/capersjones/DataQuality2006.pdf 26 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT Private Archive for Capers Jones http://www.itmpi.org/default.aspx?pageid=504 26 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT It is a pretty crazy world out there. People are working longer hours and cramming as much as they can into their day. Unless you have taken on six full-time jobs, you might feel that you are slacking off. Taking on more work, or just trying to do more in each day, can cause you to stretch and grow. However, just cramming more tasks into a day can also lead to poor performance when your focus is totally shot with interruptions, or when numerous tasks are started and few of them are completed adequately. Chronic interruptions and multi-tasking can lead to major goals being pushed out of sight and an overall increase in stress. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/potter-timemgmt.pdf 12 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT When the economy gets bumpy, it is natural to tighten budgets, make cuts and expect the organization to work harder so that more can be produced with less. Memos and emails are sometimes used to announce to an organization that reductions in cost are needed and that any extra effort by staff will be appreciated. The impulse to send a memo is understandable and can help, but might only have a temporary impact on the organization while the "save money" request is still fresh in people's minds. Instead, a systematic series of improvements is needed to produce more for less consistently over time. These improvements need to address inefficiencies that happen every day in projects in addition to cutting hard expenses. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/potter-moreforless.pdf 12 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT Implementing an improvement program can be a nebulous and overwhelming task. There are many places one could start, and many published standards one could adopt. This article provides a summary of the steps to consider when planning and tracking an improvement program. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/potter-implementation.pdf 12 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Process Group http://www.processgroup.com/ 12 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT Making Process Improvement Work - A Concise Action Guide for Software Managers and Practitioners by Neil Potter and Mary Sakry Software process improvement too often reflects a significant disconnect between theory and practice. This book bridges the gap—offering a straightforward, systematic approach to planning, implementing, and monitoring a process improvement program. Project managers will appreciate the book's concise presentation style and will be able to apply its practical ideas immediately to real-life challenges. With examples based on the authors' own extensive experience, this book shows how to define goals that directly address the needs of your organization, use improvement models appropriately, and devise a pragmatic action plan. In addition, it reveals valuable strategies for deploying organizational change, and delineates essential metrics for tracking your progress. Appendices provide examples of an action plan, a risk management plan, and a mini-assessment process. You will learn how to: Scope and develop an improvement plan; Identify and prioritize risks and mitigate anticipated difficulties; Derive metrics that accurately measure progress toward business goals; Sell your improvement program in-house; Initially target practitioners and projects most-open to new approaches and techniques; Stay focused on goals and problems; Align the actions of managers and practitioners; Delay major policy documents and edicts until solutions have been practiced and tested; Use existing resources to speed deployment; Incorporate improvement models, such as SEI CMMISM, into your improvement program For those managers who are tired of chronic project difficulties, constant new improvement schemes, and a lack of real progress, this easily digestible volume provides the real-world wisdom you need to realize positive change in your organization. http://www.processgroup.com/tpgbook.htm 12 May 2009 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Robert Charette, the author discusses the advantages of working on troubled projects. He also outlines a few "commandments" for staying on the failure fast track. (3 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/robertcharette/SUCCESS.pdf 28 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT The concept of a "Project Office" has been applied successfully in the Construction and Defense industries for many years as a tool to manage risk on major projects. In these days of outsourcing and business process transformation, the Project Office can help you manage the business risk inherent in very large-scale software initiatives. Article by Gary Gack (7 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/garygack/projectoffice.pdf 28 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT Every systems and software project involves risk. Often, how you manage your program risks is a deciding factor in the eventual success or failure of your program. If you ignore the risks, your program has a higher chance of failing. On the other hand, if you try to track and manage all possible risks, you can expend your entire budget managing the risks, and never produce a deliverable. Risk management, like any other element of systems and software development, requires forethought and careful planning. This article by Theron Leishman and Dr. David Cook explains what risk management is, and then discusses some common developmental risks. (8 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2004/05/0405Leishman.html 28 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT These seven principles provide a framework to accomplish effective risk management. These principles address the need to establish a baseline set of risks in a project or program (Software Risk Evaluation), the need to create and implement a continuous process for the effective management of risk (Continuous Risk Management), and the need to include all parts of the program (contractors, customers, etc.) in the joint management of risks (Team Risk Management). (2 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/risk/principles.html 14 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT Change is always a constant in our life. We cannot escape it nor should we try. Furthermore, change will forever be generating new choices that have to be made. With each of these choices will come risk and opportunity. If we can learn how to embrace change, instead of fearing it, we can begin to understand more fully what real choices are available, and the true risks and opportunities that exist. (22 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/robertcharette/UpTheDownEscalator.pdf 14 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT In this article, master risk management practitioner Robert Charette describes some of his experiences getting people to apply risk management correctly and he explains why so many of them don't. (24 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/robertcharette/ESSENTIAL.pdf 14 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Continuous Risk Management Guidebook The Continuous Risk Management Guidebook describes the underlying principles, concepts, and functions of risk management and provides guidance on how to implement it as a continuous practice in your projects and organization. Risk management can be used to continuously assess what can go wrong in projects (i.e., what the risks are), determine which of these risks are most important, and implement strategies to deal with these risks. The guidebook is based on proven practices confirmed through research, field testing, and direct work with clients. http://www.sei.cmu.edu/publications/books/other-books/crm.guidebk.html 14 Apr 2009 04:00:00 GMT After noticing that her projects were struggling and getting more complicated, with status review meetings focused mostly on issues and complaints, the author of this article began to review her projects and reflect on her project management practices. Her conclusion was that she had lost focus on six basic, yet critical, practices that had made her successful in the past. This article provides an overview of the six basics that you should go back and focus on whenever you find your projects going off the track. (4 pages) http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/why-are-my-projects-struggling.html 31 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT Managing a project can be daunting. Whether planning your wedding, developing a new website or building your dream house by the sea, you need to employ project management techniques to help you succeed. In this article, Simon Buehring summarises the top 7 best practices at the heart of good project management and project success. (3 pages) http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/project-management-success.html 31 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT The key to a successful project is in the planning. Creating a project plan is the first thing you should do when undertaking any kind of project. This article by Duncan Haughey looks at a simple practical approach to project planning. On completion of this guide you should have a sound project planning approach that you can use for future projects. (3 pages) http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/project-planning-step-by-step.html 31 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT Project Smart http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/ 31 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT Roberto Meli is an expert in project management, software development methodologies, and software metrics. He attends to and teaches training courses in Italy and foreign countries and is a coordinator of GUFPI - ISMA CPC (Counting Practices Committee, Technical Committee for the Rules of function point counting). Since 1990 he has been the Managing Director and CIO for DPO. Our interview between Roberto Meli and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in June of 2008. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Meli-interview.pdf 17 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT The purpose of this article by Roberto Meli is to make a practical contribution to those interested in achieving a successful software project by knowingly and methodically reducing the major risks associated with it. (14 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Meli-estimation.pdf 17 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT This article by Roberto Meli describes the basic elements of a risk management method supplementing a number of different public domain approaches, such as PRM body of knowledge from Project Management Institute, CTC from the Software Engineering Institute, the Euromethod strategy model, those described by McFarlan, Archibald, and others. Although the SAFE method originated in the field of information and communication technology, it may easily be extended to other domains of application. (18 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Meli-risk.pdf 17 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT It is now well-known and well-documented that far too many projects fail totally or partially, both in engineering generally and software engineering. In this paper, Tom Gilb offers some of his opinions, and hopes to lend some of his originality to the discussion. (19 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Gilb-ProjectControl.pdf 3 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT A central concern of systems engineering is selecting the most preferred alternatives for implementation from among competing options. The selection process is sometimes called tradeoff analysis, and is often built on the methods of decision analysis and utility theory. The process can be loosely divided into two parts, a first part in which one determines the relative priority of various requirements, and a second part, a design selection phase, in which alternatives are compared, and the preferred alternatives chosen. This paper by Tom Gilb discusses the means of determining the priority order for implementing system changes. It also outlines the implications on the selection process of evolutionary systems development. (19 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Gilb-ManagingPriorities.pdf 3 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT The software industry knows it has a problem: The industry's maturity level with respect to "numbers" is known to be poor. While solutions abound, knowing which solutions work is the big question. What are the most fundamental underlying principles in successful projects? What can be done right now? The first step is to recognize that all your quality requirements can and should be specified numerically. This does not mean "counting bugs." It means quantifying qualities such as security, portability, adaptability, maintainability, robustness, usability, reliability, and performance. This article by Tom Gilb presents 10 powerful principles to improve quality that are not widely taught or appreciated. They are based on ideas of measurement, quantification, and feedback. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crossTalk/2002/11/gilb.html 3 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT Competitive Engineering by Tom Gilb From Google: "Competitive Engineering documents Tom Gilb's unique, ground-breaking approach to communicating management objectives and systems engineering requirements, clearly and unambiguously. Competitive Engineering is a revelation for anyone involved in management and risk control. Already used by thousands of project managers and systems engineers around the world, this is a handbook for initiating, controlling and delivering complex projects on time and within budget. The Competitive Engineering methodology provides a practical set of tools and techniques that enable readers to effectively design, manage and deliver results in any complex organization - in engineering, industry, systems engineering, software, IT, the service sector and beyond." http://books.google.com/books?id=ejxQF60xVV0C&dq=Tom+Gilb&prev=http://www.google.com/ 3 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT Here, in chronological order, is the Wired Magazine's list of the 10 worst software bugs of all time. (3 pages) http://www.wired.com/software/coolapps/news/2005/11/69355 17 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT Jeff Atwood doesn't think bridge building has anything in common with software development. "It's a specious comparison," he writes. "Software development is only like bridge building if you're building a bridge on the planet Jupiter, out of newly invented materials, using construction equipment that didn't exist five years ago." Read more. (8 pages) http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000298.html 17 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software project failure is often devastating to an organization. Schedule slips, buggy releases and missing features can mean the end of the project or even financial ruin for a company. Oddly, there is disagreement over what it means for a project to fail. This article by Carmine Mangione uses economic criteria to define what it means for a project to fail. It then categorizes how projects fail and finally, it examines common traps that contribute or accelerate project failure (5 pages). http://www.cioupdate.com/reports/article.php/1563701/Software-Project-Failure-The-Reasons-The-Costs.htm 17 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software Runaways: Monumental Software Disasters by Robert Glass From Amaon: "In this book software pioneer Robert Glass shows exactly what went wrong in 16 colossal software disasters - and how to keep disasters from happening to you. Considers the typical responses to potential runaways, including risk management and issue management." http://www.amazon.com/Software-Runaways-Monumental-Disasters/dp/013673443X 19 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT Poor size estimation is one of the main reasons major software-intensive acquisition programs ultimately fail. Size is the critical factor in determining cost, schedule, and effort. The failure to accurately predict (usually too small) results in budget overruns and late deliveries which undermine confidence and erode support for your program. Size estimation is a complicated activity, the results of which must be constantly updated with actual counts throughout the life cycle. Size measures include source lines-of-code, function points, and feature points. Complexity is a function of size, which greatly impacts design errors and latent defects, ultimately resulting in quality problems, cost overruns, and schedule slips. Complexity must be continuously measured, tracked, and controlled. Another factor leading to size estimate inaccuracies is requirements creep which also must be baselined and diligently controlled. (36 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/resources/tech_docs/gsam3/chap13.pdf 3 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT In this article from his blog site, Steve McConnell compares the experience of building a tree house for his kids with software construction. (17 pages) http://blogs.construx.com/blogs/stevemcc/archive/2007/09/23/building-a-fort-lessons-in-software-estimation.aspx 3 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT It took 6 years for the Christopher Hawkins to learn how to produce an estimate that accurate. Along the way the author noticed a set of behaviors that always lead to blown estimates and broken budgets. Avoiding these pitfalls will put any organization on the road to more accurate estimating, happier clients, and profitable projects. (4 pages) http://www.christopherhawkins.com/06-01-2004.htm 3 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT Parametric Cost Estimating Handbook http://cost.jsc.nasa.gov/PCEHHTML/pceh.htm 3 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT This paper summarizes several classes of software cost estimation models and techniques: parametric models, expertise-based techniques, learning-oriented techniques, dynamics-based models, regression-based models, and composite-Bayesian techniques for integrating expertise based and regression-based models. Experience to date indicates that neural-net and dynamics-based techniques are less mature than the other classes of techniques, but that all classes of techniques are challenged by the rapid pace of change in software technology. The primary conclusion is that no single technique is best for all situations, and that a careful comparison of the results of several approaches is most likely to produce realistic estimates. (46 pages) http://sunset.usc.edu/publications/TECHRPTS/2000/usccse2000-505/usccse2000-505.pdf 19 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT As early as 1968, A. M. Pietrasanta at the IBM System Research Institute stated: "Anyone who expects a quick and easy solution to the multi-faceted problem of resource estimation is going to be disappointed." Are you still having problems with estimation? The author, Linda M. Laird, explains what is reasonable to expect in estimation, what is not, and what you can do about it. In practical terms, it comes down to how much you really know about the project when you are estimating it, and how much uncertainty is inherent. (12 pages) http://www.asqphilly.org/spin/Presentations/limitsSPStherealone.ppt#4 19 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT The role that soft, human-oriented factors play in software effectiveness sometimes gets lost in discussions of best practices, process models, and other more complex topics. By Steve McConnell. (3 pages) http://stevemcconnell.com/ieeesoftware/eic14.htm 19 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT Software Estimation: Demystifying the Black Art by Steve McConnell From Construx: "Software Estimation is responsive to the widespread problems the software industry has experienced in creating meaningful cost and schedule estimates. Software estimation is not as hard or mysterious as many people think, but the knowledge of how to create effective estimates has not been well publicized. Software Estimation provides a comprehensive set of tips and heuristics that software developers, technical leads, and project managers can apply to create more accurate estimates. It presents fundamental estimation techniques and addresses specific estimation challenges. It explains how to avoid common pitfalls. Software Estimation doesn't avoid hairy mathematical approaches, but the non-mathematical reader will find plenty of useful guidelines without getting bogged down in complex formulas." http://stevemcconnell.com/est.htm 19 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT Three related technologies - scorecards, dashboards and performance alerts - establish meaningful contexts that enable users to analyze, measure, share and act on information quickly. (7 pages) http://www.dmreview.com/article_sub.cfm?articleId=1062066 6 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT When it comes to projects, there are as many questions to answer as there are project teams, but "Where are we?" is by far the most popular. The key to understanding a project is to make regular measurements-both quantitative and qualitative-and display the measurements publicly. When project managers display these measurements as part of the project status, teams are able to adjust their work and proceed more successfully. (14 pages) http://www.jrothman.com/Papers/are-we-there-yet.html 6 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT IT executives are finding dashboards that let them quickly gauge the effect of interrelated events and take corrective action can make staff more productive and keep key systems humming. The authors, Ann Bednarz and Denise Dubie, advise that companies could reduce IT budgets by as much as 30% with integrated management dashboards that link critical data from infrastructure monitoring software, application portfolio management and project management tools. (4 pages) http://www.networkworld.com/news/2006/062606-dashboard-management.html 6 Jan 2009 04:00:00 GMT Web enabling your project management can make your project teams more efficient and productive. Cynthia West discusses the challenges of managing projects without web enabled project management and suggests some of the benefits in web enabling project management. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/West-webenable.pdf 30 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT There are many project management challenges. Cynthia West outlines five of the most common that are frequently voiced by teams from a myriad of industries. If you are experiencing one or more of these challenges, then your team may benefit from implementing a project management software system. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/West-fivechallenges.pdf 30 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT Experienced project managers utilize a technique called earned value management (EVM) to assess a project's progress over time and allow project teams to understand the health and performance of their projects. Cynthia explains earned value management and explores how the metric can be used to improve project and business processes. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/West-EVM.pdf 30 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT Project Manager Planet http://www.projectmanagerplanet.com/ 30 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT In our current business environment, individuals asked to serve on a board are carefully considering this question. Rarely has there been a professional magazine or periodical published recently targeted for corporate managers that has not had a reference in some way to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. This legislation, formally known as the Corporate Auditing and Accountability Act of 2002, passed by Congress and signed into law by the President has a far-reaching impact upon all organizations. The author, Michael Pregmon, helps you to answer the question using a mini-assessment. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Pregmon-board.pdf 16 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT There have been numerous accounts of companies achieving the benefits that come with advancing to higher levels of maturity with the Software Engineering Institute's CMMI® framework or initiating a Six Sigma program for higher quality. There are of course numerous other process improvement models such as CobIT and ITIL all of which can result in similar success stories. But the hard reality of some improvement programs is that they can and do fail. David Herron highlights six key risk factors that can contribute to the success of a process improvement program. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Herron-change.pdf 16 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT Our society is founded on the importance of meetings, and it seems that the higher on the corporate ladder one climbs, the more meetings one must attend. Indeed, one of Michele Sliger's coworkers calculated that the amount of time the coworker spends arranging meetings, getting to meetings, and in meetings equates to almost her entire workweek--thirty-six hours on average. Even though we may lose track of time in meetings, we all are painfully aware of the time we spend waiting for everyone to show up. In this article, Michele Sliger explains some of the tactics she's seen teams use to ensure that meetings start on time. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Sliger-meetings.pdf 16 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT A successful implementation of a COTS (Commercial Off-the-Shelf) intensive software system can save money if you have the right solution and understand the potential risks involved. However, failure to successfully select, control and implement these critical components continues to result in projects that are delivered late and over-budget or that fail entirely. Arlene Minkiewicz suggests a 6 Step Methodology of important activities that should take place during a COTS implementation. Following this methodology throughout the software development lifecycle will ensure that significant activities are not being ignored and will increase the chances of planning, executing, and deploying a successful COTS based software solution. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/COTS-AM.pdf 2 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT A Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) takes advantage of networking capabilities to integrate applications in a way that is independent of architecture, programming language, development platform and vendor. Through a set of standard interfaces, services are made available to any consumer willing to follow the rules for interface and consumption. Arlene Minkiewicz describes what a SOA is and how it can be used to improve business practices within and beyond organizational boundaries. It presents a discussion of cost issues and business challenges that must be understood and accounted for before a business ventures down the SOA path. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/SOA-AM.pdf 2 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT Arlene Minkiewicz explores some of the effects that changing technologies have forced into the software estimation process. She presents the software estimator with some practical insights for assessing the impacts of new technologies, methods, tools and constraints on the productivity of a software development project. The methods presented will highlight the fundamentals of software estimating in light of the state of the art of software technology. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Estimating-AM.pdf 2 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT True Planning by Price Systems http://www.pricesystems.com/ 2 Dec 2008 04:00:00 GMT This is a public service announcement to all project managers, business analysts, others working in the I.T. industry, and the general public: producing good software is hard. The next time you wonder why the software you are using crashed, or why your software development project is behind schedule, or why your software doesn't meet the users' needs, remember this article by Basil Vandegriend. (2 pages) http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2006/producing-good-software-is-hard 18 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Andrew Leonard, Salon.com's Scott Rosenberg (and author of "Dreaming in Code") explains why even small-scale programming projects can take years to complete. (2 pages) http://www.salon.com/books/int/2007/02/03/leonard/ 18 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT When a major software project fails, the results can be devastating to an organization. This article by Carmine Mangione uses economic criterion to define what it means for a project to fail and examines common traps that contribute to or accelerate project failure. (11 pages) http://www.cioupdate.com/reports/article.php/1563701/Software-Project-Failure-The-Reasons-The-Costs.htm 18 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT Scott Rosenberg's wordyard http://www.wordyard.com/2006/10/02/mythical-man-month/ 18 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT The elements of a good estimating model are relatively simplistic. However, the variables that influence the predictability of the model can be rather convoluted and complex. There are four primary elements that comprise an estimating model. They include: a basic understanding of the requirements; an ability to accurately size the deliverable; an assessment of the complexity of the deliverable; and a characteristic profile of the organization's capacity to deliver. In this article by David Garmus, the author elaborates in more detail. (10 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/davidgarmus/Garmus_On_Time.pdf 4 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT The elements of a good estimating model are relatively simplistic. However, the variables that influence the predictability of the model can be rather convoluted and complex. There are four primary elements that comprise an estimating model. They include: a basic understanding of the requirements; an ability to accurately size the deliverable; an assessment of the complexity of the deliverable; and a characteristic profile of the organization's capacity to deliver. In this article by David Garmus, the author elaborates in more detail. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/garmus-functionpointintro.pdf 4 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT This article by David Garmus and David Herron describes common uses of the function point metric by the software development organization. To demonstrate the versatility of the function point metric, they have selected two scenarios; each represents the use of the metric at a different level in the organization. Function points are used at the IT management level as the key normalizing metric in establishing performance benchmarks used to identify and track improvements. Second, function points are often used at the organizational level as the base metric for establishing quantifiable service levels (seen primarily in outsourcing arrangements). (13 pages) http://www.itmpi.org/assets/base/images/itmpi/privaterooms/davidgarmus/Garmus_Function_Points.pdf 4 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT The IT Metrics and Productivity Institute's Private Archives http://www.itmpi.org/default.aspx?pageid=503 4 Nov 2008 04:00:00 GMT This report by James McHale and Daniel Wall provides an essential element to facilitate the adoption of the TSP in organizations using CMMI; namely, a mapping of ideal TSP practices into the specific and generic practices of CMMI. By having such a mapping (also known as a gap analysis), those involved with process improvement and appraisal efforts can more easily determine how well the organization or a particular project is implementing the TSP, how well projects using TSP might rate with respect to CMMI, and where and how to fill any gaps in CMMI coverage. Organizations already following an improvement plan based on CMMI may also determine how TSP adoption might help them to achieve broader, deeper, or higher maturity implementations of CMMI goals and practices. (209 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/04.reports/pdf/04tr014.pdf 21 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT This report by Daniel Wall, James McHale and Marsha Pomeroy-Huff describes how two U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) organizations integrated the use of the Software Engineering Institute's (SEI) Team Software Process SM methodology and the Capability Maturity Modeling framework to progress from Maturity Level 1 to Maturity Level 4 in 30 months. This is less than half of the average time it has taken other organizations to accomplish the same maturity level progression. This case study describes the process improvement efforts of both NAVAIR groups and how they integrated the two SEI technologies to accelerate process improvement within their organizations. Finally, the report presents the key factors that allowed NAVAIR to achieve these rapid results. (35 pages) ftp://ftp.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/07.reports/07tr013.pdf 21 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT Your organization has a mandate to achieve Capability Maturity Model Integration Level 3. Why would you even consider adding the Team Software Process to your plate when it is already overflowing? In this article, Alan S. Koch will discuss how TSP — far from adding work to a CMMI initiative — can potentially reduce the time and effort that will be required to achieve your goals. Simultaneously, TSP will engage your engineers in disciplined processes, giving them an appreciation for good processes along with the desire to adopt improved processes in every area of the organization. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2005/03/0503Koch.html 21 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT Introduction to the Team Software Process by Watts Humphrey From the Book Description: "This book describes an introductory version of TSP, ideal for smaller projects but also useful for learning basic forms and procedures that apply to other development projects. Methods presented include: how to establish roles; how to conceive, design, and plan a project; and how to track and report on progress. The book walks students through a complete development cycle, illustrating: how best to use the talents at hand; how to formulate well-defined goals; how to coordinate activities for maximum progress; how to promote effective communication; and how to alleviate many of the conflicts that undermine teamwork." http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Team-Software-Process-sm/dp/020147719X/ref=pd_bbs_2/ 21 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT An old "I Love Lucy" episode shows Lucy and Ethel working at a candy factory. Their job is to take pieces of candy off a conveyer belt and put them in packages. At first everything goes well. Then the conveyer belt sends out candy faster and faster. At first Lucy and Ethel try to cope. They try to work faster. Then their work gets sloppy. Finally, rather than packaging the candy at all, they resort to throwing it away, or even eating it. The moral, of course, is that just because you are able to make candy faster, it doesn't mean you can make more money selling more candy. How does this pertain to agile software development? (4 pages) http://www.agilejournal.com/content/view/438/76/ 7 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT When successfully adopted, Agile practices create hyper-efficient application development teams capable of regular, and even aggressive, delivery of business value. While an exciting prospect for developers, there will not be much business impact if the rest of the IT organization, and indeed the business itself, can't make use of this new-found efficiency. Staffing and resource decisions need to be made efficiently, requirements captured quickly, testing and production environments instantiated, subject-matter experts made available, and business processes changed or application development agility will be wasted. The drive toward greater responsiveness involves all aspects of IT as well as business partners and corporate practices. (4 pages) http://www.agilejournal.com/content/view/442/76/ 7 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT There's no question that "agile" is the buzzword of the times for software developers, ISVs, consultants, and businesses, in general. As with most buzzwords, the term is often over-used and mis-used, especially by those trying to portray their products or services in a new light. In the world of software development, the term "agile" is applied to a wide variety of processes, techniques, tools, projects, and phases of the development life cycle. It's important, therefore, to set out some basic definitions and context for the use of the term "agile." (4 pages) http://www.agilejournal.com/content/view/18/1/ 7 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT Lean Software Strategies: Proven Techniques for Managers and Developers by Peter Middleton and James Sutton From the Book Description: "Lean production, which has radically benefited traditional manufacturing, can greatly improve the software industry with similar methods and results. This transformation is possible because the same overarching principles that apply in other industries work equally well in software development. The software industry follows the same industrial concepts of production as those applied in manufacturing; however, the software industry perceives itself as being fundamentally different and has largely ignored what other industries have gained through the application of lean techniques." http://www.amazon.com/Lean-Software-Strategies-Techniques-Developers/dp/1563273055/ 7 Oct 2008 04:00:00 GMT For the last four years ThoughtWorks operated a lab in Bangalore India to support their software development projects in North America and Europe. Traditional approaches to offshore development are based on plan-driven methodologies, but this was very firmly an agile operation. In this article by Martin Fowler, the author discuss the experiences and lessons learned in doing offshore agile development. (14 pages) http://www.martinfowler.com/articles/agileOffshore.html 23 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT In modern software development, there are two trends that allow people to get more for less: agile development and offshore outsourcing. In this article by Andrew Filev the author looks at how and when to combine both successfully to raise the competitiveness of your business. (4 pages) http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb245671.aspx 23 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT While the cost-per-developer of offshore development might make it attractive, the benefits frequently fail to materialize. Solutions delivered by offshore teams are all too often characterized by poor solution fitness and quality problems, leading to late delivery and dissatisfied customers. Agile development practices are proven to provide better solutions, but they require a high degree of communication. Adopting them in an offshore environment presents a unique set of challenges. Find out in this article by Ross Pettit how to do it successfully. (5 pages) http://www.agilejournal.com/content/view/244/76/ 23 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT Agile Journal http://www.agilejournal.com/ 23 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT Many software projects that suffer a lingering death should have been canceled much earlier. Although it is hard to pull the plug on a project with a weak business case, failing to do so does throw good money after bad. This article by Karl Wiegers gives some tips on decision making that can help you avoid this outcome and shows how to use decision points to keep a good project moving along. (4 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/goodmoney.pdf 9 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT Too many outsourced software development projects wind up in litigation. The root causes of the project failure and resulting legal conflict are often related to the project's requirements, to communication issues, or to the project management approaches used (or not used). This article by Karl Wiegers presents 15 recommendations for keeping your outsourced project on track and out of court. A checklist helps you perform a health check on your project, to see if it's heading for trouble. (6 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/court.pdf 9 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT Unless you can honestly say, "I am building software today as well as software can ever be built," you should always be trying to improve your personal and your team's software development and project management capabilities. This 72-page handbook addresses many issues that can help software organizations implement and sustain a successful process improvement program. Whether you're using the CMM or CMMI as a process improvement framework, or just trying to learn how to work more effectively, you'll find a wealth of pragmatic guidance and useful insights about how to steer your organization toward better productivity and quality. (2 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/handbooks.shtml 9 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT Practical Project Initiation by Karl Wiegers Zero in on key project-initiation tasks - and build a solid foundation for successful software development. In this concise guide, critically-acclaimed author Karl E. Wiegers fills a void in project management literature by focusing on the activities that are essential - but often overlooked - for launching any project. Drawing on his extensive experience, Karl shares lessons learned, proven practices, and tools for getting your project off to the right start - and steering it to ultimate success. http://www.microsoft.com/MSPress/books/11850.aspx 9 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT "Executive questions" provide insight into organizational priorities. It's nice that the Process Improvement Sponsor asks process-related questions in the monthly Steering Committee meeting, but what kind of questions is the senior management team asking in project reviews? What kinds of questions SHOULD the senior management team be asking? (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D10.pdf 26 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT Whether starting a quality initiative or an exercise program, the secrets to early success are realistic expectations, gradual buildup of capability, and perseverance. Don't overstuff everybody with the nutritional promises of alphabet soup, but prepare them for a few false starts, a few setbacks, and even a few injuries along the way. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D11.pdf 26 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT There are many organizations that can sustain ongoing improvement without a formal assessment to reaffirm their progress, just as there are some long-distance runners that don't feel compelled to run an annual marathon. But for most of us, it's the focus on these measurable goals that helps us sustain our discipline through the trying times. Without these checkpoints, commitment can erode and regression can occur. Read more in this 12th and final installment of Pat O'Toole's "Process Improvement Do's and Don'ts." (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D12.pdf 26 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT Process Improvement Essentials by James R. Persse Process Improvement Essentials combines the foundation needed to understand process improvement theory with the best practices to help individuals implement process improvement initiatives in their organization. The three leading programs: ISO 9001:2000, CMMI, and Six Sigma - amidst the buzz and hype - tend to get lumped together under a common label. This book delivers a combined guide to all three programs, compares their applicability, and then sets the foundation for further exploration. http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596102173/ 26 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT James Robertson of the Atlantic Systems Guild outlines 10 top reasons for not doing requirements. (1 page) http://www.volere.co.uk/tentopreasons.htm 12 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT The best way to succeed with requirements engineering is to adopt known industry best practices. Karl Wiegers describes 8 such key practices in this article, helping any organization improve the way it elicits, analyzes, specifies, verifies, and manages its requirements. (9 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/telepathy.html 12 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT This article by Karl Wiegers describes several practical techniques for improving the requirements processes used in some small groups at Eastman Kodak Company and elsewhere. (9 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/exc_reqs.html 12 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT Volere http://www.volere.co.uk/index.htm 12 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT The VP of Engineering is trying to establish a process-disciplined culture in her software development organization. As a consultant, you have encouraged her to think about employing policies as a means to demonstrate her commitment to establishing, following, and improving the project management process. As a consultant to the VP, what 3 points would you recommend be documented in her organization's initial Project Management policy? (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D7.pdf 29 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Pat O'Toole, the author differentiates between training material and process documentation. For students, training material is typically a single-use asset - they use it in the classroom and then stick it on the shelf. In contrast, process documentation should serve as a ready reference guide for the process executor. Like a preflight checklist, it should focus on the vital process elements that lower the probability that critical steps are inadvertently overlooked. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D8.pdf 29 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Similar to business requirements, process focuses on what you are expected to do. Analogous to implementation detail, procedures describe how you are expected to do it. This distinction is often blurred because documented processes and procedures typically include many of the same elements: purpose, roles, inputs, entry criteria, activities/steps, outputs, exit criteria, etc. The real difference between processes and procedures is found in the "degrees of freedom" provided by the documented component. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Otoole-D&D9.pdf 29 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Software and Systems Process Improvement Networks (SPINs) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/collaborating/spins/index.html 29 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Many firms that have achieved Level 5 using the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) have taken a different tack in justifying their process improvement initiative's budget. This article by Don Reifer summarizes the profiles of high maturity organizations and explains how they go about justifying their budgets. The article also provides insight into the differing tactics that these firms employ to win the battle of the budget. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Reifer-Profiles.pdf 15 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT This article by Don Reifer provides software cost, quality and productivity benchmarks in twelve application-oriented domains that readers can use to determine how well their organizations are performing relative to industry averages. In addition to answering common questions raised relative to these benchmarks, the article summarizes the return on investments firms are realizing as they try to harness new technology for a variety of reasons. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Reifer-Benchmarks.pdf 15 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Don Reifer reports the results of an analysis of thirty-one extreme programming (XP)/agile method early adopter projects completed by fourteen firms who have embraced the techniques in the form of lessons learned. The survey results show that early adopters have cut costs, improved productivity and reduced time to market through the use of these methods. To get the most from these methods, fifteen lessons learned have been developed that build on the experiences of others. Several of these lessons run counter to the teachings of the methodology developers. The paper next provides a scorecard that rates XP's performance in eight application domains. The paper concludes by summarizing four critical success factors for early adopters. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/Reifer-Agile.pdf 15 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Reifer Consultants, Inc. http://www.reifer.com/biography.php 15 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT A software development process is simply the procedures that are followed to transform specified requirements into a software product. The objective of this step is to document these procedures so they can be applied consistently across projects. One of the benefits of a metrics program is that it forces a company to focus on how it develops software. There are always areas of the software development process that can be improved. However, before improvements can be made to the development process, the process has to be identified. (3 pages) http://www.spc.ca/resources/metrics/step1.pdf 1 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Every company will have different reasons for establishing a metrics program. If specific goals have already been determined, document them. If goals have not been determined, you should refer to the table in Figure 3.1. This table lists some of the goals that commonly drive metrics programs. The goals presented are all closely related and rely on much of the same data. The differences lie in which metrics will be constructed from the data, and how these metrics will be used. (3 pages) http://www.spc.ca/resources/metrics/step2.pdf 1 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT The goals for a metrics program determine the specific metrics on which the program will be based. This section analyzes each of the eight goals outlined in Step 2. The goals will be converted into a set of metrics by applying the Basili GQM (Goals/Questions/Metrics) model (23 pages) http://www.spc.ca/resources/metrics/step3.pdf 1 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Applied Software Measurement by Capers Jones From the Back Cover: "The 'bible' of software metrics, now updated to help you meet today's complex challenges The use of metrics has come to play an increasingly pivotal role in the progress of the software industry over the last several years, and this definitive work helped to make software measurement a science. Function points and related variations introduced in the original edition are now regarded as indispensable tools for software engineers and developers, IS managers, and anyone else charged with performance improvement and quality control. This much-anticipated new edition picks up where its predecessor left off, taking full account of today's advancing technologies and changing business realities. Here is authoritative information on software metrics in relation to many of today's most intriguing and fastest growing areas, including: Object technology; client/server architecture; Multimedia; Software reusability; Reengineering and outsourcing. The book provides useful comparisons of function points with DeMarco 'bang' metrics, feature points, the British Mark II function point method, and many others. As in the original, all discussions and examples are illuminated by a wide variety of real-world case studies, along with new statistics drawn from more than 6,000 corporate and government projects. The Second Edition continues to be required reading for all information systems professionals who want to increase productivity and improve quality." http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0070328269/softwareproducti%22%3EApplied%20SW%20Measurement 1 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT Too often, organizations that contract for software development services are at the mercy of vendors for cost and schedule estimates. Once a program office releases a request for proposal (RFP) for software development, it must somehow evaluate the validity of cost and schedule estimates that come back with the proposals. Or, a program might have a limited budget or schedule but not a clear understanding of what amount of development is actually feasible within these limitations. This article by Ian Brown proposes an approach that can help buyers of software take control of this situation by providing the ability to objectively evaluate software development proposals, select the best value for their needs, and effectively manage acquisition costs from kickoff to product delivery. (10 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2007/05/0705brown.html 17 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT The appearance of the Function Point technique has allowed the ICT community to increase significantly the practice of software measurement, with respect to the use of the traditional 'Lines of Code approach.' A FP count, however, requires a complete and detailed level of descriptive documentation, like the Functional Specifications of the software system under measurement, to be performed. There are at least two situations in which having an estimation method, compatible but alternative to the standard rules for FP, could be decisive. The first case occurs when the development or enhancement project is in such an early phase that it is simply not possible to perform a FP count. The second case occurs when an evaluation of the existing software asset is needed, but the necessary documentation or the required time and resources to perform a detailed FP calculation are not available. Based on these and other analogous situations, the demand of methods for estimating - not counting - Function Points has risen from the organizations involved in software business. The technical literature offers several estimation methods that can be examined and compared. This paper by Roberto Meli and Luca Santillo presents, therefore, the characteristics of some outstanding methods and a general benchmarking model, useful for the evaluation of any additional method, as well. (14 pages) http://www.dpo.it/resources/papers/1999-fesma-fpestmet-en.pdf 17 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT The System Evaluation and Estimation of Resources - Software Estimating Model (SEER-SEM) is a commercially available software project estimation model used within defense, government, and commercial enterprises. Introduced over a decade ago and now in its seventh release, it offers a case study in the history and future of such models. SEER-SEM and its brethren are built upon a mix of mathematics and statistics; this article by Lee Fischman, Karen McRitchie, and Dan Galorath provides insight into its inner workings and basis of estimation. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2005/04/0504Fischman.html 17 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software Estimation: Function Point Methods for Insourced and Outsourced Projects by M. A. Parthasarathy From the Book Description: "Practical Software Estimation brings together today's most valuable tips, techniques, and best practices for accurately estimating software project costs and schedules. Authored by one of the field's leading experts, it addresses the full spectrum of real-world challenges you face in developing reliable estimates. This is the only book with detailed guidance on estimating insourced and outsourced projects, as well as projects that blend both approaches. M. A. Parthasarathy draws on the immense experience of Infosys, one of the world's largest and most respected development organizations. He demonstrates how to successfully utilize Function Point (FP) methods, the industry's leading estimation model. Then, using real case studies, he systematically identifies pitfalls that can lead to inaccurate estimates--and offers proven solutions. http://www.amazon.com/Practical-Software-Estimation-Insourced-Outsourced/dp/0321439104 17 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT The term 'testing' conjures an image of executing software in a prescribed way to see whether it functions as intended. An alternative form of testing (or, more precisely, quality control) is to invite some colleagues to examine your work products for defects and improvement opportunities: a peer review. Whereas traditional testing is limited to executable code, you can apply peer reviews to any software deliverable, design, or document. Peer reviews have long been recognized as a powerful way to improve quality, yet few software organizations have systematic and effective review programs in place. This article by Karl Wiegers presents seven facts about peer reviews that any organization concerned about quality needs to know. (8 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/seven_truths.html 3 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT Peer review - an activity in which people other than the author of a software deliverable examine it for defects and improvement opportunities - is one of the most powerful software quality tools available. Peer review methods include inspections, walkthroughs, peer desk checks, and other similar activities. After experiencing the benefits of peer reviews for nearly fifteen years, I would never work in a team that did not perform them. However, many organizations struggle to implement an effective review program. Many of the barriers to successful peer reviews are social and cultural in nature, not technical. This article by Karl Wiegers explores some of the social and psychological aspects of having people review each other's work, ways to overcome resistance to reviews, and issues regarding management involvement. (8 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/humanizing_reviews.html 3 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT Software inspections and their cousins, reviews and walkthroughs, are proven techniques for reducing the number of defects in a program before it goes out the door. If you are in an organization of two or more people, some kind of inspection activity should be a part of your standard software development process. (16 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/inspects.html 3 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT Peer Reviews in Software: A Practical Guide by Karl Wiegers From the Back Cover: "Concise, readable, and pragmatic, Peer Reviews in Software walks you through the peer review process and gives you the specific methods and techniques you need to help ensure a quality software release. Comprehensively covering both formal and informal processes, the book describes various peer review methods and offers advice on their appropriate use under a variety of circumstances. This book focuses on - but is not limited to - the technique of inspection. This is the most formal, rigorous, and effective type of peer review. The various stages of inspection - including planning, individual preparation, conducting inspection meetings, and follow-up - are discussed in detail. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0201734850/processimpact 3 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT Major software projects have been troubling business activities for more than 50 years. Of any known business activity, software projects have the highest probability of being cancelled or delayed. Once delivered, these projects display excessive error quantities and low levels of reliability. Both technical and social issues are associated with software project failures. Among the social issues that contribute to project failures are the rejections of accurate estimates and the forcing of projects to adhere to schedules that are essentially impossible. Among the technical issues that contribute to project failures are the lack of modern estimating approaches and the failure to plan for requirements growth during development. However, it is not a law of nature that software projects will run late, be cancelled, or be unreliable after deployment. A careful program of risk analysis and risk abatement can lower the probability of a major software disaster. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2006/06/0606Jones.html 20 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT Software project failure is often devastating to an organization. Schedule slips, buggy releases and missing features can mean the end of the project or even financial ruin for a company. Oddly, there is disagreement over what it means for a project to fail. This article by Carmine Mangione uses economic criteria to define what it means for a project to fail. It then categorizes how projects fail and finally, it examines common traps that contribute or accelerate project failure. (11 pages) http://www.cioupdate.com/reports/article.php/1563701 20 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT Naomi Karten specializes in helping companies succeed in their projects. In this article, she gives tongue-in-cheek advice on how to make a project fail. (1 page) http://www.stickyminds.com/sitewide.asp?Function=WEEKLYCOLUMN&ObjectId=6370&ObjectType=ARTCOL&btntopic=artcol&tt=WEEKLYCOL_6370_readon&tth=H 20 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT Software Runaways: Monumental Software Disasters by Robert Glass In this book, the author, a software expert, shows exactly what went wrong in 16 colossal software disasters, while demonstrating how to keep disasters from happening to you. Considers the typical responses to potential runaways, including risk management and issue management. http://www.amazon.com/Software-Runaways-Monumental-Disasters/dp/013673443X/ref=sr_1_4/105-9755212-1865202?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184183704&sr=8-4 20 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT The Lean Software Development provides a management philosophy together with a set of practical tools for designing and delivering software-intensive products and services. These tools enable us to select design solutions, methods, design tools, and organizational structures based on fitness for purpose. That purpose is to produce value for the customer with minimum waste for us. There is a wonderful supermarket of tools, methods, and techniques from decades of progress in software engineering management. Lean does not invalidate or validate any of these. Instead, it gives us the wisdom to shop wisely and employ just the right combination of remedies needed to maximize customer value, minimize waste, and produce real top-line and bottom-line results. (7 pages) http://www.leansoftwareinstitute.com/art_ilsd.php 6 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT The core problem in software development can be boiled down to the intense pressure for a plan that lays out what the software will be able to do, how long it will take, and what it will cost - and the subsequent expectation that development will follow this plan. The problem is magnified when the software is expected to be developed independently from the system for which the software will supply the brains. This article by Mary Poppendieck looks at these problems from the perspective of various paradigm shift models. (4 pages) http://www.poppendieck.com/pdfs/The%20Truck%20Driving%20Problem.pdf 6 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT This article by Alan Shalloway, CEO of Net Objectives, is about how to develop software. We'll first look at what we are trying to accomplish when we build software. We'll then investigate what we have to do to do this, including the nature of the problems inherent in building software. This may sound a little basic, but there are many inherent flaws in common approaches to building software because people haven't stepped back far enough to see the big picture. Planting the right tree in the wrong forest does not make for good forest management. Once we have a clearer view about we are trying to do, we will move on to an overall view of the tasks needed to build software that is useful and cost effective. We investigate different ways these are accomplished with both standard processes and a lean-agile approach. Finally, we come up with a set of core practices that we should follow to build cost-effective software that give us appropriate solutions so we get the return on investment we want and need. (14 pages) http://www.netobjectives.com/ezines/ez0510NetObj_LeanAgileConnection.pdf 6 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT Lean Software Institute http://www.leansoftwareinstitute.com/index.php 6 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit by Tom and Mary Poppendieck From the book description: "In Lean Software Development, Mary and Tom Poppendieck identify seven fundamental lean principles, adapt them for the world of software development, and show how they can serve as the foundation for agile development approaches that work. Along the way, they introduce 22 thinking tools that can help you customize the right agile practices for any environment." http://www.informit.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=0321150783&rl=1 6 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT This article By James Bach is a slightly updated version of the the original that was published in American Programmer magazine in 1995. These ideas are rooted in the author's experiences at Apple Computer in the late 80's, and Borland in the early nineties. This article was treated as a counter-culture rant in 1995. But today, the agile development movement, which exemplifies these ideas, is well established. (11 pages) http://www.satisfice.com/articles/gooden2.pdf 22 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT Most testing techniques in current use were developed before 1980. Back then, significant programs were less than 10,000 statements. Today, it is common to find consumer products with a few million lines of code. Certainly, testing efficiency has improved somewhat in the past thirty years, but not nearly at the rate of programming efficiency. The most common automation technique, regression test automation, automates only test execution and simple result comparison; design, documentation and maintenance of these tests are time-costly human tasks. Test case management systems still call for step-by-step test documentation with some testers of life-critical applications reporting that they spend as much as 90% of their testing time on documentation-related tasks and only 10% on test execution and result analysis. What's to be done? In this article by Cem Kaner, the author offers some recommendations for addressing these challenges. (4 pages) http://www.kaner.com/pdfs/Top5SEissues.pdf 22 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT The authors of this article, Cem Kaner and Andy Tinkham, teach a class on programmer-testing with a primary focus on test-driven development (TDD) as part of the software engineering curriculum at the Florida Institute of Technology. As of this writing, the course has been offered 3 times. Each session contained a mixture of undergraduate and graduate students. This paper discusses the evolution of the course, our lessons learned and plans for enhancing the course in the future. (8 pages) http://www.testingeducation.org/articles/ExperiencesTeachingTDD.pdf 22 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT A Practitioner's Guide to Software Testing By Lee Copeland From Amazon: "Here's a comprehensive, up-to-date and practical introduction to software test design. This invaluable book presents all the important test design techniques in a single place and in a consistent, and easy-to-digest format. An immediately useful handbook for test engineers, developers, quality assurance professionals, and requirements and systems analysts, it enables you to: choose the best test case design, find software defects in less time and with fewer resources, and develop optimal strategies that help reduce the likelihood of costly errors. It also assists you in estimating the effort, time and cost of good testing." http://www.amazon.com/Practitioners-Guide-Software-Test-Design/dp/158053791X/ref=pd_bbs_8/105-6354281-1254842?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183670578&sr=8-8 22 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT The software process is a becoming a big issue for companies that produce software. As a consequence, the software process is becoming more and more important for permanent employees, long-term practitioners, and short-term consultant in the software industry. Read more in this article from the ACM by Sebastian Tyrrell. (11 pages) http://www.acm.org/crossroads/xrds6-4/software.html 8 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT As systems become larger and more complex, and as increasing numbers of development programs are integrated and distributed, development processes, methods, and management must change. To keep pace with these changes, the directions of process improvement must also change. This article by Watts Humphrey, James Over, Michael Konrad, and William Peterson describes the likely future directions of process improvement evolution. (11 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2007/02/0702HumphreyKonradOverPeterson.html 8 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT In "Sources of Power," Gary Klein describes his research of variations in understanding orders among commanders and tank platoon leaders, reaching conclusions that giving answers to what and how does not prepare individual teams for reacting to unforeseen problems. In this article by Gojko Adzic, the author explains how this relates to software, too. (4 pages) http://gojko.net/2006/10/11/how-to-develop-software-like-commanding-a-tank/ 8 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT Dreaming in Code By Scott Rosenberg From Publishers Weekly: "Software is easy to make, except when you want it to do something new," Rosenberg observes—but the catch is that "the only software worth making is software that does something new." This two-tiered insight comes from years of observing a team led by Mitch Kapor (the creator of the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet) in its efforts to create a "personal information manager" that can handle to-do lists as easily as events scheduling and address books. Rosenberg's fly-on-the-wall reporting deftly charts the course taken by Kapor's Open Source Applications Foundation, while acknowledging that every software programmer finds his or her own unique path to a brick wall in the development process. (The software is still in development even now.) With equal enthusiasm, Rosenberg digs into the history of the computer industry's efforts to make programming a more efficient process. Though there's a lot of technical information, it's presented in very accessible terms, primarily through the context of project management. Even readers whose computer expertise ends at retrieving their e-mail will be able to enjoy digressions into arcane subjects like object-oriented programming." http://www.amazon.com/Dreaming-Code-Programmers-Transcendent-Software/dp/1400082463/ref=pd_sim_b_1/105-6354281-1254842?ie=UTF8&qid=1183402204&sr=1-1 8 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT If you don't get the business requirements right, however well you deliver the project, the client/business will be dissatisfied. (And, its no good blaming them for giving you the wrong requirements, you may be right, but you'll never win the argument.) . By Jed Simms of CIO Magazine. (3 pages) http://www.cio.com.au/index.php/id;1280669411 25 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Tom King and Joe Marasco presents a simple, practical calculation of the cost of requirements errors in application software development projects. It also recommends a way to find and fix these costly errors early in a project, when they are least expensive to correct. (6 pages) http://www.stickyminds.com/sitewide.asp?Function=FEATUREDCOLUMN&ObjectId=12529&ObjectType=ARTCOL&btntopic=artcol 25 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT When In this article, Dr. Ralph Young of the Northrop Grumman Information Technology Defense Group provides a set of 12 requirements basics; these recommended approaches will contribute to your project's success. The requirements basics are based on industry experience; guidance from requirements-related books, articles, and Web sites; and the author's involvement with projects. Having an experienced requirements subject matter expert on the project staff can help the project manager and the project team guide investments that will help. (11 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2006/12/0612young.html 25 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT Mastering the Requirements Process by Suzanne Robertson and James Robertson From Amazon: "Written in an engaging style and relevant for any software analyst or designer, Mastering the Requirements Process provides a powerful and useful guide to defining more complete software requirements that lead to better software overall." http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Requirements-Process-Suzanne-Robertson/dp/0321419499/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/105-6354281-1254842?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183401452&sr=8-1 25 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT If you ask computer users for their assessment of software, most are dissatisfied. Software is seen as inconvenient, slow and plagued with errors. The aim of this article by Dr. Erich Meier of Method Park Software is to bring together tried-and-tested measures for counteracting this phenomenon. In so doing, both process standards and reference models such as CMMI and SPICE™ will be analyzed, as will agile methods. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/MP-Processes.pdf 11 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT Requirements and the way they are dealt with are decisive to the success of a project. This statement is never really questioned in modern software engineering circles. Why is it, then, that a systematic requirements engineering (RE) system is so rarely established? Where do the problems lie when it comes to implementing such a system? This paper Michael Gerdom and Dr. Uwe Rastofer of Method Park Software outlines the challenges and how these may be met using the example of the automotive industry. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/MP-Requirements.pdf 11 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT When developing or changing a process, and all its related assets, often the process engineers have to face an important issue: how defining an integrated set of processes so that each process element is designed taking in consideration its relationships with all the other interfacing elements. Together with this issue, we also have the need to ensure that all the relevant requirements for the processes and their process assets are fully understood and correctly managed. These objectives are even more difficult to achieve when more persons are working in parallel to the improvement of different process areas. The approach described in the following paper by Filippo Vitiello leverages a defined process architecture and a documented specification of process requirements to ensure integration among the process elements. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/MP-CMMI.pdf 11 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT Method Park http://www.methodpark.de/ 11 Mar 2008 04:00:00 GMT Use of Lean Six Sigma in software development and IT in general has increased significantly over the last several years, and many organizations are learning to leverage the relationships between Lean Six Sigma and other approaches to software process improvement, including the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI), the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL), the Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK), and others. Integration of Lean Six Sigma with ITIL and the PMBoK are addressed in other White Papers in this series and are available from the author, Gary Gack. Lockheed Martin, Motorola, Raytheon, and many others have reported significant gains by combining the best features and ideas from several different best practices models and methods, in several cases creating a "local brand" of integrated process improvement methods. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/fusion-lss-cmmi.pdf 26 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT Use of Lean Six Sigma in software development and IT in general has increased significantly over the last several years, and many organizations are learning to leverage the relationships between Lean Six Sigma and other approaches to software process improvement, including the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI), the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL), the Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK), and others. Integration of Lean Six Sigma with ITIL and the PMBoK are addressed in other White Papers in this series and are available from the author, Gary Gack. Lockheed Martin, Motorola, Raytheon, and many others have reported significant gains by combining the best features and ideas from several different best practices models and methods, in several cases creating a "local brand" of integrated process improvement methods. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gack-integrate.pdf 26 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT "Certification" has become a very hot topic. The Software Engineering Institute certifies CMMI Lead Appraisers who in turn appraise and "certify" organizations or processes within organizations as having achieved a given level of "maturity" or "capability". Exin and others certify several levels of ITIL specialists, the Project Management Institute certifies Project Management Professionals, and dozens (maybe hundreds) of different firms and organizations certify Six Sigma "belts" of various hues. In general these certifications are based on some combination of knowledge demonstrated largely by testing and by general or specific experience demonstrating some application of the relevant discipline. Unfortunately, though, over-emphasis on certification can lead to a loss of focus on the underlying reasons for certification. Certification is not an end in itself - rather it is a means that, in combination with other factors not necessarily connected to the certification process, is intended to produce improved business outcomes of some sort. Author: Gary Gack. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gack-madbelt.pdf 26 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT Process Fusion http://www.process-fusion.net/ 26 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT It's not for the frugal or faint-hearted, but more and more organizations are employing software inspections as an integral process in the development of world-class quality software. Read more in this article from CIO Magazine. (5 pages) http://www.cio.com.au/index.php/id;1214283576;pp;1 12 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT According to one oft-quoted number from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, flawed software cost the U.S. economy $60 billion in 2002. No one doubts that the number is even higher today. Bad software plagues nearly every organization that uses computers, causing lost work hours during computer downtime, lost or corrupted data, missed sales opportunities, high IT support and maintenance costs, and low customer satisfaction. In frustration, CIOs are taking a hard look at how bugs get into the application development process and why they seem to be so hard to prevent. (6 pages) http://www.computerworld.com/developmenttopics/development/story/0,10801,103378,00.html 12 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT June 2005 Washington Post article outlining the computerized case management system debacle. (4 pages) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/05/AR2005060501213.html 12 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT Catalysis Group http://www.catalysisgroup.com/welcome.asp 12 Feb 2008 04:00:00 GMT A software configuration audit can prove to be a valuable tool to ensure that processes and products are implemented in compliance with the requirements and objectives. In this article, Linda Westfall discusses three types of Software Configuration Audits; Functional Configuration Audit, Physical Configuration Audit and In-Process SCM Audits. Audits provide IT management with an objective verification that the SCM processes are compliant and that software products are being developed and implemented properly. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/westfall-SCM.pdf 29 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Risk-based software configuration control addresses the intricate balance between the developers need for flexibility and the need for stability in maintaining a consistent and standard set of processes. Linda Westfall examines risk-based software configuration control and the techniques that can be used to maintain this delicate balance between flexibility and stability. Selecting the appropriate technique to manage the risk between flexibility and stability should be evaluated on a project by project basis. The software configuration management process should include the documenting and communication of these decisions. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/westfall-configurationcontrol.pdf 29 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Traceability is necessary to ensure that the right products are being developed at each phase of the development life cycle. In here article on Bidirectional Requirements Traceability, Linda Westfall explores three key questions; what is traceability, why is traceability a good practice and how is traceability performed. She concludes the article noting that all traceability implementation techniques require the involvement and commitment of a cross-functional team of participants who create and maintain linkages among the various work products. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/westfall-bidirectional.pdf 29 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT West Fall Team http://www.westfallteam.com/ 29 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Diane Bloodworth is an entrepreneurial executive and senior consultant with more than 20 years of experience in the information technology industry. As a Managing Senior Consultant, she works with clients to solve strategic and tactical IT challenges. She is the past founder of BIT, a company that focused on improving the quality and practices of software development and systems engineering in government and commercial sectors. She has extensive experience in process improvement using the Capability Maturity Model (CMM/CMMI) and IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL). Ms. Bloodworth has established process improvement programs for government and industry that have resulted in measurable improvements in budget, schedule, and quality. She currently leads working groups that implement best practices in Project Management, Change Management, Configuration Management, Quality Assurance, and Testing. Our interview between Diane Bloodworth and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in December of 2006. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/dianebloodworth-interview.pdf 15 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a framework of best practices focused on improving the management of IT service. A key ingredient as to the successful implementation and sustainment of these best practices is the establishment of key performance indicators. In this article, authors Diane Bloodworth and David Herron outline an approach to establishing critical key performance indicators. Once established, the key performance indicators must be incorporated into a well defined and sustainable measurement program. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/bloodworth-ITIL.pdf 15 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT The processes embodied in ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) have evolved significantly and are expected to become a worldwide standard embodied as ISO 20000. At present, ITIL is both a glossary and a set of conceptual processes intended to outline IT best practices. This Reference Card, published by The David Consulting Group provides a short guide to the concepts and terms. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/DCG-ITIL.pdf 15 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Perceptive Pro http://www.perceptivepro.com/index.html 15 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Lessons learned through outsourcing successes and failures of the past indicate that a "critical failure factor" of an outsourcing agreement is the selection of a set of performance measures to manage the agreement. The author of this article, Dr. Howard Rubin, discusses the role of "performance engineering targets" that reflect the time varying needs and performance opportunities of the business and technical communities that are parties to the agreement. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/rubin-outsourcing.pdf 1 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT To effectively manage outsourced software development, an organization must have a set of service-level measures that can accurately predict and monitor the cost of the software deliverable and measure the value of the service provided to the customer. The key is to establish an accurate cost per unit of work measure. The authors of this article, David Garmus and Sheila Dennis, describe a unit-of-work measure that can satisfy both the IT organization's need to monitor the outsourcing contract and the customer's need to ensure the value of the deliverable. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/garmus-outsourcing.pdf 1 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT No corporation should initiate or prolong an IT system without a clear business reason for doing so. Only in the context of that business priority can the value of a system be measured. The author of this article, Dr. Howard Rubin, identifies business priority as the most important top- or bottom-line payoff the system or initiative is expected to provide the business. His whiteboard provides a complete way of viewing and measuring business value for any IT initiative or system. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/rubin-CIO.pdf 1 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 1 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects by David Garmus and David Herron From the Back Cover: "Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects" is a comprehensive presentation of the principles of function point analysis and a guide to its effective use in managing the development and deployment of software. Written for both information technology practitioners and managers, it describes how to use this proven but underutilized software sizing metric to achieve successful software projects!" http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201699443/002-3050108-1815238?v=glance&n=283155 1 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT The common view of IT is that projects are notoriously late, over budget and fail to meet customer's expectations. These outcomes are supported by the Standish Group's CHAOS long standing 1994 report. In his article Robin Goldsmith examines what is really behind the Standish Group's 'statistics' and reveals some additional 'truths' about the state of IT. Most projects' schedules and budgets are not well founded to begin with so the issue of being late or over budget is not as critical an issue as learning what really causes projects to fail. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/goldsmith-chaos.pdf 17 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT ROI is intended to provide valid and objective information for making business decisions. However, not quantifying the intangible benefits leaves a gap in the ROI analysis that can lessen the value of the calculation. In this article Robin Goldsmith discusses the Problem PyramidTM which can be used to identify the real value of the business requirements. The combination of the Problem PyramidTM and ROI Value ModelingTM can prevent projects which may seem like good business ideas but whose benefits really won't pay off. The article is also available along with reader feedback commentary at the following site which requires free registration http://www.requirementsnetwork.com/node/735 (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/goldsmith-ROI.pdf 17 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Low-overhead software process improvement initiatives can offer significant benefits compared with the more formal branded initiatives. In this article Robin Goldsmith reveals the key to identifying the 'low hanging fruit' improvement issues. Short cut approaches provide benefits by forgoing analysis and effectively and efficiently implementing known best practices. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/goldsmith-overhead.pdf 17 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Go Pro Management, Inc. http://www.gopromanagement.com/ 17 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Discovering Real Business Requirements for Software Project Success by Robin Goldsmith From Amazon: "While a number of books on the market deal with software requirements, this is the first resource to offer you a methodology for discovering and testing the real business requirements that software products must meet in order to provide value. The book provides you with practical techniques that help prevent the main causes of requirements creep, which in turn enhances software development success and satisfaction among the organizations that apply these approaches. Complementing discovery methods, you also learn more than 21 ways to test business requirements from the perspectives of assessing suitability of form, identifying overlooked requirements, and evaluating substance and content. The powerful techniques and methods presented are applied to a real business case from a company recognized for world-class excellence. You are introduced to the innovative Problem PyramidTM technique which helps you more reliably identify the real problem and requirements content. From an examination of key methods for gathering and understanding information about requirements, to seven guidelines for documenting and communicating requirements, while avoiding analysis paralysis, this book is a comprehensive, single source for uncovering the real business requirements for your software development projects." http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Business-Requirements-Software-Computing/dp/1580537707/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-7484612-2627908?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1176066943&sr=8-1 17 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT This is the final in a series of five columns by Watts Humphrey on the future of software engineering. This column covers overall trends in the industry and probable scenarios of the future, focusing on the forces at work on software-intensive businesses and how businesses are likely to change in response to those forces. (6 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/watts_new/2002/1q02/watts-new-1q02.htm 10 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Much of the following paper is an excerpt from one chapter of the book, A Discipline for Software Engineering (Addison Wesley) by the author. This textbook describes the personal software process (PSP) and provides a step-by-step program for its introduction. The book has been used as a text in six university graduate courses and is being used by several software organizations to help them introduce PSP methods. The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) is offering teach-the-teachers training courses for industrial groups interested in introducing the PSP to their organizations. (13 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/articles/pdf/psp.qual.pdf 10 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT From the Computer World interview with Watts Humphrey conducted in March of 2004: "Watts S. Humphrey is a fellow and a research scientist in the Software Process Program of the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He wrote the first version of the SEI's Capability Maturity Model (CMM) for software in 1987. In 1991, he served on the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. From 1959 to 1986, he was director of programming quality and process at IBM, where he oversaw the development of OS/360. He recently told Computerworld why he developed the Personal Software Process (PSP) and the Team Software Process (TSP)." (2 pages) http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/software/story/0,10801,90799,00.html 10 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT The Watts Humphrey Archive http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/columns.htm 10 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Since the early days of software development, our industry has been the outstanding example of poor performance. Even today, few expect software to be delivered on time and, when the products finally arrive, they often have lots of defects. How long will customers to tolerate such performance? There are two parts to the answer. First, can anyone do better? And second, will the defects cause damage? Clearly, if no one does better work and if the customers do not suffer intolerable pain, the software marketplace could continue much as today. A closer look, however, shows that our world must change. (3 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/publications/articles/watts-humphrey/changing-world-sw.html 3 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, the third in a five part series, Watts Humphrey explores trends in systems programming, including the nature of the systems programming business. By necessity, this must also cover trends in computing systems. (5 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/watts_new/2001/3q01/watts-3q01.htm 3 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT This is the fourth in a five part series by Watts Humphrey on the future of software engineering. The first two columns focused on trends in application programming, particularly related to quality and staffing. The previous column covered systems programming and the systems-programming business. In this column, the author explains the three kinds of operating-systems (OS) businesses and predict where these businesses are likely to go in the future. (7 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/watts_new/2001/4q01/watts-new-4q01.htm 3 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT Winning with Software: An Executive Strategy by Watts Humphrey From the publisher: "Humphrey, drawing on his own extensive executive and management experience, first demonstrates the critical importance of software to nearly every business, large and small. He then outlines seven steps needed to gain control of a software operation and transform it into a professional, businesslike engineering function. Failure to recognize the importance of software, and to take charge of its development process, invites the risk of damaging the entire business. By contrast, Humphrey relates the substantial benefits real organizations have obtained from such awareness and control. He concludes with an analysis of the impressive financial returns the recommended transformations typically yield." http://www.amazon.com/Winning-Software-Executive-Watts-Humphrey/dp/0201776391/ref=sr_1_1/002-0161741-5259249?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1176316774&sr=8-1 3 Dec 2007 04:00:00 GMT From the Business Week interview with Watts Humphrey from May of 2005: "Outside of the software world, few know of Watts S. Humphrey. But within, he's a bit of a rock star, known as the "father of software quality." Now a fellow of Carnegie Mellon University's Software Engineering Institute,Humphrey developed the SEI Capability Maturity Model (CMM), which helps developers produce error-free software code efficiently and on schedule." (4 pages) http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_19/b3932038_mz009.htm 26 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this column, the first in a series, Watts Humphrey discusses the future of software engineering. He focuses on trends in application programming, particularly as they concern quality. In the subsequent columns, He also addresses programming skills, trends in systems programming, and the implications of these trends for software engineering in general. (6 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/watts_new/2001/1q01/watts-new-1q01.htm 26 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT This is the second of several columns by Watts Humphrey on the future of software engineering. While the first column focused on trends in application programming, particularly related to quality, this column reviews data on programmer staffing and then covers application-programming skills. (7 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/columns/watts_new/2001/2q01/watts-new-2q01.htm 26 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Managing the Software Process By Watts. S. Humphrey From the back cover: "The author, drawing on years of experience at IBM and the SEI, provides here practical guidance for improving the software development and maintenance process. He focuses on understanding and managing the software process because this is where he feels organizations now encounter the most serious problems, and where he feels there is the best opportunity for significant improvement. Both program managers and practicing programmers, whether working on small programs or large-scale projects, will learn how good their own software process is, how they can make their process better, and where they need to begin." http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0201180952/qid=1113798627/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-7277700-3716006 26 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software requirements management is often viewed as a stand-alone task in terms of life-cycle activities. Of course, some of the major risks to project completion are incomplete, inaccurate, or vague requirements. In this article by Theron Leishman and David Cook, the authors will present and discuss several requirements risks that may have major impacts on the success of software projects. We will then consider strategies to help mitigate the impact of these requirements risks. (8 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2002/04/leishman.html 19 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Tanya Berezin discusses the purpose and contents of a requirements document for a business application. It will help you write a professional requirements document. At the conclusion of the paper, the author includes a bibliography for further, more advanced reading. (22 pages) http://www2.sims.berkeley.edu/courses/is208/s02/ReqsDoc.pdf 19 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Writing top-quality requirements specifications begins with a complete definition of customer requirements coupled with a natural language that incorporates strength and weakness quality indicators- not to mention the adoption of a good SRS template. Technical communications professionals well-trained in requirements gathering, template design, & natural language use are in the best position to create and add value to such critical project documentation. (18 pages) http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/magazine/writing/softwarerequirementspecs.html 19 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT More About Software Requirements: Thorny Issues and Practical Advice By Karl Wiegers From the Book Description: "Have you ever delivered software that satisfied all of the project specifications, but failed to meet any of the customers' expectations? Without formal, verifiable requirements -and a system for managing them -the result is often a gap between what developers think they're supposed to build and what customers think they're going to get. Too often, lessons about software requirements engineering processes are formal or academic, and not of value to real-world, professional development teams. In More About Software Requirements: Thorny Issues and Practical Advice, the author describes practical techniques for gathering and managing the software requirements that help you meet project specifications and customer expectations. A leading speaker and consultant in the field of requirements engineering, Karl Wiegers takes questions raised by other professional software developers and analysts as a basis for the practical solutions and best practices offered in this guide. Succinct and immediately useful, this book is a must-have for developers and analysts." http://www.amazon.com/More-About-Software-Requirements-Practical/dp/0735622671/ref=sr_1_2/104-7484612-2627908?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1175881090&sr=8-2 19 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Disciplined planning and execution significantly reduce the variability of project results. They also establish a solid foundation for getting projects done faster, the organization's ultimate goal. Since you are unlikely to achieve sustainable cycle time reductions without first achieving reasonably predictable results, follow Steven Covey's advice and "put first things first." The EPG's challenge is to convince senior management that generating more reliable estimates is a necessary prerequisite to reducing cycle time - and that once customers believe, once estimation credibility has been established, the tune of the ritualistic dance will be altered forever. This article is the third part in an eight part series by SEI Visiting Scientist Patrick O'Toole. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/otoole-faster.pdf 12 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT The reward system provides the most tangible evidence of what senior management wants the organization to be when it grows up. If senior management truly wants to transform the organization, they have to take a hard look at the existing reward system and ensure that it is rewarding the desired behavior, and disincentivizing the behavior they are trying to eliminate. Until they do that, their mouths and their money are misaligned. This article is the fourth part in an eight part series by SEI Visiting Scientist Patrick O'Toole. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/otoole-rewardsystem.pdf 12 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Many organizations religiously capture "lessons identified" and then carefully place these pearls of wisdom into a seldom-accessed file cabinet or write-only database. Aldous Huxley told us, "That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach." Or as one executive put it, "I don't mind my people making stupid mistakes - that's how they learn. I would just like them to make different stupid mistakes next time!" This article is the fifth part in an eight part series by SEI Visiting Scientist Patrick O'Toole. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/otoole-learnorganization.pdf 12 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Creating a Softare Engineering Culture by Karl E. Wiegers From the Publisher: "Written in a remarkably clear style, Creating a Software Engineering Culture presents a comprehensive approach to improving the quality and effectiveness of the software development process. In twenty chapters spread over six parts, Wiegers promotes the tactical changes required to support process improvement and high-quality software development. Throughout the text, Wiegers identifies scores of culture builders and culture killers, and he offers a wealth of references to resources for the software engineer, including seminars, conferences, publications, videos, and on-line information. With case studies on process improvement and software metrics programs and an entire Part on action planning (called "What to Do on Monday"), this practical book guides the reader in applying the concepts to real life. Topics include software culture concepts, team behaviors, the five dimensions of a software project, recognizing achievements, optimizing customer involvement, the project champion model, tools for sharing the vision, requirements traceability matrices, the capability maturity model, action planning, testing, inspections, metrics-based project estimation, the cost of quality, and much more!" http://www.amazon.com/Creating-Software-Engineering-Culture-Wiegers/dp/0932633331/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-7484612-2627908?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1175879726&sr=8-1 12 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Understanding software, faults and failures is the ?rst step to treating software testing as a discipline. Treating software as a discipline is the ?rst step toward mastering software quality. And there is more, always more to learn. Discipline is a lifelong pursuit. If you trick yourself into thinking you have all the answers, then mastery will elude you. But training builds knowledge so the pursuit itself is worthwhile whether or not you ever reach the summit. Read the full article by James Whitakker. (4 pages) https://www.softwaretechnews.com/stn_view.php?stn_id=11&article_id=43 5 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT This article by Gary E. Mogyorodi presents 20 questions used to determine and understand how mature the quality assurance and testing environments are within an organization. The questions are ordered to begin with those easiest to answer and become progressively more difficult for organizational compliance. This questionnaire again proves that an organization that has good quality assurance and testing practices tests early and tests often throughout its software development lifecycle. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2003/03/mogyorodi1.html 5 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT STORM http://www.mtsu.edu/~storm/ 5 Nov 2007 04:00:00 GMT Thirty, twenty, or even 10 years ago, "gestalt, round-trip, spiral development", "management by walking around", and "lo-tech design" were not acceptable phrases on an application development project. Hiring a psychologist to do ethnographic or cognitive studies of user groups was unheard of or considered fringe, at best. By now, human characteristics and study of people have seriouslyentered software development. This article by Alistair Cockburn presents, not a scholarly study, but a celebration of the strengths, foibles, and diversity of people, how that has changed application development - and how that has not changed application development. (18 pages) http://alistair.cockburn.us/index.php/Growth_of_human_factors_in_application_development 29 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Learning to program is notoriously difficult. A substantial minority of students fails in every introductory programming course in every UK university. Despite heroic academic effort, the proportion has increased rather than decreased over the years. Despite a great deal of research into teaching methods and student responses, we have no idea of the cause. In this article by Saeed Dehnadi and Richard Bornat, the authors claim to have found a test for programming aptitude, of which they give details. They can predict success or failure even before students have had any contact with any programming language with very high accuracy, and by testing with the same instrument after a few weeks of exposure, with extreme accuracy. They present experimental evidence to support their claim. And they point out that programming teaching is useless for those who are bound to fail and pointless for those who are certain to succeed. (21 pages) http://www.cs.mdx.ac.uk/research/PhDArea/saeed/paper1.pdf 29 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Research in Psychology of Programming (PoP) and related fields over the past thirty years has identified many important usability issues for programming languages and tools. However, when new programming languages are designed these findings do not seem to have much impact, so popular modern languages continue to exhibit many of the same old problems. This paper by John Pane and Brad Myers reviews the progress of an ongoing project to elevate the influence of PoP on the design of a new programming language. Their goal is to exemplify a process that could be adopted by other language designers to improve the usability of their systems. (10 pages) http://www.ppig.org/papers/12th-pane.pdf 29 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT The Psychology of Computer Programming By Gerald Weinberg From the Back Cover: "Long regarded as one of the first books to pioneer a people-oriented approach to computing, The Psychology of Computer Programming endures as a penetrating analysis of the intelligence, skill, teamwork, and problem-solving power of the computer programmer. Finding the chapters strikingly relevant to today's issues in programming, Gerald M. Weinberg adds new insights and highlights the similarities and differences between now and then. Using a conversational style that invites the reader to join him, Weinberg reunites with some of his most insightful writings on the human side of software engineering. Topics include egoless programming, intelligence, psychological measurement, personality factors, motivation, training, social problems on large projects, problem-solving ability, programming language design, team formation, the programming environment, and much more." http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Computer-Programming-Silver-Anniversary/dp/0932633420 29 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT "Software engineering" was introduced as a model for the field of software development in 1968. This paper by Alistair Cockburn reconsiders that model in the light of four decades of experience, and finds it lacking in its ability to explain project success and failures, predict important issues in running projects, and help practitioners formulate effective strategies on the fly. (24 pages) http://alistair.cockburn.us/index.php/The_end_of_software_engineering_and_the_start_of_economic-cooperative_gaming 22 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Fred Brooks, Jr., the author's premise is that there are there no silver bullets for the software engineering crisis now in view. He furthermore believes that the very nature of software makes it unlikely that there will be any- no inventions that will do for software productivity, reliability, and simplicity what electronics, transistors, and large-scale integration did for computer hardware. (15 pages) http://virtualschool.edu/mon/SoftwareEngineering/BrooksNoSilverBullet.html 22 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Slide presentation by Steve McConnell of Construx Software that outlines the opportunity at the heart of software process improvement initiatives while providing an overview for getting started. (39 pages) http://stevemcconnell.com/psd/13-businesscase.htm 22 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Alistair Cockburn http://alistair.cockburn.us/index.php/Main_Page 22 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT In the ongoing battle between traditional and agile methodologies, many proponents of each side exhibit a general intolerance to the other's ideas. However, this adversarial attitude is not just unreasonable, it's counterproductive to the task at hand: developing the highest-quality software in the shortest possible time. To that end, approaches must be limited by neither hidebound structuralism nor free-flowing flexibility. To the new generation of agile practitioners, the 13-year-old Capability Maturity Model (CMM) may seem to symbolize all that's stodgy in traditional development. However, the melding of Software CMM with the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute's other main maturity models (for systems engineering, software acquisition, workforce management and product development) in the form of CMM Integration (CMMI) deserves another look. (6 pages) http://www.ddj.com/dept/architect/184415287 15 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Agile practitioners pride themselves on highly productive, responsive, low ceremony, lightweight, tacit knowledge processes with little waste, adaptive planning and frequent iterative delivery of value. It is often assumed that CMMI compliant processes need to be heavyweight, bureaucratic, slow moving, high ceremony and plan driven. Agile developers often skeptically perceive formal process improvement initiatives as management generated inefficiency that gets in the way of productivity. At Microsoft, however, they adopted the teachings of W. Edwards Deming and stretched their MSF for Agile Software Development method to fit the requirements for CMMI Maturity Level 3. The result was a highly iterative, adaptive planning method, light on documentation, and heavily automated through tooling. This article by David J. Anderson is the story of how mixing Deming with Agile produced such a lightweight CMMI solution. (14 pages) http://www.agilemanagement.net/Articles/Papers/Agile_2005_Paper_DJA_v1_6.pdf 15 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Global Analytic Information Technology Services, Inc. (GAITS) decided to receive a Software Engineering Institute (SEI) Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) Level 2 rating within five months. The purpose of this article by George Jackelen is to show that when an organization is already doing competent project management, the effort to benchmark that capability by using CMMI is almost straightforward, and it is possible to achieve a Level 2 CMMI appraised rating within six months. This means there must be management support, the right CMMI project personnel, selection of the right effort(s) to be evaluated, and a CMMI appraiser who understands the company's effort and provides positive feedback. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2007/02/0702Jackelen.html 15 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Agile CMMI Blog http://www.agilecmmi.com/ 15 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT The goal of this article by Walt Scacchi at the Institute for Software Research at the University of California is to review a sample of empirical studies of software productivity for large-scale software systems from the 1970s through the early 2000s in order to determine what factors are impacting software productivity. (42 pages) http://www.ics.uci.edu/~wscacchi/Presentations/Process/Software-Productivity.pdf 8 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT The time has come for serious efforts to increase productivity through more efficient use of labor and more effective value propositions for customers. This is how more mature economic sectors have been increasing productivity for decades. But first we need to define what we mean by productivity improvement in the software development industry. Traditionally, we have measured productivity as thousand lines of code (kloc) per labor hour. However, the key process of a development activity is the transformation ideas of into products. To measure the real productivity of software development, we need look at how efficiently and effectively we turn ideas into software. In this article by Mary Poppendieck, the author starts by formulating a new definition of software development productivity. (4 pages) http://www.poppendieck.com/pdfs/Software%20Development%20Productivity.pdf 8 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT There is something fundamentally wrong with the way we create software. Contrary to conventional wisdom, unreliability is not an essential characteristic of complex software programs. In this article by Louis Savain, the author proposes a silver bullet solution to the software reliability and productivity crisis. (15 pages) http://www.rebelscience.org/Cosas/Reliability.htm 8 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Institute for Software Research http://www.isr.uci.edu/ 8 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software Productivity by Harlan D. Mills From the Publisher: "In this masterful collection, the late mathematician and software methods pioneer Harlan D. Mills offers you twenty classic articles that document the technical and managerial methods for achieving both improved productivity and quality. Many of the articles illustrate Mills's fundamental premise that software engineers who use and understand the mathematics of programming consistently produce better software. The impact of this book has been felt worldwide. Topics include top-down structured programming, chief programmer teams, measurements of program complexity, buying quality software, and more!" http://www.dorsethouse.com/books/sp.html 8 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Pekka Forselius is a researcher and developer of project management methods and concepts, including FiSMA Scope Managemtnt, FiSMA 1.1 FSM method and the KISS Functional Size Measurement approach. He is currently business partner, CEO and project management consultant at Software Technology Transfer Finland. He is also Vice President of the international benchmarking organization ISBSG and a member of the executive committee of the COSMIC consortium. Our interview between Pekka Forselius and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in December of 2006. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-interview.pdf 1 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Typically, very few software development projects in large organizations are delivered in time and within budget. Pekka Forselius in his article introduces Seven Information and Communication Technology (ICT) project types and a method for analyzing the characteristics of an ICT development program. At the end of his article is a brief experience report. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-characteristics.pdf 1 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis is often said to be too difficult a method for software development estimation purposes. In this article, Pekka Forselius introduces the KISS approach to functional size measurement. With 28 questions about different base functional component types belonging to six classes, this approach provides a very good size estimate in a very short period of time. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-KISS.pdf 1 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT With two thirds of the world's Information and Communication Technology (ICT) projects deemed as failures, it seems that managing scope is not a common practice within Project Management. Pekka Forselius and Carol Dekkers recommend approaches and tips successfully applied worldwide that have dramatically increased the success rate on ICT projects. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-scope.pdf 1 Oct 2007 04:00:00 GMT The business and societal costs of software failures—in terms of wasted taxpayer and shareholder dollars as well as investments that can't be made—are now well into the billions of dollars a year. Of the IT projects that are initiated, from 5 to 15 percent will be abandoned before or shortly after delivery as hopelessly inadequate. Many others will arrive late and over budget or require massive reworking. The biggest tragedy, however, is that software failure is for the most part predictable and avoidable. Unfortunately, most organizations don't see preventing failure as an urgent matter, even though that view risks harming the organization and maybe even destroying it. Understanding why this attitude persists has tremendous implications for business and society.Read more in this IEEE Spectrum article by Dr. Robert Charette. (13 pages) http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/print/1685 24 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software engineering is more like manufacturing than most people expect. Once we spot their similarities, we can apply the lessons learned over the last 50 years in manufacturing to software development. This article by Dr. Alistair Cockburn picks six lessons to apply to software development gleaned from the manufacturing industry. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2007/04/0704Cockburn.html 24 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT This article by James Bach is a slightly updated version of the the original that was published in American Programmer magazine in 1995. The author's ideas are rooted in his experiences at Apple Computer in the late 80's, and Borland in the early nineties. This article was treated as a counter-culture rant in 1995. But today, the agile development movement, which exemplifies these ideas, is well established. (11 pages) http://www.satisfice.com/articles/gooden2.pdf 24 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT IEEE Spectrum http://spectrum.ieee.org/ 24 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, Cem Kaner discusses paradigmatic shifts in development and how such changes must be applied to testing as well. (29 pages) http://www.testingeducation.org/a/TheOngoingRevolution.pdf 17 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT The authors of this article teach a class on programmer-testing with a primary focus on test-driven development (TDD) as part of the software engineering curriculum at the Florida Institute of Technology. As of this writing, their course has been offered 3 times. Each session contained a mixture of undergraduate and graduate students. This paper discusses the evolution of the course, their lessons learned and plans for enhancing the course in the future. (8 pages) http://www.testingeducation.org/articles/ExperiencesTeachingTDD.pdf 17 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this short article, Danny Faught discusses some free test tools, along with the basics of 'freeware', and information on a testing freeware newsletter. (2 pages) http://tejasconsulting.com/DFWUUG/freewaretools.html 17 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software Test & Performance http://www.stpmag.com/ 17 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Every organization or program creates and implements projects to help it move toward its goals. Every assigned project manager wants to be successful in executing assigned projects, and a number of standard practices exist to assist and guide the project manager. This article by Tim Perkins, Roald Peterson, and Larry Smith outlines some of these key practices that, while common sense, are not always common practice. (15 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2003/01/perkins.html 10 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Organizations continue to look for the key to unlocking the mystery of project management (PM) best practices, but the steps that go into successful project management are not mysterious at all — they are standard procedures that, if executed, will improve a project's chances of success. Learn specifics in this article by Margo Visitacion. (6 pages) http://www.amd.com/us-en/assets/content_type/DownloadableAssets/Giga_-_Project_Management_Best_Practices-_Key_Processes_and_Common_Sense_(1-03).pdf 10 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT This Software project management is the collection of techniques used to develop and deliver various types of software products. This developing discipline traditionally includes technical issues such as: the choice of software development methodology, how to estimate project size and schedule, how to ensure safety, what resources to reuse and which programming environment to use for the development. The discipline also includes management issues such as: when to train personnel, what are the risks to the project success, and how to keep the project on schedule. These choices are then embodied in a software project management plan. However, none of the traditional software project management materials address the ethical issues that arise because of the choices made during software development. Consequently, these materials do not provide any insights as to how to address these issues. In this paper by S. Rogerson and D. Gotterbarn identifies several critical ethical issues that arise in most software projects and provide a proactive way of addressing these issues which is consistent with most professional software development standards. (14 pages) http://www.ccsr.cse.dmu.ac.uk/staff/Srog/teaching/sweden.htm 10 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Construx http://www.construx.com/Page.aspx?nid=253 10 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT The software industry lacks standard metric and measurement practices. Almost every software metric has multiple definitions and ambiguous counting rules. There are also key topics with no metrics at all, such as quantifying the volume or quality levels of data bases, data warehouses, and web sites. The result of metrics problems is a lack of solid empirical data on software costs, effort, schedules, quality, and other tangible matters. This report by Capers Jones analyzes some of the key software size metrics and the underlying technical problems associated with software measurement. (17 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-strongweak.pdf 3 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Accurate software estimating is too difficult for simple rules of thumb. Yet in spite of the availability of more than 50 commercial software estimating tools, simple rules of thumb remain the most common approach. Rules based on the function point metric are now replacing the older LOC rules. This article by Capers Jones assumes IFPUG counting rules version 4.1. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-rules.pdf 3 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Maintenance of aging software tends to become more difficult year by year since updates gradually destroy the original structure of the applications and increase its entropy. Aging software may also contain troublesome regions with very high error densities called "error-prone modules." Repairs to aging software suffer from a phenomenon called "bad fix injection" or new defects accidentally introduced as a byproduct of fixing previous defects. Read more in this article by Capers Jones. (13 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-maintenance.pdf 3 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT Estimating Software Costs by Capers Jones From the Back Cover: "Get a handle on skyrocketing software costs. Are your software costs spiraling out of control? Do your projects chronically run late, exceed budget, and go out the door bug-laden, if at all? Have you discovered a commercial software cost estimating tool that works for your situation? Are you even familiar with how these increasingly sophisticated tools operate? Capers Jones, a pioneer and innovator in the field, probes the fundamental issues involved with the notoriously tough task of software cost estimation. Rather than provide simplistic manual formulas that lack the accuracy needed for contracts and serious business purposes, he explores in great detail the mutifaceted variables that cause estimates to be higher or lower than average. The result for you: A clear, complete understanding of how to estimate software costs, schedules, and quality far more effectively than you may have thought possible. You'll learn the technical details of how software cost estimates are produced...what kinds of commercial tools are available...how these tools work within various project management suites...and how to troubleshoot and solve typical problems, such as: sizing the project before requirements are firm; dealing with creeping requirements; handling excessive schedule pressure; taking international factors into account; planning for contractual and legal concerns." http://www.amazon.com/Estimating-Software-Costs-Capers-Jones/dp/0071483004/sr=8-2/qid=1171297395/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/105-2099855-1236420?ie=UTF8&s=books 3 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT The key to consistent project success is effective software sizing, but sizing is often the most difficult part of the project estimate. Project managers grapple with being able to accurately estimate the amount of code needed to satisfy product requirements, and they struggle to quantify risks and uncertainties associated with their estimates. Learn more about how to master this technique in this article by Dan Galorath. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/galorath-estimation.pdf 27 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Organizations faced with the difficulties and costs associated with the development of software have turned to the reuse of existing software or using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software as an option. This article by Dan Galorath discusses some of the key issues to consider when reusing software or integrating COTS software. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/galorath-reuse.pdf 27 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Many organizations create cultures that emphasize achievement of goals in the face of overwhelming challenges. This is an essential attitude for any successful organization, but if taken to extremes, this attitude makes it very difficult for management to accept risk and believe in and support risk management as an important discipline. Find out more about how to better manage risk management in this article by Dan Galorath. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/galorath-risk.pdf 27 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Galorath http://galorath.com/ 27 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Defect removal and defect prevention techniques are no longer good enough to inspire customer confidence in the quality of delivered software products. In this article Joe Schofield describes the "business case" for removing defects and demonstrates how the usage of the Capture-Recapture Method (CRM) in defect removal activities can predict the number of estimated defects remaining in a product. This estimate can then be used to predict quantified, data-driven decisions for how to proceed with a software product. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/schofield-defects.pdf 20 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Peer reviews and software inspections, have become accepted within the software industry as a cost effective way of removing defects. In this article Steven Lett discusses how project managers can maximize the benefits derived from collecting and analyzing project related defect data. Steven describes how peer review data can be utilized for managing software defects in much the same way cost and schedule data are used to manage project commitments. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/lett-defects.pdf 20 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT The popular process improvement approaches (e.g., Six Sigma, CMMI and Lean) all incorporate causal analysis activities. In this article David Card explores some of the common misunderstanding associated with the concept of causality and suggests some strategies for applying causal analysis more effectively. David explains how organizations can benefit by gaining a better understanding of the concepts of causality and developing a strategy for applying casual analysis. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/card-defects.pdf 20 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Q-Labs http://www.q-labsusa.com/ 20 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT The one attribute that remains constant in all successful projects is measurement. This is the key to successfully managing a project. Equipped with the right set of measures, software project managers can properly set expectations and maintain greater control over their deliverables. The old adage you cant manage what you dont measure is sage advice that all too often gets ignored. But it is not simply the act of measuring that leads to success. It is having the right measures that will provide the information necessary to keep a project on time and on budget. Learn more in this article by Michael Harris and David Herron of the David Consulting Group. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/harris-herron-measurement.pdf 13 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT There has been recent debate over the apparent incompatibility that is thought to exist between Agile Software Development and Software Process Improvement models such as the CMMI. Michael Harris takes the position that software process improvement projects can benefit by adopting an iterative Agile approach. Michael discusses how adopting an agile philosophy can help software process improvement projects deliver recognizable value. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/harris-agile.pdf 13 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT The topic of software process improvement is now very popular in the United States, Europe, and the Pacific Rim. Unfortunately the popularity of a topic is not commensurate with the quantitative data that is available about a topic. This report shows a 36 month case study derived from severalof SPRs clients to illustrate four tangible aspects of software process improvement: 1) What it costs to achieve software excellence; 2) How long it will take to achieve excellence; 3) What kind of value will result from achieving software excellence; 4) What kinds of quality, schedule, and productivity levels can be achieved? (30 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-SPICosts.pdf 13 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 13 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Measuring the Software Process: A Practical Guide by David Garmus and David Herron From Amazon: "Function point counting is one of the fastest growing software management techniques used in the software industry today. This book shows how to successfully execute the function point counting methodology, based on the current rules and guidelines set forth by the International Function Point Users Group (IFPUG).The book covers software measurement and the application of the function point methodology, the specific rules and guidelines of the function point methodology, and function point uses and benefits. For programmers and software development managers." http://www.amazon.com/Measuring-Software-Process-Functional-Measurements/dp/0133490025/ref=sr_1_2/102-4093686-4215326?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1175571625&sr=8-2 13 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Whether Software is a critical factor in many aspects of corporate operations. Unlike most aspects of corporate operations, software has been difficult to bring under full executive control. Many chief executive officers (CEO's) have only a limited knowledge about both computers and software. This article by Capers Jones discusses 50 key questions that CEO's should ask about, in order to ensure that the software their companies depend upon will be an asset and not a liability to the corporations they control. (13 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-50ques.pdf 6 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software development and maintenance outsource contracts may lead to conflicts between the client and the service organization. For a significant number of disputes, the conflict may reach the point of litigation for breach of contract. The root cause of these disputes can be traced to misunderstandings and ambiguous terms in the original contract. Independent assessments coupled with improved forms of software development contract based on function point metrics shows promise for minimizing the chances of conflict and litigation. Find out more in this study by Capers Jones. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-litigation.pdf 6 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT This article by Capers Jones puts forth the hypothesis that the main reason for the shortage of positive innovation in software development methods is due to a lack of understanding of the underlying problems of the software development domain. A corollary hypothesis is that lack of understanding of the problems is due to inadequate measurement of quality, productivity, costs, and the factors that affect project outcomes. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capers-posneg.pdf 6 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Software Productivity Research, Inc. http://www.spr.com/ 6 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT Estimating Software Costs by Capers Jones From the Back Cover: "Get a handle on skyrocketing software costs. Are your software costs spiraling out of control? Do your projects chronically run late, exceed budget, and go out the door bug-laden, if at all? Have you discovered a commercial software cost estimating tool that works for your situation? Are you even familiar with how these increasingly sophisticated tools operate? Capers Jones, a pioneer and innovator in the field, probes the fundamental issues involved with the notoriously tough task of software cost estimation. Rather than provide simplistic manual formulas that lack the accuracy needed for contracts and serious business purposes, he explores in great detail the mutifaceted variables that cause estimates to be higher or lower than average. The result for you: A clear, complete understanding of how to estimate software costs, schedules, and quality far more effectively than you may have thought possible. You'll learn the technical details of how software cost estimates are produced...what kinds of commercial tools are available...how these tools work within various project management suites...and how to troubleshoot and solve typical problems, such as: sizing the project before requirements are firm; dealing with creeping requirements; handling excessive schedule pressure; taking international factors into account; planning for contractual and legal concerns." http://www.amazon.com/Estimating-Software-Costs-Capers-Jones/dp/0071483004/ref=sr_1_1/102-4093686-4215326?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1175571363&sr=8-1 6 Aug 2007 04:00:00 GMT For better or worse, corporate governance activities have dominated executive decision-making in public companies over the past few years. Now that Sarbanes-Oxley Act Section 404 has reshaped how companies report their financials, big accounting firms and others in the governance consulting game are aggressively arguing that corporate compliance activities are merely a springboard for bringing enterprise risk management into organizations. Read more in this article by Dr. Robert Charette. (3 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-aversion.pdf 30 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT The benefits of applying risk analysis and management are obvious, but their hazards are often hidden. In this article by Dr. Robert Charette, the author outlined six risks inherent to risk analysis. (1 page) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-inside.pdf 30 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT For companies to prosper in competitive environments, merely improving the efficiency of processes will not substitute for lagging revenue growth.This is especially true for companies that depend heavily on IT. For them, it also means knowing how to take calculated risks. This is where risk entrepreneurialism comes in. Find out more in this article by Dr. Robert Charette. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-entrepreneurs.pdf 30 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT The ITABHI Corporation http://www.itabhi.com/ 30 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT IT has become an important part of organizations' strategy, competitive advantage and profitability. There is management pressure to build systems faster, better and at minimum cost. The return on investment that an organization can get from the money it spends on IT has come under increased scrutiny from senior business executives and directors. Consequently, IT now has to operate like other parts of the organization, being aware of its performance and its contribution to the organization's success and opportunities for improvement. How can IT executives achieve this without performance data? They can't. So what is it that managers need to know? Find out in this article by Peter Hill, Executive Director of the ISBSG. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/hill-data.pdf 23 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Are you still providing quotations for projects, or planning projects, with only intuition as a guide for how much time each type of project resource is likely to spend? A recent question from a customer prompted the ISBSG to look into their data repository to see if they could provide a guide for the percentage of effort that each role was likely to require during a project. This special report by the ISBSG lays out the findings of their investigation and statistical analysis.(4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ISBSG-ratios.pdf 23 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Tony Rollo proposes an alternative use of the COCOMO model to assist in the task of estimation. The generally accepted method of estimation using a functional sizing method is to base the estimate on previous project data, where those projects for a homogeneous set with the project under study. The chief difficulty is to find a sufficiently homogeneous set of projects. Research previously carried out can demonstrate that by increasing the degree of homogeneity amongst a set of projects leads to a useful reduction in the variation of the estimates. The proposal is that we may sensibly use the COCOMO cost drivers to allow us to determine a set of homogeneous projects by using a technique derived from estimation by analogy. In addition the COCOMO cost drivers may be used to allow the estimator to adjust his estimates based on the differences between the cost drivers exhibited by the available data and the project under study. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/rollo-cocomo.pdf 23 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT ISBSG http://www.isbsg.org/ 23 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Pat O'Toole is the Principal Consultant at Process Assessment, Consulting & Training (PACT) where he provides a full range of services to his process improvement clients. Pat is one of the most active CMMI lead appraisers, and has led appraisals spanning all maturity levels, including one of the largest and most complex CMM Level 5 assessment conducted to date. He is an SEI authorized instructor for the "Intro to CMMI" course who has taught this course more than 40 times in 6 countries. Pat is a Visiting Scientist at the SEI, and teaches the "Intermediate Concepts of CMMI" course on their behalf. Our interview between Patrick OToole and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, was conducted in February of 2007. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/patrickotooleinterview.pdf 16 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Why are your projects being so difficult and how can your process group achieve maturity level 2 if the projects dont get with the program? Why arent the projects helping you to achieve success? In this article by Patrick O'Toole, the first in a seven part series on "Do's and Don'ts of Process Improvement," the author answers these questions and more. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/otoole-prize.pdf 16 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Okay, so what is the higher-level business strategy? And how do you define project success? And what do you do with senior managements directive to achieve maturity level 2? Patrick O'Toole, Visiting Scientist at the SEI, addresses these questions in this article, the second in a series of seven covering "Do's and Dont's of Process Improvement." (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/otoole-alignment.pdf 16 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Pekka Forselius is a researcher and developer of project management methods and concepts, including FiSMA Scope Managemtnt, FiSMA 1.1 FSM method and the KISS Functional Size Measurement approach. He is currently business partner, CEO and project management consultant at Software Technology Transfer Finland. He is also Vice President of the international benchmarking organization ISBSG and a member of the executive committee of the COSMIC consortium. Our interview between Pekka Forselius and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in December of 2006. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-interview.pdf 9 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Typically, very few software development projects in large organizations are delivered in time and within budget. Pekka Forselius in his article introduces Seven Information and Communication Technology (ICT) project types and a method for analyzing the characteristics of an ICT development program. At the end of his article is a brief experience report. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-characteristics.pdf 9 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis is often said to be too difficult a method for software development estimation purposes. In this article, Pekka Forselius introduces the KISS approach to functional size measurement. With 28 questions about different base functional component types belonging to six classes, this approach provides a very good size estimate in a very short period of time. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-KISS.pdf 9 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT With two thirds of the world's Information and Communication Technology (ICT) projects deemed as failures, it seems that managing scope is not a common practice within Project Management. Pekka Forselius and Carol Dekkers recommend approaches and tips successfully applied worldwide that have dramatically increased the success rate on ICT projects. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/forselius-scope.pdf 9 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Organizations must be prepared to accomplish key activities when implementing a software engineering process program. Beth Layman, in her article, focuses on describing the "meta-process" that allows an organization to create, use, and improve a set of documented processes that guide software development and maintenance activities. She outlines steps that are complementary to various process improvement paradigms and frameworks. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/layman-organize.pdf 2 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Organizations using the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model (CMM) or Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI) often struggle with the apparent paradigm shift as the transition between Levels. In this article, Beth Layman and Charles Weber describe how the change in measurement approach across CMM or CMMI Levels can be a natural evolution. At each Level, project and organizational measures from the previous Levels should be refined and augmented, not replaced. (15 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/layman-CMM.pdf 2 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Beth Layman is Senior Director of Business Process Improvement at McAfee. Prior to joining McAfee, Beth worked as Senior Director at Borland and as COO of TeraQuest. Her work experience encompasses a wide range of markets and industris including commercial, government, aerospace, IT services, and product software organizations. Our interview between Beth Layman and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, was conducted in December of 2006. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/layman-interview.pdf 2 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software Measurement: Objective Information for Decision Makers From the Foreword by Barry Boehm: "PSM provides you with a way to realize the significant benefits of a software measurement program, while understanding and avoiding the risks involved with a 'blind jump.' You'll find this book a worthwhile starting point for your future software measurement initiatives, as well as a source of continuing guidance as you chart your way through the sea of complex opportunities ahead." http://www.amazon.com/Practical-Software-Measurement-Objective-Information/dp/0201715163/ref=sr_1_1/105-4972550-2448405?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1172872648&sr=1-1 2 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT As the awareness and penetration of Lean Six Sigma has increased significantly over the last several years, many organizations struggle to understand and leverage the relationships between Lean Six Sigma and several other approaches to software process improvement, including ITIL, CMMI, PMBoK, and others. Gary Gack answers the most frequently asked questions. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gack-integrate.pdf 25 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT This article, by Gary Gack, focuses on applications of Lean Six Sigma to software or technology implementation projects that may fall within the scope of the IT operations group and/or the software development group. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gack-6Sigma.pdf 25 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Gary Gack discribes the increasingly frantic emphasis on "certification" as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt as a disturbing trend. He also discusses how we're losing sight of another LSS fundamental - the need to connect LSS projects to important business results. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gack-madbelt.pdf 25 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Process-Fusion http://www.process-fusion.net/ 25 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT In Most current software estimating models still implement fundamental relationships that are based on 25 year old data and assumptions. Data from many thousands of projects have since been collected. This article by Mike Ross, CEO of r2 Estimating, documents the basis, assumptions, and derivations behind a set of general software effort, duration, and defects. (16 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ross-25yrs.pdf 18 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Developed by the Internal Control Institute, here are ten tough questions to help you make a quick self-assessment of your corporation's governance and control risk. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ross-size.pdf 18 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT The pressure to demonstrate that each new IT project will either save money, increase sales, or result in enterprise-wide efficiencies is greater than ever. Mike Ross demonstrates how to analyze projects objectively so that they can be more effectively prioritized. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ross-plan.pdf 18 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT R2 Estimating http://www.r2estimating.com/ 18 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT In the IT industry, managers and supervisors must constantly stay on the leading-edge to attract and keep the best performers. This article by Michael Pregmon, Jr., Ph.D., has a specific focus on IT Innovation and improving the software development and control process. (3 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/pregmon-QAI.pdf 11 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Developed by the Internal Control Institute, here are ten tough questions to help you make a quick self-assessment of your corporation's governance and control risk. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/pregmon-quest.pdf 11 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Pam Morris, Ceo of Total Metrics, describes a rigorous approach to software development project control by introducing functional size measurement at the planning stage and objectively quantifying the status and scope of the project and its deliverables throughout its lifecycle. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/morris-metrics.pdf 11 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT QAI Worldwide http://www.qaiworldwide.org/ 11 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Although there are many good reasons to globally distribute development activities, success is not guaranteed by just opening a development center in another region of the world. This article by Cristof Ebert and Philip De Neve summarizes and distills best practices from true global software development. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ebert-neve.pdf 4 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Global software development challenges traditional techniques of software engineering, such as peer reviews or teamwork. In this case study, Christof Ebert, Casimiro Hernandez Parro, Roland Suttels, and Harald Kolarczyk have evaluated experiences with validation activities in a global setting within Alcatel's Switching and Routing business. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ebert-glob.pdf 4 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Many enterprises view time to market and schedule prerformance as the key differentiators between market leaders and followers. Cristof Ebert shows us that a field study involving many industry projects revealed that only those that took a requirements engineering perspective in our key product life-cycle management activities were successful. (25 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/ebert-4keys.pdf 4 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Vector Consulting http://www.vector-consulting.de/ 4 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT Whether you are a function point specialist, project manager or metrics guru, one of your roles is to act as a steward of the numbers and a high priest of information. This article by Thomas M. Cagely Jr. combines stark realities of how measures can go wrong with suggestion on how to address those realities.(21 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/cagely-goodbad.pdf 25 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT Improved performance in software development can be achieved by investing in best software development practices. In this article from the March issue of the DACS Software Tech News, David Garmus and Stasia Iwanicki discuss how one organization identified the improvements by using a combination of quantitative measures and qualitative values. This article was originally published in the Software Tech News, Volume 10, No. 1, March 2007. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/gar-iwan.pdf 25 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT In an era of tight budgets and increased outsourcing, getting a good measure of an organizations productivity is a persistent management concern. In an article from the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, David M. Card discusses the key considerations for defining an effective productivity measure while exploring the relationship between quality and productivity. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/card-prod.pdf 25 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 25 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, Charles Symons, Joint Leader of the Common Software Measurement International Consortium, examines the economic benefits that could be obtained by relevant parts of the UK software industry using a metrics program to help achieve reasonable target improvements in productivity and in estimating accuracy for software development and maintenance. (10 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/symons-cosmic.pdf 21 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT Typically only the business applications layer is measured using Function Points. This article by Pam Morris, CEO of Total Metrics, Austrailia, introduces another more recent functional method known as COSMIC-FFP, which enables all the functionality that is delivered and worked on by the supplier to be included in the sizing of these contracts. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/morris-cffp.pdf 21 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, Charles Symons compares the IFPUG function point method to the most primitive counting method known to man, stating that software re-measured using the COSMIC-FFP method more properly reflects the increasing size and complexity of software functions. (2 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/symons-pcs.pdf 21 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT The Common Software Measurement International Consortium http://www.cosmicon.com/ 21 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT Function Point approximations have proved to be helpful during feasibility studies and at project starts. In this article, Manfred Bundschuh, president of the German Software Metrics Association, demonstrates the results of such approximation. (13 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/bundschuh-5LogComp.pdf 15 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, Manfred Bundschuh outlines a holistic dynamic classification framework for improving your software project estimates. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/bundschuh-framework.pdf 15 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT In this article, Manfred Bundschuh explains how to achieve expertise in IT project estimation. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/bundschuh-est.pdf 15 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT DASMA http://www.dasma.org/ 15 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT Given all of our investments in process improvement, why hasn't program performance significantly improved? Robert Charette and his colleagues Laura Dwinnell and John McGarry try to answer this question in this 2004 CrossTalk article, based on their in-depth studies of 50 large-scale Department of Defense (DoD) projects in a paper the Defense Department unsuccessfully tried to keep from being published. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-rootsppf.pdf 8 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT IT projects are notorious for consistently being over-budget, late and not meeting customer or user expectations. Is the problem one of poorly practiced software estimation or is there something else at work? Robert Charette explores the possibilities in this still timely article first published in IEEE Software in 1995. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-liars.pdf 8 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT We don't fail enough in IT. That is the provocative argument Robert Charette makes in this article from a 2004 article in Cutter consortium's IT Journal that looks at the difference between IT project failure and IT project blunders. Readers can find a link to two special issues of IT Cutter Journal on the subjects of 'IT Project Escalation' and 'When should IT projects be killed?'. (9 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charette-failsuc.pdf 8 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT ITABHI Corporation http://www.itabhi.com/ 8 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT Foreign software companies are touting certification in the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) as an important competitive advantage over local firms. This article by Ed Carroll explores the question, What should software engineers do in this difficult work environment to be competitive in the marketplace. Along the way, the author investigates the various claims of the Capability Maturity Model. (4 pages) http://www.sao.org/Resource_Center/newsletter_archive/200407_ed_carroll_will_cmmi_certification_help.php 27 Feb 2007 04:00:00 GMT Are you interested in starting a process improvement program in your organization? Or just looking to learn more about CMMI? The following article put out by the SEI can help you get started with these questions. (2 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/cmmi/adoption/cmmi-start.html 27 Feb 2007 04:00:00 GMT Serious process improvement of any kind requires a considerable investment of time and money on the part of the organizations that decide to pursue it. Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI)-based improvement is no exception, and trustworthy objective evidence about its benefits is essential for addressing a variety of concerns. Increasing numbers of organizations are considering using CMMI models but some remain skeptical about the value of any model-based process improvement. The purpose of this special report, produced by the SEI Joint Program Office in October of 2003, is two-fold: to present preliminary results about CMMI impact and to describe ongoing and future work in this area. Section 2 provides a synopsis of the case studies on which this special report is based. Section 3 follows with a brief discussion of how an organization can demonstrate the impact of CMMI-based process improvement on project performance and product quality. Section 4 presents results from a series of case studies that are publicly available and from others being conducted in collaboration with the Software Engineering Institute (SEISM). Section 5 describes other work underway at the SEI and elsewhere to provide credible evidence about the impact of process improvement based on CMMI models. Section 5 also contains a brief discussion of the limitations of the current work and plans for the future. (55 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/03.reports/pdf/03sr009-revised.pdf 27 Feb 2007 04:00:00 GMT CMMI Survival Guide: Just Enough Process Improvement by Suzanne Garcia and Richard Turner From the Publisher: "The CMMI Survival Guide is an effective resource for multiple readerships. If you are just now considering a process improvement program, with the CMMI among your options, the authors' discussion of relevant issues will enhance your business case right from the start. If you have already decided to implement the CMMI, the authors' practical knowledge will help you make the most of your efforts. Even if you are well into a CMMI implementation, but are lost, stuck, or going around in circles, the authors' valuable advice will help you regain your direction." http://www.awprofessional.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=0321422775&rl=1 27 Feb 2007 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Victor Szalvay is an introduction to the Agile school of software development, and is primarily targeted at IT Managers and CXOs with an interest in improving development productivity. The author introduces the waterfall school and compares it to various iterative methods, of which Agile is a subset. Along the way, he seeks to demonstrate the short comings of the waterfall approach while providing a solution in iterative, and more specifically, Agile methods. (11 pages) http://www.danube.com/docs/Intro_to_Agile.pdf#search=%22waterfall%20software%20method%22 13 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT Agile software development techniques are an effective response to many of the problems that still plague development projects. Agile development has come into focus recently due to the popularity of its most widely known interpretation, eXtreme Programming, but some of its foundations go back as far as 20 years. This article by Rich Mcabe and Michael Polen of the Software Productivity Consortium addresses some of the questions about agile: What is agile? Who needs to be agile? How can any project not creating small business applications seriously consider agile development? Is agile development an "all or nothing" proposition? (6 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2002/10/mccabe.html 13 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT Not every IT project lends itself to adaptive development. We must understand when adaptive development is appropriate and when predictive development is appropriate. The same question is facing many IT professionals around the world, as adaptive development gains credibility as a mainstream software development approach. As Dave Nicollette shows in this article from 2005, the answers are easy to find, but hard to interpret. (6 pages) http://www.davenicolette.net/articles/when_2b_agile.html 13 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT CIO Magazine Research Center http://www2.cio.com/research/archive.cfm?cat=all 13 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT Good overview of waterfall and iterative models: advantages, disadvantages and how to choose a model that is right for you. (11 pages) http://www.cs.rit.edu/~hpb/Scia/Bridge_2005/intro_se_workshop_materials/s2_process_models.pdf#search=%22software%20process%20models%22 6 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT This document, produced by the Center for Technology in Government, provides a more in depth overview of common system development process models, used to guide the analysis, design, development, and maintenance of information systems. There are many different methods and techniques used to direct the life cycle of a software development project and most real-world models are customized adaptations of the generic models. While each model is designed for a specific purpose or reason, most have similar goals and share many common tasks. This research paper explores the similarities and differences among these various models and will also discuss how different approaches are chosen and combined to address practical situations. http://www.ctg.albany.edu/publications/reports/survey_of_sysdev?chapter=5 6 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Air Force Software Technology Support Center http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/ 6 Nov 2006 04:00:00 GMT As IT becomes increasingly automated under the new data center architecture, more companies are embracing best practices procedures outlined in formal IT frameworks. At stake are service quality, security, regulatory compliance and other increasingly important strategic corporate goals. Find out more in this article by Bob Violino of Network World. (5 pages) http://www.networkworld.com/supp/2005/ndc1/022105frameworks.html?brl 31 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT The good news about adopting best practices is that corproations aren't limited to one method. The bad news is that companies will most likely need to adopt more than one best practice framework - or at least parts of many - if they want a complete, effective set of management process guidelines. Denise Dubie of Network World explains how ITIL can play a part in this. (5 pages) http://www.networkworld.com/news/2006/011306-mgmt-best-practices.html?brl 31 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Companies around the globe are jumping on the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) bandwagon. According to Forrester Research Inc. of Cambridge, Mass., 40 percent of $1 billion-plus companies will be implementing ITIL by the end of this year (2006). While ITIL process improvement and standardization promises to greatly upgrade service and yield cost savings, success is not guaranteed. There are, in fact, some common misconceptions or myths that could lead an organization astray. Drew Robb of Datamation outlines some of these myths in the following article from June of 2006. (7 pages) http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/netsys/article.php/3615866 31 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT The IT Infrastructure Library http://www.itil.co.uk/ 31 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Capability maturity model-based process improvements bring about significant organizational change. Managers and change agents are always looking for methods to bring about this type of change. In this article, Virinia Slavin and Paul Kimmerly draw parallels between organizational change agents (or process whisperers) and animal trainers. Some of the same techniques used to train animals can be used to lead an organization to a capability maturity model and make them change. (6 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2003/04/slavin.html 23 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Implementing development improvements may require us to make a shift in our role as managers. Top-down management where the managers take all the responsibility - make all the plans, set all the schedules, specify all the work - and then check up on their staff to make sure the work was done in the specified manner is the norm in many companies. However, once a process improvement initiative is launched, managers find that their old management habits have to change. Read more in this article by Esther Derby and Joanna Rothman. (14 pages) http://www.jrothman.com/Papers/ManagerHealThyself.html 23 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Joanna Rothman, the author discusses how various forms of resistance to process improvement can be negotiated or worked around. (3 pages) http://www.jrothman.com/Papers/SEPG97positionpaper.html 23 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Joel on Software http://www.joelonsoftware.com/Archive.html 23 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Although many view iterative and incremental development as a modern practice, its application dates as far back as the 1950s. Prominent software engineering leaders from each succeeding decade supported IID practices, and many large projects used them successfully. Find out more in this article by Vic Basili and Craig Larman. (10 pages) http://www2.umassd.edu/SWPI/xp/articles/r6047.pdf 16 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Agile Alliance Library http://agilealliancebeta.org/library 16 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Agile and Iterative Development: A Manager's Guide by Craig Larman From the Back Cover: "This is the definitive guide for managers and students to agile and iterative development methods: what they are, how they work, how to implement them - and why you should. Using statistically significant research and large-scale case studies, noted methods expert Craig Larman presents the most convincing case ever made for iterative development. Larman offers a concise, information-packed summary of the key ideas that drive all agile and iterative processes, with the details of four noteworthy iterative methods: Scrum, XP, RUP, and Evo." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0131111558/sr=1-1/qid=1155856796/ref=sr_1_1/002-8891337-3684069?ie=UTF8&s=books 16 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT A successful measurement process becomes a way of doing business. Measurement is embedded in the organization, and performance improves because people are making fact-based decisions. This article by Cheryl Jones of the US Army describes characteristics of successful measurement programs using the Practical Software and Systems Measurement Initiative guidance. (11 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2003/01/jones.html 09 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Specific software process improvement measures need to be established that best suit an organization. This article from 2005 by Joyce Statz discusses and highlights some of the guidance on measurent provided by the Practical Software and Systems Measurement community since 1998. (59 pages) http://www.psmsc.com/Downloads/TechnologyPapers/PI_Measurement_v1.0.pdf 09 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Excellent presentation produced by the US Army on lessons learned from software measurement and software process improvement initiatives. (22 pages) http://www.psmsc.com/Downloads/Other/IFPUG_PSM_Keynote%20-%20Sept%202004.pdf 09 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software and Systems Measurement http://www.psmsc.com/ 09 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software Measurement: Objective Information for Decision Makers From the Book Description: "Objective, meaningful, and quantifiable measurement is critical to the successful development of today's complex software systems. Supported by the U.S. Department of Defense and a rapidly increasing number of commercial practitioners, Practical Software Measurement (PSM) is a process for designing and implementing a project-based software measurement program. PSM provides essential information on scheduling, resource allocation, and technological performance. It enables software managers and developers to make decisions that will affect the project's outcome positively. This book is the official, definitive guide to PSM written by the leaders of the PSM development initiative. It describes the principles and practices for developing, operating, and continuously improving your organization's measurement program. It uses real-world examples to illustrate practical solutions and specific measurement techniques. This book examines the foundations of a software measurement program in depth, defining and prioritizing information needs, developing a project-specific information model, tailoring a process model to integrate measurement activities, and analyzing and understanding the results." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0321349628/sr=8-2/qid=1155838306/ref=pd_bbs_2/002-8891337-3684069?ie=UTF8 09 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Watts S. Humphrey founded the Software Process Program of the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University. He is a Fellow of the Institute and is a research scientist on its staff. From 1959 to 1986 he was associated with IBM Corporation where he was director of programming. His publications include numerous technical papers and nine books. His three most recent books are TSP: Coaching Development Teams (2006), TSP: Leading a Development Team (2005), and PSP: A Self-Improvement Process for Software Engineers (2005). Our interview between Watts Humphrey and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in the Spring of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/wattshumphreyinterview.pdf 03 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT The CMM, PSP, and TSP provide an integrated three-dimensional framework for process improvement. The CMM has 18 key process areas, and the PSP and TSP guide engineers in addressing almost all of them. These methods not only help software engineers be more effective, but also provide the in-depth understanding needed to accelerate organizational process improvement. Find out more in this article by Watts Humphrey, founder of the SEI and creator of the PSP and TSP methodologies. (17 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/features/1999/jun/Background.jun99.pdf 03 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this video presentation, Watts Humphrey discusses the ROI of Software Process Improvement, risks and exposures of software development, opportunities ahead, and how the Personal and Team Software Processes can be used to address these issues. http://www.sei.cmu.edu/videos/watts/DPWatts.mov 03 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT SEI: The Personal Software and Team Software Process http://www.sei.cmu.edu/tsp/main.html 03 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Team Software Process by Watts Humphrey From the Back Cover: "'Leaders of software-development projects face many challenges. First, you must produce a quality product on schedule and on budget. Second, you must foster and encourage a cohesive, motivated, and smoothly operating team. And third, you must maintain a clear and consistent focus on short- and long-term goals, while exemplifying quality standards and showing confidence and enthusiasm for your team and its efforts. Most importantly, as a leader, you need to feel and act responsible for your team and everything that it does. Accomplishing all these goals in a way that is rewarding for the leader and the team--while producing the results that management wants--is the motivation behind the Team Software Process (TSP). Developed by renowned quality expert Watts S. Humphrey, TSP is a set of new practices and team concepts that helps developers take the CMM and CMMI Capability Maturity Models to the next level. Not only does TSP help make software more secure, it results in an average production gain of 68 percent per project. Because of their quality, timeliness, and security, TSP-produced products can be ten to hundreds of times better than other hardware or software. In this essential guide to TSP, Humphrey uses his vast industry experience to show leaders precisely how to lead teams of software engineers trained in the Personal Software Process (PSP). He explores all aspects of effective leadership and teamwork, including building the right team for the job, the TSP launch process, following the process to produce a quality product, project reviews, and capitalizing on both the leader's and team's capabilities. Humphrey also illuminates the differences between an ineffective leader and a superb one with the objective of helping you understand, anticipate, and correct the most common leadership failings before they undermine the team." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0321349628/sr=8-2/qid=1155838306/ref=pd_bbs_2/002-8891337-3684069?ie=UTF8 03 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT Lawrence (Larry) Putnam is a renowned authority on software estimation and measurement. Larry was the first recipient of "Freiman" award for sustained superior performance in parametric estimation covering a ten-year period. He is the founder and has been President of Quantitative Software Management Inc. since 1978. Before establishing QSM, Larry had over 26 years of experience in software and hardware resource planning, estimating and allocation. Over the past 20 years, Larry has conducted extensive research into software cost estimating techniques using operations research modelling techniques to determine significant cost, schedule and reliability drivers. He has extensive experience in data collection and analysis techniques. Besides publishing over 30 papers on the subject of software estimation and measurement, Mr. Putnam has authored/co-authored many books, including Five Core Metrics: The Intelligence Behind Successful Software Management. Our interview between Larry Putnam and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in May of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/larryputnaminterview.pdf 26 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT The constant litany we hear from high-level managers about software development projects is that projects take too long and cost too much. Then they complain that they dont find out that projects are in trouble until it is too late to do anything about them. And finally they ask, Am I getting good value for the investments I am authorizing for process improvement? Well, you cant tell much just by looking. That is the nature of knowledge work. But still there is work going on. How have managers of earlier forms of project work solved this problem? Find out more in this article by Larry Putnam and Ware Myers. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/putnam-endfrustration.pdf 26 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Can managing software development be as simple as reading a brief "to-do/not-to-do" list? No. All evidence indicates that software development is especially difficult to manage. Nevertheless, in this article by Larry Putnam, the author outlines 9 "keys" for addressing issues that are fundamental to all software development projects, as well as the environments in which they are developed. More than a "to-do" list, the 9 keys provide the busy business leader with a framework for high-level planning and monitoring. There is no magic here; only guidance about what your expectations should be, what you should monitor, and how you should respond. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/putnam-effectivemanagement.pdf 26 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT QSM: Quantitative Software Management http://www.qsm.com/provisions.html 26 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Five Core Metrics: The Intelligence Behind Successful Software Management by Lawrence Putnam and Ware Myers From the Book Description: "'To succeed in the software industry, managers need to cultivate a reliable development process. By measuring what teams have achieved on previous projects, managers can more accurately set goals, make bids, and ensure the successful completion of new projects. In Five Core Metrics acclaimed long-time collaborators Lawrence H. Putnam and Ware Myers present simple but powerful measurement techniques to help software managers allocate limited resources and track progress. Drawing new findings from an extensive database of more than 6,300 software projects, the authors demonstrate how readers can control projects with just five core metrics - Time, Effort, Size, Reliability, and Process Productivity. With these metrics, managers can adjust ongoing projects to changing conditions - surprises that would otherwise cause instant failure." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0932633552/002-8891337-3684069?v=glance&n=283155 26 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Grant Rule is a founder of Software Measurement Services Ltd, specialising in project and process appraisal, performance measurement, estimating, benchmarking and continuous improvement. Grant has some 34 years experience in IT. He is a recognised authority in using quantitative methods to continuously improve the quality of the software process and its products. Grant worked with Ken Dymond to introduce the Software Engineering Institute's 'Capability Maturity Model' into the UK, and helped bring to Europe the first public 'Introduction to the CMMI' training. He has contributed to structured methods and to ISO standards, and helped improve the inter-counter consistency of counting practices for IFPUG and MkII Function Point Analysis. Our interview between Grant Rule and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in August of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/grantruleinterview.pdf 19 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Many companies in many different business sectors are reporting successful software process improvement (SPI) programs. They report return on investment (ROI) figures between 5 to 1 and 9 to 1. This article by Dr. Herb Krasner of the University of Texas at Austin summarizes software process improvement (SPI) programs which have emerged in recent years while also exploring software process improvement case studies, ROI payoff data across business sectors, and other measures of software process improvement payoff. Dr. Krasner's article provides an outstanding introduction to the topic of software process improvement (SPI) and is rich with data as well as bibliographic references (18 pages) http://www.dacs.dtic.mil/techs/roispi2/index.html 19 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Most organizations do not think of themselves as military units, and they may not use the word "enemy" to characterize their competitors. But there are competitors, and they too are aware of the existence of simulations and war games. Just as an athletic team has to worry about whether its competitors are practicing longer, harder, and smarter than they are, so every organization needs to worry about whether their competitors are war-gaming more effectively than they are. Found out more in this article by Ed Yourdon. (8 pages) http://lifelong.engr.utexas.edu/pdf/sqi/sqi.pdf 19 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Measurement Services, LTD http://www.measuresw.com/ 19 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT The ROI of Software Process Improvement: Metrics for Project Managers and Software Engineers by David Rico From the Book Description: "'The ROI of Software Process Improvement' masterfully illuminates and simplifies otherwise complex topics in ROI. It presents extremely simple, but overwhelmingly powerful metrics, models, and methods for designing professional business cases and provides hard-hitting economic justification. It explores the most popular international methods, models, and standards for software process improvement. The author's practical tutorial on the costs, benefits, and ROI of software process improvement is a soup-to-nuts guide that helps readers rapidly master powerful concepts. He demystifies esoteric concepts in ROI and provides a self-contained tutorial of ROI methods for novices as well as economic experts and a treasure-trove of value adding economic data which is missing from most popular texts." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/193215924X/sr=8-1/qid=1155778272/ref=sr_1_1/002-8891337-3684069?ie=UTF8 19 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Ed Yourdon is an internationally-recognized computer consultant, as well as the author of over 500 technical articles and 27 books, including Byte Wars, Managing High-Intensity Internet Projects, Death March, Rise and Resurrection of the American Programmer, and Decline and Fall of the American Programmer. His latest book, Outsource: Competing in the Global Productivity Race, discusses both current and future trends in offshore outsourcing, and provides practical strategies for individuals, small businesses, and the nation to cope with this unstoppable tidal wave. Our interview between Ed Yourdon and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in August of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/edyourdoninterview.pdf 12 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT When was the last time you worked on a software development project that delivered everything the user wanted, on time and within budget and also involved a "rational" nine-to-five schedule? Most of us would consider ourselves lucky if our projects were only 10% behind schedule and 10% over budget - and we only had to work 10% overtime. Far more common is the project that's 50-100% over budget and behind schedule, and that carries with it a gentle suggestion from management that everyone on the team should be putting in 50-100% overtime (i.e., a work week of 60-80 hours). At this point, and for any project that has even more extreme conditions, it's pretty clear that we've gotten involved in a "death-march" project. In this article by Ed Yourdon, the author discusses strategies for surviving such proejcts. (5 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/survivingdeathmarch.doc 12 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Most organizations do not think of themselves as military units, and they may not use the word "enemy" to characterize their competitors. But there are competitors, and they too are aware of the existence of simulations and war games. Just as an athletic team has to worry about whether its competitors are practicing longer, harder, and smarter than they are, so every organization needs to worry about whether their competitors are war-gaming more effectively than they are. Found out more in this article by Ed Yourdon. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/wargamesfinal.doc 12 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Ed Yourdon's Home Page http://www.yourdon.com/ 12 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Death March, 2nd Edition by Ed Yourdon From the Book Description: "At an alarming rate, companies continue to create death-march projects, repeatedly! What's worse is the amount of rational, intelligent people who sign up for a death-march projectsaeprojects whose schedules, estimations, budgets, and resources are so constrained or skewed that participants can hardly survive, much less succeed. In Death March, Second Edition, Ed Yourdon sheds new light on the reasons why companies spawn Death Marches and provides you with guidance to identify and survive death march projects. In his book, Yourdon covers the entire project lifecycle, systematically addressing every key issue participants face: politics, people, process, project management, and tools. No matter what your role-developer, project leader, line-of-business manager, or CxO- you'll find realistic, usable solutions." http://www.informit.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=013143635X&rl=1 12 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Charles Symons has 45 years experience in the use of computers for business and scientific purposes, in both public and private sectors, in all the major disciplines of the Information Systems function. He is currently joint project leader of COSMIC, the Common Software Measurement International Consortium. COSMIC - an informal grouping of software metrics experts - developed a method of software functional size measurement, applicable to business, real-time and infrastructure software. COSMIC-FFP is the first such new generation method to become an International Standard (ISO/IEC 19761:2003). Before leading the development of COSMIC-FFP, Charles invented the Mk II Function Point Analysis technique for sizing software requirements, which became the UK Government mandated method for software sizing and estimating. Our interview between Charles Symons and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, was conducted in June of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/charlessymonsinterview.pdf 05 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this paper by Charles Symons, creator of the Mark II Function Point, the author describes the COSMIC FFP method and how it can be used for sizing real time software requirements, and hence be leveraged as the key ingredient for project estimating and project performance measurement. (12 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/symonsestimation.pdf 05 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Kathleen Peters, the author provides an excellent introduction to the subject of software estimation. The core of the article consists of the author's analysis of the four key components of software estimation. Along the way, however, Ms. Peters compares maintenance based estimation with new development, discusses what you need to know about estimating tools, and offers some general tips for large and small projects alike. (15 pages) http://www.spc.ca/downloads/resources/estimate/estbasics.pdf 05 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT COSMIC: The Common Software Measurement International Consortium http://www.cosmicon.com/ 05 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Sizing and Estimating: Mark II FPA by Charles Symons From the Publisher: "Software Sizing and Estimating" provides everything needed to implement Mk II FPA, which was previously available only under license. Mk II FPA represents a new generation of Function Point Analysis. It provides a set of software measurement techniques suitable for sizing and estimating business applications software. This is a fully integrated and calibratable method for estimating effort, time and manpower required for software development projects, taking into account the concepts of risk analysis. Written by the originator of the method, provides the complete definition, case studies and practical tips on implementation. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471929859/sr=8-1/qid=1155703070/ref=sr_1_1/002-8891337-3684069?ie=UTF8 05 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT Dr. Barbara Kitchenham is Professor of Quantitative Software Engineering at Keele University in the UK; she is also a Senior Principal Researcher at National ICT Australia. She has worked in software engineering for nearly 30 years both in industry and academia. Her main research interest is software metrics and its application to project management, quality control, risk management and evaluation of software technologies. She is particularly interested in the limitations of technology and the practical problems associated with applying measurement technologies and experimental methods to software engineering. She is a Chartered Mathematician and Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and Its Applications. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society and a visiting professor at both the University of Durham and the Unverisity of Ulster. Our interview between Dr. Barbara Kitchenham and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in June of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/barbarakitchenhaminterview.pdf 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT A recent report on the state of the UK IT Industry based most of its findings and recommendations on expert opinion. This paper, co-authored by Barbara Kitchenham, investigates what empirical evidence exists to support the view that the rate of IT project failures is unacceptably high. It finds that most evidence related to project failure is based on convenience samples. The paper recommends adopting a more systematic approach to accumulating and reporting evidence and using quasi-experimental designs developed and used in the social sciences to improve the methodology used for undertaking large-scale empirical studies in software engineering. (7 pages) http://www.simula.no/departments/engineering/.artifacts/icse2004_kitchenham_etal.pdf 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT A recent report on the state of the UK IT Industry based most of its findings and recommendations on expert opinion. This paper, co-authored by Barbara Kitchenham, investigates what empirical evidence exists to support the view that the rate of IT project failures is unacceptably high. It finds that most evidence related to project failure is based on convenience samples. The paper recommends adopting a more systematic approach to accumulating and reporting evidence and using quasi-experimental designs developed and used in the social sciences to improve the methodology used for undertaking large-scale empirical studies in software engineering. (7 pages) http://www.simula.no/departments/engineering/.artifacts/icse2004_kitchenham_etal.pdf 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT The 2006 CIO Symposium on Software Best Practices http://www.itmpi.org/uk/ 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Process Improvement in Practice: A Handbook for IT Companies by Tore Dyb, Torgeir Dingsyr, Nils Brede Moe IT companies are challenged every day to deliver faster, better and cheaper. The customer's expectations must be met in a world where constant change in environment, organization and technology are the rule rather that the exception. A solution for meeting these challenges is to share knowledge and experience - use the company's own experience, and the experience of other companies. Process Improvement in Practice - A Handbook for IT Companies tackles the problems involved in launching these solutions. This book is designed for small IT companies who wish to start with systematic improvement. The methods and techniques in this handbook are tried in practice, and have proven to be easy to use and scalable for local needs. Managers and developers will discover useful tips to initiate improvement work efficiently. This practical handbook, designed for a professional audience composed of researchers and practitioners in industry, is based on the authors' improvement work in a range of companies since the mid-nineties. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1402078692/sr=1-2/qid=1153348036/ref=sr_1_2/104-9463599-2427166?ie=UTF8&s=books 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT David Garmus is a Principal of The David Consulting Group (DCG), an SEI CMMI Approved Transition Partner and a PSM Transition Organization that supports software development organizations in achieving software excellence with a metric-centered approach. David is an acknowledged authority in the sizing, measurement and estimation of software application development and maintenance. He serves as a Past President of the International Function Point Users Group (IFPUG) and as a member of the IFPUG Counting Practices Committee. He is also a member of QAI, PMI (and their Information Systems Specific Interest Group) SEI and the IEEE Computer Society (and their Standards Association). David is the author, along with David Herron, of Measuring The Software Process: A Practical Guide To Functional Measurements as well as Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects. Our interview between David Garmus and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in May of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/davidgarmusinterview.pdf 22 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by David Garmus will consider the use of a basic estimating model utilizing functional sizing as one of the key components. As the author explains, the value to be gained from utilizing a functional sizing technique, such as Function Points, primarily lies in the capability to accurately size and estimate a project early in the development process. (7 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/garmus-principlesofsizing.pdf 22 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT The function point method has proven to be an effective way to establish a meaningful unit-of-work measure and can be used to establish baseline costs and performance level monitors. Function point analysis centers around its ability to measure the size of any software deliverable in logical, user-oriented terms. Rather than counting lines of code, function point analysis measures the functionality being delivered to the end user. This article by David Garmus, Principal of The David Consulting Group and former President of IFPUG, will address the origination of function points as a metric and describe the counting process. (4 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/garmus-functionpointintro.pdf 22 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT The David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 22 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects by David Garmus and David Herron From the Back Cover: "Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects" is a comprehensive presentation of the principles of function point analysis and a guide to its effective use in managing the development and deployment of software. Written for both information technology practitioners and managers, it describes how to use this proven but underutilized software sizing metric to achieve successful software projects." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201699443/002-3050108-1815238?v=glance&n=283155 22 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Dr. Jeanne W. Ross is Principal Research Scientist at the MIT Center for Information Systems Research. Her research focuses on the management of the IT unit, particularly on the management of the IT infrastructure and on changes in management demanded by new technologies and new organizational forms. Much of her work involves development of case studies that describe the human, technology, and IS-business relationship resources of firms that have successfully implemented technology-based changes. Her current research focuses on the management of technology infrastructures that enable organizational transformations and on the discussion of IT value between IT and business management. Dr. Ross has served on the faculty at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and St. Norbert College. Our interview between Jeanne Ross and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, was conducted in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/jeannerossinterview.pdf 15 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT This study, by Jeanne Ross and Peter Weill of MIT, is based on a survey of CIOs at 256 enterprises and 50 case studies on how enterprises govern IT. While no simple formula offers specifications for implementing IT governance, Dr. Ross and Dr. Weill conclude in their study that thoughtful governance design can help firms deliver on their strategic objectives. (4 pages) http://mitsloan.mit.edu/cisr/pdf/Weill-Ross%20-%20Effective%20IT%20Governance-final.pdf 15 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Jeanne Ross and Peter Weill - published in CIO Magazein - the authors outline the ingredients for good IT governance (8 pages) http://www.cio.com/archive/061504/keynote.html 15 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Center for Information Systems Research, MIT http://mitsloan.mit.edu/cisr/ 15 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT IT Governance: How Top Performers Manage IT Decision Rights for Superior Results by Jeanne Ross and Peter Weill From Amazon: "Seventy percent of all IT projects fail- and scores of books have attempted to help firms measure and manage IT systems and processes better in order to turn this figure around In this book, IT experts Peter D. Weill and Jeanne W. Ross argue that the real reason IT fails to deliver value is that companies have no formal system in place for guiding and monitoring IT decisions. Their research shows that firms with explicit IT governance systems have twice the profit of firms with poor governance, given the same strategic objectives. Just as corporate governance systems aim to ensure quality decisions about corporate assets, the authors show, companies need IT governance systems to ensure that IT investments are made wisely and effectively." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591392535/sr=8-1/qid=1149278178/ref=sr_1_1/002-3110026-3032019?redirect=true&_encoding=UTF8 15 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Steve McConnell is CEO and chief software engineer at Construx Software, where he oversees software engineering practices, teaches classes, and writes books and articles. Steve is the author of the computing industry classics Code Complete and Rapid Development, both winners of Software Development magazine's Jolt award for outstanding software development books. He is also the author of Software Project Survival Guide and numerous technical articles. Steve was editor-in-chief of IEEE Software magazine from 1998 to 2002. His newest book is Software Estimation: Demystifying the Black Art. Our interview between Steve McConnell and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/stevemcconnellinterview.pdf 07 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article from IEEE Software, Steve McConnell set out to get some perspective on the best influences seen during software engineerings first 50 years. After drafting an initial list of influences, he turned to his IEEE advisory board (IEEE Software has active editorial and industrial advisory boards comprised of leading experts from around the world). What follows is their discussion of best influences on software engineering. (11 pages) http://www.stevemcconnell.com/ieeesoftware/eic09.htm 07 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT The return on investment in improved software practices is well documented. Nevertheless, the software process improvement ROI figures found in published literature are based on operational savings; that is, on reducing development cost per line of code written or per function point delivered. Although these savings are impressive, this article by Steve McConnell argues that the greater business benefit might arise from the significant indirect returns that arise from improved software practices. Better software practices improve predictability of costs and schedules, reduce risk of cost and schedule overruns, provide early warning of problems, and support better management. For a software products company, what would be the business value of improving schedule estimation accuracy from plus or minus 100 percent to plus or minus 10 percent? What would be the value of being able to make a commitment to customers six to 12 months in advance of a scheduled completion date, with high confidence of delivering on that commitment? (4 pages) http://www.stevemcconnell.com/ieeesoftware/eic24.htm 07 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Steve McConnell's Home Page http://www.stevemcconnell.com/ 07 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Estimation: Demystifying the Black Art by Steve McConnell From Amazon: "Often referred to as a "black art" because of its complexity and uncertainty, software estimation is not as hard or mysterious as people think. However, the art of creating effective cost and schedule estimates has not been very well publicized. While the average software organization can struggle with project costs that run double their original estimates, some of the more sophisticated organizations achieve results with estimation errors as low as 5-10%. These best-in-class organizations use scientific techniques that are not cost-effective, however, making them of limited use to most software development organizations. To address these issues, Steve McConnell's new book focuses on the art of software estimation and provides a proven set of procedures and heuristics that software developers, technical leads, and project managers can apply to their projects. Instead of arcane treatises and rigid modeling techniques, award-winning author Steve McConnell gives practical guidance to help organizations achieve basic estimation proficiency and lay the groundwork to continue improving project cost estimates. This book is organized from simple tips to more advanced ideas; it does not avoid the more hairy mathematical estimation approaches. Nevertheless, the non-mathematical reader will find plenty of useful guidelines without getting bogged down in complex formulas." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0735605351/ref=ase_stevemcconnelcon/002-3110026-3032019?redirect=true&s=books&v=glance&n=283155&tagActionCode=stevemcconnelcon 07 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Barry Boehm received his B.A. degree from Harvard in 1957, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from UCLA in 1961 and 1964, all in Mathematics. Between 1989 and 1992, he served within the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) as Director of the DARPA Information Science and Technology Office, and as Director of the DDR&E Software and Computer Technology Office. His current research interests include software process modeling, software requirements engineering, software architectures, software metrics and cost models, software engineering environments, and knowledge-based software engineering. His contributions to the field include the Constructive Cost Model (COCOMO), the Spiral Model of the software process, the Theory W (win-win) approach to software management and requirements determination and two advanced software engineering environments: the TRW Software Productivity System and Quantum Leap Environment. Our interview between Barry Boehm and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/barryboehminterview.pdf 01 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software design is an investment activity, and software economics is the field that seeks to enable significant improvements in software design and engineering through economic reasoning about product, process, program, and portfolio and policy issues. This article by Barry Boehm and Kevin Sullivan summarizes the state of the art and identifies shortfalls in existing knowledge. Past work focuses largely on costs, not on benefits. The authors present a roadmap for research emphasizing the need for a strategic investment approach to software engineering. They discuss how software economics can lead to fundamental improvements in software design and engineering, in both theory and practice. (24 pages) http://www.cs.virginia.edu/%7Esullivan/publications/ICSE-2000-Roadmap.PDF 01 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Center for Software Engineering: University of Southern California http://csse.usc.edu/cse/ 01 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Value Based Software Engineering Editors: Stefan Biffl, Aybuke Aurum, Barry Boehm, Hakan Erdogmus, Paul Grunbacher From Amazon: "The IT community has always struggled with questions concerning the value of an organizations investment in software and hardware. It is the goal of value-based software engineering (VBSE) to develop models and measures of value which are of use for managers, developers and users as they make tradeoff decisions between, for example, quality and cost or functionality and schedule such decisions must be economically feasible and comprehensible to the stakeholders with differing value perspectives. VBSE has its roots in work on software engineering economics, pioneered by Barry Boehm in the early 1980s. However, the emergence of a wider scope that defines VBSE is more recent. VBSE extends the merely technical ISO software engineering definition with elements not only from economics, but also from cognitive science, finance, management science, behavioural sciences, and decision sciences, giving rise to a truly multi-disciplinary framework. Biffl and his co-editors invited leading researchers and structured their contributions into three parts, following an introduction into the area by Boehm himself. They first detail the foundations of VBSE, followed by a presentation of state-of-the-art methods and techniques. The third part demonstrates the benefits of VBSE through concrete examples and case studies. This book deviates from the more anecdotal style of many management-oriented software engineering books and so appeals particularly to all readers who are interested in solid foundations for high-level aspects of software engineering decision making, i.e. to product or project managers driven by economics and to software engineering researchers and students." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/3540259937/qid=1149126404/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/102-6214886-2444950?redirect=true&s=books&v=glance&n=283155 01 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT Manfred Bundschuh is the co-author - along with Christof Ebert, Andreas Schmietendorf, and Reiner Dumke - of Best Practices in Software Measurement. For the past 20 years he has been the quality manager of AXA Service AG in Cologne, Germany. In 1983 he was appointed professor for software engineering and project management at the University of Applied Sciences in Cologne. Mr. Bundschuh is also president of the Deutschsprachige Anwendergruppe fr Softwaremetrik und Aufwandschtzung (DASMA). He lectures for various organizations and has published more than 40 papers (some in books) and 9 books (3 as co-publisher). Our interview between Manfred Bundschuh and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, was conducted in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/manfredbundschuhinterview.pdf 25 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT A good documentation of counting and estimation data is a treasure for metrics programs. Manfred Bundschuh's investigations at AXA, as documented in this paper, demonstrate that valuable metrics can be gained from such collected data. A surplus benefit, in this case, was the finding (via regression analysis) of prognosis formulae that helped AXA estimate function points very early. Since function poitns are an important measure for the estimation of effort, AXA thus gained the extra benefit of being able to conduct reliable estimates very early in the lifecycle of their IT projects. (8 pages) http://www.gm.fh-koeln.de/%7Ebundschu/bisherige_vortraege/FPProg072002.doc 25 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software maintenance is defined as the modification of a software product after delivery to correct faults, to improve performance, or to adapt the product to a changed environment. Such maintenance usually exceeds other application development costs. Nevertheless, project estimation often does not include the estimation of maintenance efforts for the lifetime of an application system. In this article by Manfred Bundschuh, President of the German Software Metrics Assocation, the author explores how metrics can be used for the estimation of software maintenance efforts. (11 pages) http://www.gm.fh-koeln.de/%7Ebundschu/bisherige_vortraege/IWSMAWA2002.doc 25 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT The German Software Metrics Association (DASMA) http://www.dasma.org/ 25 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Best Practices in Software Measurement by Christof Ebert, Reiner Dumke, Manfred Bundschuh, and Andreas Schmietendorf From the web site: "The software business is challenging enough without having to contend with recurring errors. One way repeating errors can be avoided is through effective software measurement. In this volume, Ebert and his co-authors offer practical guidance built upon insight and experience. They detail knowledge and experiences about software measurement in an easily understood, hands-on presentation and explain such current standards as: ISO 15939 (the general measurement standard), ISO 19761 (the COSMIC Full Function Points standard), and CMMI (the Capability Maturity Model). Coverage also includes several case studies, from Global 100 companies such as Alcatel, Deutsche Telekom, and Siemens. This combination of methodologies and applications makes the book ideally suited for professionals in the software industry. Besides the many practical hints and checklists readers will also appreciate the large reference list, which includes links to metrics communities where project experiences are shared. http://metrics.cs.uni-magdeburg.de/chapters_links.html 25 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT David Herron is a Principal in The David Consulting Group. Mr. Herron is an authority in areas such as Functional Measurement and Software Process Improvement. He has over 25 years of experience in software development. During the past ten years he has served as a consultant to Fortune 1000 companies in the areas of software metrics, software process improvement and applications outsourcing management. He is an acknowledged authority in the measurement and estimation of software productivity and quality, specializing in the determination of software project size, effort and cost. His engagements have supported clients on the use of metrics to monitor the impact of IT on the business, on the advancement of IT organizations to higher levels on the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model and on the governance of offshore outsourcing arrangements. Mr. Herron is also the author, along with David Garmus, of Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects. Our interview with David Herron and Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, took place in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/davidherroninterview.pdf 18 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software practitioners are frequently challenged to provide early and accurate software project estimates. It speaks poorly of the software community that the issue of accurate estimating, early in the lifecycle, has not been adequately addressed and standardized. This article by David Herron of the David Consulting Group will consider the use of a basic estimating model utilizing functional sizing as one of the key components. According to the author, the value to be gained from utilizing a functional sizing technique, such as Function Points, is primarily in the capability to accurately estimate a project early in the development process. (8 pages) http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/articles/pbestart.htm 18 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT The definition and documentation of service level measures prior to contract negotiation and signing is critical to the long-term success of an outsourcing arrangement. Frequently, these measures are established after the fact and without the critical steps of benchmarking current performance levels and creating links to business goals and objectives. In this article by David Herron of the David Consulting Group, the author describes a model to be used a suggested approach for the effective establishment of service levels in advance of an outsourcing arrangement. (5 pages) http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/articles/Cutter_SLA_Article_w.htm 18 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT The David Consulting Group http://www.davidconsultinggroup.com/ 18 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects by David Garmus and David Herron From the Back Cover: "Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects" is a comprehensive presentation of the principles of function point analysis and a guide to its effective use in managing the development and deployment of software. Written for both information technology practitioners and managers, it describes how to use this proven but underutilized software sizing metric to achieve successful software projects." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201699443/sr=8-1/qid=1146925593/ref=sr_1_1/103-6027891-2447848?redirect=true&%5Fencoding=UTF8 18 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Dr. Norman Fenton is Professor of Computing at Queen Mary (London University) and is also Chief Executive Officer of Agena, a company that specializes in risk management for critical systems. Between 1989 and March 2000 he was Professor of Computing Science at the Centre for Software Reliability, City University. He has been project manager and principal researcher in many major collaborative projects in the areas of: software metrics; formal methods; empirical software engineering; software standards, and safety critical systems. His recent research projects, however, have focused on the use of Bayesian Nets (BNs) for risk assessment. Our interview between Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, and Dr. Norman Fenton took place in March of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/normanfentoninterview.pdf 11 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT By destroying the meteor in the film Armageddon, Bruce Willis saved the world. The probability of the meteor strike was so large, and the consequences so great, that nothing much else mattered except trying to prevent the strike. Combining the probability and impact of a risk in order to define its size is standard practice. But in most cases it is irrational, and it certainly would not have explained to Bruce Willis and his crew why their mission made sense. In this article by Norman Fenton and Martin Neil, the authors explain that to get rational measures of risk you need a causal model ('risk map') that links triggers, controls, events, mitigants and consequences. Once you do this, measuring risk starts to make sense. (6 pages) http://www.agena.co.uk/resources/white_papers/Measuring_Risks.pdf 11 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Have you ever had to do a project risk assessment and not known where to start? Have you ever looked at a long list of risks and wondered how you could make more sense of it? You probably weren't helped by the literature on risk assessment. In this first of a series of articles, authors Norman Fenton and Martin Neil demonstrate how to visualise your risks by turning them into what is technically known as a causal model, Bayesian net or 'risk map.' It is best to think or risk assessment as telling a story. And it is a story that will help you understand what your risks really are. (4 pages) http://www.agena.co.uk/resources/white_papers/Visualising_Risks.pdf 11 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Agena http://www.agena.co.uk/ 11 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Metrics: A Rigorous and Practical Approach by Norman Fenton and Shari Pfleeger "This book is arranged in three parts. Part I offers the reader a basic understanding of why and how we measure. It examines and explains the fundamentals of measurement, experimentation, and data collection and analysis. Part II explores software engineering measurement in greater detail, with comprehensive information about a range of specific metrics and their uses, illustrated by a wealth of examples and case studies. Part III provides a management perspective on software measurement, explaining how to plan a measurement program, what has been successful in other organizations, and how measurement can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of techniques and tools. The book also includes an annotated bibliography, a glossary, and answers to selected exercises from the main chapters. The book is designed to suite several audiences. It is structured as the primary text book for an academic or industrial course on software metrics and quality assurance. But it is also a useful supplement for any course in software engineering. Because of its breadth, the book is a major reference book for academics and practitioners, as it makes accessible important and interesting results that have appeared only in research oriented publications. Researchers in software metrics will find special interest in the material reporting new results, and in the extensive annotated bibliography of measurement related information. Finally, the book offers help to software managers and developers who are seeking guidance on establishing or expanding a software measurement program." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0534954251/sr=8-1/qid=1146355728/ref=sr_1_1/103-4595504-6771825?redirect=true&_encoding=UTF8 11 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Rex Black is president and principal consultant of Rex Black Consulting Services, Inc., a testing and quality assurance firm serving clients such as Bank One, Cisco, Dell, and the US Department of Defense. He is also the author of Critical Testing Processes and Managing the Testing Process. Rex holds a degree in Computer Science and Engineering from UCLA. He belongs to the Association for Computer Machinery and the American Society for Quality. Our interview between Michael Milutis, Executive Director of the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute, and Rex Black took place in March of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/rexblackinterview.pdf 04 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT You know you need secure code, but how to get there? What are your security risks? What security failures and bugs do you have? What do these security risks, failures, and bugs mean? How can you reduce security risk in a way that doesn't create new problems? How do you monitor your progress over time? This article by Rex Black outlines seven steps that will allow you to answer these and other questions as you improve your software's security. (9 pages) http://www.rexblackconsulting.com/publications/Improving%20Software%20Security.pdf 04 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Testing any real world system is potentially an infinite task. Of this infinite set of possible tests, test managers need to focus on the most significant risks to system quality. These are the potential failure that are likely to occur in real-world use or would cost a lot if they did occur. This article by Rex Black describes practical ways to analyze the risks to system quality, providing guidance along the way to achieving effective and efficient testing. (17 pages) http://www.rexblackconsulting.com/publications/Quality%20Risk%20Analysis1.pdf 04 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Rex Black's Online Library http://www.rexblackconsulting.com/Pages/Library.htm 04 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT Critical Testing Processes: Plan, Prepare, Perform, Perfect by Rex Black From the back cover: "In today's rapid development environment, software testing processes play an increasingly crucial role. Where agile methodologies address a company's need to get the product out fast, testing processes address the equally important need to get the product right. In his new book, Rex Black examines the big picture and distills, from his own extensive experience, twelve testing processes that are critical to success. After each process is introduced, a case study demonstrates its use in various organizational, operational, and technological contexts. Instead of cumbersome regulations, this book provides checklists - lightweight, flexible tools for implementing process oriented testing, gathering metrics, and making incremental process changes." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201748681/sr=8-1/qid=1146340963/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-4220325-1598542?_encoding=UTF8 04 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT "What is software design?" Methodologies are not design - they are frameworks for organizing design efforts. Likewise, languages are not design - they are representations for documenting design once it has been formulated. Still curious? Find the answer in this excerpt from Robert Glass' new book "Software Conflict." (9 pages) http://www.developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/PDF/DevDotStar_Glass_CognitiveView.pdf 27 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT There is evidence that testing is still vitally important to software development, and that it probably always will be. Reviews may be more cost effective, according to recent studies, and proof of correctness (if it ever scales up to larger problems) may be more rigorous, but neither can take the place of taking the software into a near-real environment and trying it out. This excerpt from Robert Glass's new book "Software Conflict" explores what testing really means. He asserts that there are several flavors of testing, and that all too often when we speak of testing we consider far too few of those flavors. (5 pages) http://www.developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/PDF/DevDotStar_Glass_FlavorsTesting.pdf 27 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this excerpt from Robert Glass' new book "Software Conflict," the author outlines four simple steps for better software maintenance. (6 pages) http://www.developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/PDF/DevDotStar_Glass_Maintenance.pdf 27 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Developer Dot Star http://www.developerdotstar.com/ 27 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Conflict 2.0: The Art and Science of Software Engineering by Robert L. Glass From the back cover: "Software Conflict 2.0: The Art and Science of Software Engineering updates and expands a neglected classic in the field. The nearly 60 essays in this book always easily digestible, often profound, and never too serious are the work of pioneer Robert L. Glass, 50 year software veteran, and author or editor of more than 25 books, including the recent bestseller Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering. As loyal Glass readers have come to expect, Software Conflict 2.0 takes up large themes and important questions, never shying away from controversy. Robert Glass has a unique perspective, owing partly to his longevity in the field, partly to his breadth and depth of experience as a practitioner, and partly to his experiences on multiple continents crossing back and forth between the worlds of the university and the professional programming shop. No matter what unique corner of the software engineering world you call home- be it aerospace or e-commerce- whether you are a researcher, hardcore coder, consultant, or manager, Software Conflict 2.0 tackles questions and conflicts that you will recognize. Bob Glass's wide and deep perspective on the art and science of software engineering will widen and deepen your own perspective." http://www.developerdotstar.com/books/software_conflict_ways.html 27 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Over 30 plus years of commercial computing has led to the development of a series of sophisticated political games that have become a replacement for estimation as a formal process. Like all good games these "estimation games" have been passed on from generation to generation by "children" IT people learning from "adult" managers who, of course, learned the games from earlier adults. This article by The Thomsett Group explores and dissects a wide variety of these games, from "Double Dummy Spit" to "X Plus" to "Spanish Inquisition". If it's funny it's because it's true. (11 pages) http://www.thomsett.com.au/main/articles/hot/games.htm 20 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Making a schedule is something almost no programmer wants to do. The vast majority just try to get away with not making one at all. Why is this the case? Two key reasons. One, it's a real pain. Two, nobody believes that it's worth anything (except for upper management, which simultaneously believes that "no software project is ever on time.") In short, why go to all the trouble to develop a schedule if it's not going to be right and if nobody actually believes it? This article by programmer/writer Joel Spolsky seeks to answer this question while providing a simple, painless way to make schedules that are actually correct. (9 pages) http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000245.html 20 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Poor project estimation is the dirty little secret of application development. Nearly all projects are either canceled or come in over budget or behind schedule. A recent study of 100 companies found the average company completes only 37% of major IT projects on time, while only 42% finish on budget. The Standish Group International, whose 1995 Chaos Report highlighted IT project failures, found that 40% of application development projects are canceled before completion. Standish Group calculated these failed and struggling projects cost U.S. companies and government agencies $145 billion annually. While many factors are leading to poor project estimation, this article by Phillip Gordon explores two tools that can help develops improve value by turning informal record keeping into a managed process. (4 pages) http://www.informationweek.com/717/17olerr.htm 20 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT NASA: Parametric Estimating Handbook http://www1.jsc.nasa.gov/bu2/PCEHHTML/pceh.htm 20 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Estimating Software Intensive Systems: Project, Products, and Processes (SEI Series) by Richard D. Stutzke From the back cover: "Many software projects fail because their leaders don't know how to estimate, schedule, or measure them accurately. Fortunately, proven tools and techniques exist for every facet of software estimation. Estimating Software-Intensive Systems brings them together in a real-world guidebook that will help software managers, engineers, and customers immediately improve their estimates - and drive continuing improvements over time. Dick Stutzke presents here a disciplined and repeatable process that can produce accurate and complete estimates for any project, product, or process, no matter how new or unusual. Stutzke doesn't just describe formal techniques: He offers simple, easy-to-use templates, spreadsheets, and tools you can start using today to identify and estimate product size, performance, and quality - as well as project cost, schedule, and risk reserves. Stutzke shows how to quickly "get your arms around" users' problems and requirements, the structure of a solution, and the process needed to deliver it. You'll learn how to choose the most appropriate estimating techniques and tools; collect accurate data, track progress, and update estimates; and recalibrate estimating models to improve estimation accuracy. Stutzke's techniques apply whether you're creating custom in-house business software, purchasing or customizing "off-the-shelf" technology, or constructing complex, one-of-a-kind military, industrial, or commercial systems. These techniques apply to small and large projects, and to all project life cycles - from agile to plan-driven. This book will help you plan, estimate, budget, schedule, purchase, design, build, test, deploy, operate, and maintain software-intensive systems. It explains how to size software, identify all cost components, calculate the associated costs, and set a competitive price. A separate section covers topics of interest for large projects: designing an appropriate work breakdown structure, collecting data from cost accounting systems, and using earned value measurement. And an accompanying CD-ROM contains templates, supplemental notes, and Microsoft Excel spreadsheets to estimate and track projects, product characteristics, and processes. It contains an extensive bibliography and links to web resources on software estimation, measurement, and related topics. You'll find updates and even more information on this book's companion web site, http://www.sw-estimation.com. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201703122/ref=pd_sim_b_4/102-3508836-1667369?_encoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=283155 20 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Nearly every software development estimate has been, or will be, biased. Biases in the estimating process contribute to poor estimates, which can affect the success or failure of a project. Understanding the psychological impact of bias in developing software estimates is essential for information technology Project Managers and their teams. This article by David Peeters and George Dewey explores 1) how biases affect bottom-up task level effort estimates for software development; and 2) various bias-reduction strategies that can be employed to improve the quality of your software estimates. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2000/04/peeters.html 13 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT This paper by Barry Boehm and Sunita Chulani summarizes several classes of software cost estimation models and techniques: parametric models, expertise-based techniques, learning-oriented techniques, dynamics-based models, regression-based models, and composite-Bayesian techniques for integrating expertise-based and regression-based models. The primary conclusion of the paper is that no single technique is best for all situations, and that a careful comparison of the results of several approaches is most likely to produce realistic estimates. (46 pages) http://sunset.usc.edu/publications/TECHRPTS/2000/usccse2000-505/usccse2000-505.pdf 13 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software estimating is simple in concept, but difficult and complex in reality. The larger the project, the more factors there are that must be evaluated. The difficulty and complexity required for successful estimates of large software projects exceeds the capabilities of most software project managers to produce effective manual estimates. Although automated estimates often outperform human estimates in terms of accuracy, no method of estimation is totally error-free. This article by Capers Jones explores the current best practices for software cost estimation and shows how a combination of software cost estimating tools coupled with software project management tools, under the careful guidance of experienced software project managers and estimating specialists, can maximize accuracy. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2005/04/0504Jones.html 13 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT QSM Resource Page http://www.qsm.com/resources_over.htm 13 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Measures for Excellence: Reliable Software On Time, Within Budget by Lawrence H. Putnam, Ware Meyers From the book description: "This book helps you accurately measure the completion time frames for small-to-medium software development projects, with practical techniques for performing software estimates, productivity measurements and quality forecasts. It forms a common underlying methodology, helping you plan the project, create a budget, and set schedules and quality standards. Throughout, the handbook answers the management questions you've always been asking yourself about software projects, including: How long is it going to take? ... How much will it cost? ... How many people will I need? ... What is my risk on meeting the budget? ... What is my risk on meeting the schedule? Appropriate for software engineers, developers, and managers." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0135676940/sr=8-1/qid=1141537085/ref=sr_1_1/002-9192190-5890419?_encoding=UTF8 13 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT There has been much discussion in recent years about the role of software metrics in helping software organizations improve productivity and quality. In our never-ending search for simple solutions to complex problems, measurement is often seen as a panacea for our software ills. This article by Fred Koch presents a measurement strategy for software organizations that are in the early stages of establishing a software process. (2 pages) http://www.qpmg.com/metrics.htm 06 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT At a recent visit to an IT client, the new QA manager took me aside and said: "JR, here are the metrics I want to measure on a monthly basis. What do you think?" I asked him what the reactions to these measurements were. None of the managers seemed to want to measure things; no one wanted to see his measurements. He had no idea why no one was interested. I asked, "What do you want to accomplish with these measurements?" He was stumped. He'd had no idea what he wanted to do with the measurements, he just knew he wanted to collect them. (3 pages) http://www.jrothman.com/Papers/Cutter/Whattomeasure.html 06 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Benchmarking for project management should be a staple in the management practices of any successful business or organization. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that establishing useful and meaningful metrics is very much an individual decision. The optimum set of metrics depends upon the organization's strategies and technology levels as well as the particular industry and environment in which it competes. Find out more in this article from the Project Management Institute. (13 pages) http://www.paradigm-erp.com/downloads/EffectiveBenchmarkingForProjectManagement.pdf 06 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Rothman Consulting Group: Software Management Consulting http://www.jrothman.com/papers.html 06 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Project Survival Guide by Steve McConnell From the book description: "Author Steve McConnell draws on solid research and a career's worth of hard-won experience to map the surest path to your goal. Nineteen chapters in four sections cover the concepts and strategies you need for mastering the development process, including planning, design, management, quality assurance, testing, and archiving. For newcomers and seasoned project managers alike, this book draws on a vast store of techniques to create an elegantly simplified and reliable framework for project management success." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1572316217/ref=ase_processimpact/002-9192190-5890419?n=283155&tagActionCode=processimpact 06 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT Jerry Madden, Associate Director of the Flight Projects Directorate at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, collected these 100 pieces of wisdom over a number of years from various unidentified sources. Jerry Madden retired from NASA in 1995 as Associate Director of Flight Projects at Goddard Space Flight Center. Considered by many of his peers to be one of NASA's premiere project managers, Madden's reputation for frank, on-target observations of project management continues to be celebrated today. (10 pages) http://www.altisinc.com/Links/100_Rules.html 30 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Successful managers realize that they need to balance the needs of the business, the employees, and the work environment to be effective. In this article by Joanna Rothman, the author summarizes her experiences in determining the work to accomplish and planning it, managing successful relationships with the group, and managing reactions to typical management mistakes. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2003/12/0312Rothman.html 30 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Many engineering managers come to management through the technical ranks. Although they may have had plenty of engineering training and mentoring, they frequently learn management skills the hard way, through trial and error. Managers have two primary jobs: to get the best work out of the people who work for them and to create an environment that enables people to get work done (so they can do their best work). This article by Joanna Rothman describes some of the lessons she learned over the course of her career about each of these management jobs. (9 pages) http://www.jrothman.com/Papers/usefulmgmtideas.html 30 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Project Management Knowledge Base http://projectmanagement.ittoolbox.com/ 30 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams, 2nd Edition by Tom DeMarco From amazon: "Peopleware asserts that most software development projects fail because of failures within the team running them. This strikingly clear, direct book is written for software development team leaders and managers, but it's filled with enough common sense wisdom to appeal to anyone working in technology. Authors Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister include plenty of illustrative, often amusing anecdotes; their writing is light, conversational, and filled with equal portions of humor and wisdom, and there is a refreshing absence of "new age" terms and multistep programs. The advice is presented straightforwardly and ranges from simple issues of prioritization to complex ways of engendering harmony and productivity in your team. Peopleware is a short read that delivers more than many books on the subject twice its size." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0932633439/ref=pd_sim_b_3/002-9192190-5890419?_encoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=283155 30 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma is a business-driven, multi-faceted approach to process improvement, reduced costs, and increased profits. With a fundamental principle to improve customer satisfaction by reducing defects, its ultimate performance target is virtually defect-free processes and products (3.4 or fewer defective parts per million (ppm)). The Six Sigma methodology, consisting of the steps "Define - Measure - Analyze - Improve - Control," is the roadmap to achieving this goal. Within this improvement framework, it is the responsibility of the improvement team to identify the process, the definition of defect, and the corresponding measurements. This degree of flexibility enables the Six Sigma method, along with its toolkit, to easily integrate with existing models of software process implementation. This overview, produced by the SEI, provides good introductory background on Six Sigma along with a list of useful references for further reading. (7 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/str/descriptions/sigma6_body.html 23 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Parts one and two of this four part series by Dave Hallowell of Six Sigma Advantage surveyed the work connected with several goals shared by software organizations and Six Sigma. He explains how reaching those goals involves establishing systems to identify defects, classify them according to type and point of origin, predict their occurrence, and assess actual defect find rates during development.Until an organization achieves goals 1-3 and derives the business benefits associated with reduced defect repair costs, it probably isn't ready to delve into the ins and outs of Defects per Unit (DPU), Defects per Million Opportunities (DPMO), and Sigma levels. Once goals 1-3 are achieved, however, the organization is prepared to tackle those Six Sigma concepts, understand how they work, and determine where they apply within the software development environment. This article, which represents part three in Dave's series, explores goals four and five. (6 pages) http://software.isixsigma.com/library/content/c031015a.asp 23 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article is the last in a four part series by Dave Hallowell of Six Sigma Advantage. It presents a discussion of Opportunities For Defects (OFD), Defects Per Million Opportunities (DPMO) and Sigma levels. When comparing implementations across companies, the common language of DPMO and Sigma levels will assist in understanding benchmarking data. Parts one, two and three followed a progression of goals shared by both software development and Six Sigma: 1) reducing released defects; 2) finding and fixing defects closer to their point of origin; 3) predicting and tracking defect appearance and removal rates and repair costs; 4) comparing implementations within the company; and 5) comparing implementations across companies. (6 pages) http://software.isixsigma.com/library/content/c031029a.asp 23 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT The International Society for Six Sigma Professionals http://www.isssp.com/ 23 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Fundamental Concepts for the Software Quality Engineer by Taz Daughtrey From the book description: "'Fundamental Concepts for the Software Quality Engineer' is a collection of the best articles on software quality, taken from the professional journal 'The Software Quality Professional' and recent International Conferences on Software Quality, and compiled by Taz Daughtrey, editor-in-chief of the Software Quality Professional. This book offers insights from over thirty leaders in industry and academia with practical real-world experience, and each article in this book has been peer-reviewed for technical content, assuring that the content is accurate and time-worthy. Each section of the book is arranged to follow the ASQ Certified Software Quality Engineer Body of Knowledge, giving the book a logical organization, and making this an outstanding overview of the content in the ASQ CSQE exam." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0873895215/qid=1140759174/sr=2-3/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_3/002-9192190-5890419?s=books&v=glance&n=283155 23 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma is an approach to business improvement that includes a philosophy, a set of metrics, and an improvement framework (also called a toolkit). Its philosophy is to improve customer satisfaction by eliminating and preventing defects, resulting in increased profitability. As Six Sigma evolves from an improvement framework for the manufacturing sector to one that can be applied across all levels of an enterprise, the SEI is looking at ways that Six Sigma has benefited software and systems development. Find out more in this article by Lauren Heinz. (3 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/news-at-sei/features/2004/1/feature-3.htm 16 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma brings sharp focus to customer and business requirements as well as the defects associated with the failure to satisfy these requirements. While the relevance of this is clear enough to most software professionals, most software professionals stop short when attempting to figure out how notions of yield, sigma level, or defects per million opportunities (DPMO) fit their world. This article is the first in a four part series by Dave Hallowell of Six Sigma Advantage. (6 pages) http://software.isixsigma.com/library/content/c030910a.asp 16 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Part 1 in this series on software defect metrics focused on the goal of identifying and removing defects in the development process as close to the point of occurrence as possible. This second installment by Dave Hallowell of Six Sigma Advantage examines the prediction of defect insertion and removal dynamics as well as the assessment of actual defect find rates. (7 pages) http://software.isixsigma.com/library/content/c031001a.asp 16 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT The GE Six Sigma Home Page http://www.ge.com/en/company/companyinfo/quality/whatis.htm 16 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Quality Assurance: From Theory to Implementation by Daniel Galin From the book description: "Software quality assurance (SQA) systems are vital for software developers in the software and the electronics industries as well as for information systems divisions in organizations. This book, based on many years of consulting and teaching experience, is designed to serve three audiences: students at universities and colleges, participants in vocational training courses in the industry and practitioners/professionals. Each chapter will conclude with commonly raised questions, problems, short case studies, and topics for discussion. The methodology to be presented in the book conforms with the requirements of ISO 9000 standards (ISO 9001 Quality Management and Quality Assurance Standard and of ISO 9000-3 Guidelines for the Application of ISO 9001 to the Development, Supply, Installation and Maintenance of Computer Software). The topics that will be covered will conform with the requirements of most vocational training programs (e.g.. the American Society for Quality's training program for Certified Software Quality Engineers). The book is designed to include in its appendices a collection of useful templates and checklists containing items of great interest to practitioners and students, and is accompanied with an Instructor's Guide containing lesson planning guidelines, guides for conducting discussions, OHPs and test material. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201709457/ref=pd_sim_b_1/002-9192190-5890419?_encoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=283155 16 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT This is the first part of a three-part article by Watts Humphrey on methods of software process improvement that were developed at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI): the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) for software, the Personal Software Process (PSP)sm, and the Team Software Process (TSP)sm. The CMM provides an overall framework to describe the activities software organizations need to do to consistently produce effective results; the PSP helps engineers use process principles in their personal work; the TSP shows integrated product teams how to use these processes to consistently produce quality products on aggressive schedules and for their planned costs. Each method provides important benefits; organizations will get the best results by using all three. (7 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/1998/02/processimp.asp 9 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Part I of this article by Watts Humphrey described the Capability Maturity Model, why it was developed, and how it can help organizations improve their performance. Part II addresses the Personal Software Process (PSP)SM, which shows engineers how to perform their tasks in an effective and professional way. In the final analysis, to have high-performance software organizations, you must have high-performance software engineers working on high-performance software teams. The objective of the PSP is to show software engineers how to use process principles in their work. Part III of this article describes the Team Software Process, which shows integrated product teams how to consistently produce quality products under aggressive schedules and for their planned costs. (9 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/1998/03/dimensions.asp 9 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Part I of this article by Watts Humphrey described the Capability Maturity Model (CMM), and Part II addressed the Personal Software Process (PSP)SM. The CMM provides an overall framework that has helped many organizations improve their performance and the PSP shows engineers how to use process principles in doing their personal work. Part III describes the Team Software Process, which shows integrated product teams how to use these processes to consistently produce quality products on aggressive schedules and for their planned costs. (8 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/1998/04/dimensions.asp 9 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Watts Humphrey Software Quality Institute http://www.watts-sqi.org/ 9 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Introduction to the Personal Software Process by Watts Humphrey From amazon: "Introduction To The Personal Software Process provides help for software engineers at all levels of experience, from students to experienced professionals, helping them become far more effective by allowing them to manage their work habits and personal software management techniques. It provides advice and guidance from one of the world's leading software process and software quality experts while providing practical exercises for improving personal skills. Support materials are freely available on the Addison-Wesley website at http://www.awl.com/cseng including copies of the forms illustrated in the book and spreadsheets for the exercises." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201548097/sr=8-6/qid=1140749466/ref=pd_bbs_6/002-9192190-5890419?%5Fencoding=UTF8 9 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT In every industry maintenance tends to require more personnel than those building new products. For the software industry the number of personnel required to perform maintenance is unusually large and may soon top 75% of all technical software workers. The main reasons for the high maintenance efforts in the software industry are the intrinsic difficulties of working with aging software, and the growing impact of "mass updates" that began with the roll-out of the Euro and the arrival of the year 2000 problem. However, as Capers Jones explains in this article from February 2006 04:00:00 GMT, similar mass-updates will occur in the future as we run out of telephone numbers and social security numbers. (19 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/capersjones-maintenance.pdf 2 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article from 2004, Alain April, Jane Huffman Hayes, and Reiner Dumke address the assessment and improvement of the software maintenance function by proposing improvements to the software maintenance standards and introducing a proposed maturity model for daily software maintenance activities. This model addresses the unique activities of software maintenance while preserving a structure similar to that of the CMMi maturity model. It is designed to be used as a complement to the model. (30 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/alainapril-maintenancemodel.pdf 2 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Measuring and evaluating the stability of maintenance processes is important because of the recognized relationship between process quality and product quality. Maintenance is performed continuously and the stability of the maintenance process has an effect on product reliability. Nevertheless, a maintenance process can quickly become unstable because the very act of installing software changes the environment. Programs must be adaptable to change and the resultant change process must be planned and controlled. This article from 1999 by Norman F. Schneidewind, IEEE Fellow and Director of the Software Metrics Research Center of the Naval Postgraduate School, analyzes the stability of the NASA Shuttle software maintenance process and considers the reliability of the software that the process produces. (22 pages) http://www.dacs.dtic.mil/topics/reliability/IEEETrans.pdf 2 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT SWEBOK: The Software Engineering Body of Knowledge http://www.swebok.org/ 2 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Engineering, Vol. 2: The Supporting Processes by Richard H. Thayer This second volume on software engineering processes includes reprinted and newly authored papers that describe the supporting life cycle processes that can prepare individuals to take the IEEE Computer Society Certified Software Development Professional examination. Volume 2 details the eight supporting life cycle processes that developers need to employ and execute in the engineering of software products. This required support plays an integral part and has a distinct purpose that affects the overall success and quality of the software project. The eight supporting processes covered in this include the documentation, configuration management, quality assurance, verification, validation, joint review, audit, and problem resolution. In addition, this tutorial covers the four processes of the organizational life cycle. These are used to establish and implement an underlying structure made up of associated life cycle processes and personnel that will continuously improve upon the structure and process of the project. These organizational processes are management, infrastructure, improvement, and training. Each chapter in this book starts by introducing the subject, supporting papers, and standards. The backbone for this publication is IEEE/EIA Standard 12207-1997, Standard for Information TechnologySoftware Life Cycle Processes. http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-047168418X.html 2 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT Michael V. Hmel is Senior Vice President, Information Systems, and Chief Information Officer for FedEx Ground, Inc. As Senior Vice President and CIO, Mr. Hmel is responsible for coordinating all information technology services for FedEx Ground, FedEx Home Delivery, FedEx Supply Chain Services and FedEx SmartPost in the U.S. and Canada. In this interview with Michael Milutis, Executive Director of The IT Metrics and Productivity Institute (ITMPI), Mr. Hmel discusses how FedEx Ground manages IT with metrics and how a software managed maintenance program that FedEx Ground embarked upon in 1996 continues to yield results to the present day. Our interview with Mr. Hmel was conducted in April of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/mikehmelinterview.pdf 25 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Maintenance suffers from an image problem due to the fact that although software has been maintained for years, relatively little is written about the topic. Little funding for research about software maintenance exists; thus, the academic community publishes relatively few papers on the subject. Maintenance organizations within business publish even less because of the corporate fear of giving away the "competitive edge". Although there are some textbooks on software maintenance, they are relatively few and far between (examples are included in the bibliography). Periodicals address the topic infrequently and few universities include software maintenance explicitly in their degree programmes . This lack of published information contributes to the misunderstandings and misconceptions that people have about software maintenance. Part of the confusion about software maintenance relates to its definition; when it begins, when it ends and how it relates to development. This succinct online "course" in Software Maintenance attempts to shed light on some of these basic questions. http://elearning.tvm.tcs.co.in/SMaintenance/SMaintenance/sm_contents.htm 25 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT In the past, systems have been constructed in an ad-hoc manner, with individual developments having no common strategy to enable the best use of support resources. A strategy, therefore, which focuses on the long-term support of systems rather than purely rapid development would be a worthwhile design goal from an architectural and financial viewpoint. Find out more in this article by Carl Allen. (3 pages) http://www.bcs.org/server.php?show=ConWebDoc.3063 25 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT The British Computer Society http://www.bcs.org/ 25 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Improving Software Quality: An Insider's Guide to TQM by Lowell Jay Arthur From the Book Description: "Do you want to cut development and maintenance cycle times by 50% or more? Do you want to reduce costs by 50% or more? Do you want to virtually eliminate software defects and related reliability problems? Do you want to get out from under the burden of your existing software? Then, you need this book to an insiders guide to Total Quality Management. Improving Software Quality tells you how to apply Total Quality Management (TQM) to software development and evolution. You'll find out how to translate the manufacturing orientation of existing TQM material into a software environment with extensive examples for both development and maintenance. Using the Software Engineering Institutes assessment (SEI), you'll learn how to quickly benchmark your existing software organization against the best in the world and begin to implement proven action plans to establish a baseline of excellence." 25 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Offshore outsourcing is growing at 20%-25% per annum and will most likely continue to grow as a labor arbitrage model until 2009. However, as IT organizations consider the vast benefits and allure of offshore outsourcing, they must balance the risks and uncertainties with the potentials. This article by Dean Davison from December of 2003 outlines the ten top risk factors for offshore projects. (3 pages) http://techupdate.zdnet.com/techupdate/stories/main/Top_10_Risks_Offshore_Outsourcing.html 18 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Without a complete and proper understanding of offshore outsourcing's genuine complexity, hidden risks and costs will blindside IT decision makers and prevent attainment of anticipated wage savings. This whitepaper by Michael Milutis, IT Metrics and Productivity Institute Executive Director, seeks to explore some of these costs and risks so that IT decision makers can formulate realistic offshore expectations before making the decision to go offshore. Global IT management is complex, but realistic expectations and proper planning will increase the probability of achieving your objectives without sacrificing either higher quality or lower costs. (6 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/offshorerisks.pdf 18 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Companies embracing offshore outsourcing for their application development and maintenance support should begin applying "risk portfolio assessment" to mitigate the risk created by deploying IT development across multiple geographies. Such an assessment involves the application of established stock portfolio management concepts to a company's portfolio of outsourcing initiatives in order to reduce overall risk through diversification. The aim is to position IT development in different geographies in order to maximize operational cost savings while managing the risk of project or business interruption. http://www.darwinmag.com/read/060103/risk.html 18 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT CIO Magazine: Outsourcing Resource Center http://www.cio.com/sourcing/outsourcing/ 18 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Offshoring Information Technology: Sourcing and Outsourcing to a Global Workforce by Erran Carmel and Paul Tjia The decision to source software development to an overseas firm (offshoring) is looked at frequently in simple economic terms - it's cheaper, and skilled labor is easier to find. In practice, however, offshoring is fraught with difficulties. As well as the considerable challenge of controlling projects at a distance, there are differences in culture, language, business methods, and politics to contend with. Nevertheless, as many firms have discovered, the benefits of getting it right are too great to ignore. This book explains everything you need to know to put offshoring into practice, avoid the pitfalls, and develop effective working relationships. It covers a comprehensive range of the important offshoring issues: from ROI to strategy, from SLA to culture, from country comparisons to provider marketing. Written for CTOs, CIOs, consultants, and other IT executives, this book is also an excellent introduction to sourcing for business students. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0521843553/ref=pd_sbs_b_2/002-5862941-5800068?_encoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=283155 18 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Developing software is seldom an easy task. Each project entails unique demands, challenges, and problems. Failure to predict and prevent risks can lead to costly delays, revenue loss, increased stress on team members, a lesser product and even outright project failure. Nevertheless, although each project may have its own requirements, the characteristics of effective risk management remain the same. This article by George Holt aims to help practitioners identify risks and develop solutions before and during the development process, in order to maximize the team's efficiency and the quality of the finished product. (6 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2000/08/holt.html 11 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT This paper, produced by Larry Hyatt and Linda Rosenberg of NASA's Software Assurance Technology Center, outlines and explains a Software Quality Model and then uses this model as a basis for discussions of quality attributes and risks. Risks that can be determined by a metrics program are identified and classified. The software product quality attributes are then defined and related to the risks. Specific quality attributes are selected based on their importance to the project and their ability to be quantified. Finally, the risks and quality attributes are used to derive a core set of metrics relating to the development process and the products, such as requirement documents, design documents, code plans and test plans. Measurements for each metric are defined and their usability and applicability are discussed. (23 pages) http://satc.gsfc.nasa.gov/support/STC_APR96/qualtiy/stc_qual.html 11 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT There is a lot heard about the risk of not writing requirements, but little about how to profit from making risk management integral to the requirements process. In this article, Tom Demarco and Tim Lister attempt to redress that imbalance by explaining the role that requirements must play in honest risk management. (3 pages) http://www.systemsguild.com/pdfs/s5req.lo%201.pdf 11 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT The American Society for Quality's Software Risk Management Training Site http://www.asq.org/on-site-training/topics/software_risk_management.html 11 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Waltzing with Bears: Managing Risk on Software Projects by Tom Demarco and Timothy Lister Greater risk brings greater reward, especially in software development. A company that runs away from risk will soon find itself lagging behind its more adventurous competition. By ignoring the threat of negative outcomes in the name of positive thinking or a can-do attitude software managers drive their organizations into the ground. In Waltzing with Bears, Tom DeMarco and Timothy Listerthe best-selling authors of Peopleware show readers how to identify and embrace worthwhile risks. Developers are then set free to push the limits. The authors present the benefits of risk management, including that it: makes aggressive risk-taking possible; protects management from getting blindsided; provides minimum-cost downside protection; reveals invisible transfers of responsibility and; isolates the failure of a subproject. Readers are armed with strategies for confronting the most common risks that software projects face: schedule flaws; requirements inflation; turnover; specification breakdown and; under-performance. Waltzing with Bears will help you mitigate the risks before they turn into project-killing problems. Risks are out there and they should be there but there is a way to manage them. http://www.dorsethouse.com/features/interviews/intwaltz.html 11 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Dr. Robert Charette is an internationally acknowledged authority and pioneer in information systems and technology, systems engineering, risk management, and the lean development & management of large-scale software-intensive systems. He is currently President of the ITABHI Corporation, an international high technology consulting company. Dr. Charette is the author of Software Engineering Environments: Concepts and Technology (1986), Software Engineering Risk Analysis & Management (1989), Applications Strategies for Risk Analysis (1990), and Introduction to the Management of Risk (1994). Our interview with Dr. Charette took place in November of 2005. http://www.compaid.com/caiinternet/ezine/robertcharetteinterview1.pdf 04 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Every systems and software project involves risk. Often, how you manage your program risks is a deciding factor in the eventual success or failure of your program. If you ignore the risks, your program has a higher chance of failing. On the other hand, if you try to track and manage all possible risks, you can expend your entire budget managing the risks, and never produce a deliverable. Risk management, like any other element of systems and software development, requires forethought and careful planning. This article by Theron Leishman and Dr. David Cook explains what risk management is, and then discusses some common developmental risks. (8 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2004/05/0405Leishman.html 04 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT In this article by Robert Ferguson of the Software Engineering Institute, a risk metric is proposed that is normalized across projects. The purpose of the metric is to provide management visibility into project uncertainty. This works best in an organization that manages multiple projects. The proposed metric can be applied early and throughout the project. It has been useful for identifying or canceling projects in trouble. It has also been useful for identifying projects that do not yet have a satisfactory risk plan. (8 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/2004/04/0404Ferguson.html 04 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT DACS Center for Software Risk Management http://www.dacs.dtic.mil/databases/url/key.php?keycode=270 04 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Assessment and Control of Software Risks by Capers Jones From the back cover: "This handbook summarizes more than 50 of the major problems of building and maintaining software projects, and outlines the prevention/control 'therapies' available. Considers in depth the software-related risks in the domains of methodologies, tools, organization structures, skills and specialization, client relations, and sociological issues. For software managers and software professionals in software engineering, software quality assurance, and related software areas." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0137414064/qid=902337956/sr=1-3/002-5862941-5800068?n=283155 04 Apr 2006 04:00:00 GMT Understanding software size is the key to understanding both software productivity and software quality. But without a reliable software sizing metric, relative changes in both software productivity (Function Points per Work Month) and software quality (Defects per Function Point) can not be calculated. In this article by the International Function Point User's Group, the basic objectives, characteristics, and components of function points and function point analysis are examined. (7 pages) http://www.ifpug.com/fpafund.htm 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by the International Function Point User's Group seeks to outline and illuminate some of the broader uses of function points, from understanding scope creep to developing a standard set of software metrics to even helping with contract negotiations. (7 pages) http://www.ifpug.com/Articles/using.htm 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This document, put together and managed by Ray Boehm of the International Function Point Users Group, provides visibility into the growing body of function point related questions that are frequently raised by IT professionals. An extraordinarily useful resource, it gives clear and in depth answers to frequently asked function point questions while also providing a listing of on-line and print resources. (30 pages) http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/softcomp/fpfaq.htm 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT The International Function Point User's Group http://www.ifpug.org/ 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects by David Garmus and David Herron From the Back Cover: "Function Point Analysis: Measurement Practices for Successful Software Projects" is a comprehensive presentation of the principles of function point analysis and a guide to its effective use in managing the development and deployment of software. Written for both information technology practitioners and managers, it describes how to use this proven but underutilized software sizing metric to achieve successful software projects. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0138218447/sr=8-6/qid=1139708359/ref=pd_bbs_6/002-5862941-5800068?_encoding=UTF8 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This software metrics report by Donald R. McAndrews of the Software Process Measurement Project presents guidelines for establishing a software measurement process as part of an organizations overall software process. Methods are suggested that can be used to design a repeatable software measurement process. This report also suggests some steps for starting a software measurement program. (46 pages) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201699443/qid=1111023825/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-5862941-5800068?s=books&v=glance&n=283155 28 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT If software metrics are to provide useful information, everyone involved in designing, implementing, collecting data for and utilizing software metrics must understand their definition and purpose. This paper by Linda L. Westfall of Software Measurement Services outlines seven steps for documenting the design of software metrics in order to insure this understanding. Areas covered include software measurement objectives, software measurement definitions, software measurement models, counting criteria, software measurement success criteria, software measurement reporting, and the human factor. (6 pages) http://www.benchmarkqa.com/PDFs/software_metric.pdf 23 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by Dr. Karl E. Wiegers of Process Impact identifies ten software metrics traps that can sabotage unsuspecting software metrics practitioners. Several symptoms of each software metrics trap are described along with some possible solutions. By being aware of these common software metrics risks, software metrics practitioners can chart a course toward successful measurement of their organization's software development activities. (9 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/mtraps.html 23 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Common Software Measurement International Consortium http://www.cosmicon.com/ 23 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Metrics: Establishing a Company-Wide Program by Robert B. Grady, Deborah L. Caswell From the Forward by Tom DeMarco: "...Fortunately, there are at least a few examples of sensible approaches to measurement, and one of the most compelling of these is described in Software Metrics: Establishing a Company-Wide Program." This book tells of one company's need for a measurable, controllable software process and of the very professional effort the company mounted to meet that need. If the effort had been less ambitious, this book would have ended its days as a long memo, of interest only within the authors' company. But the approach was so broad and so multi-faceted that it covers most of the ground necessary to set up such a program in any company. It tells of the metrics chosen, the tools used to collect and digest them, the selling job to get people involved, the forms, the training sequences, the documentation, the results and the costs." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0138218447/sr=8-6/qid=1139708359/ref=pd_bbs_6/002-5862941-5800068?_encoding=UTF8 23 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Metrics: A Guide to Planning, Analysis, and Applicationby C.R. Pandian From the Book Description: "This book simplifies software measurement and explains its value as a tool for decision-makers at software companies. The techniques presented in this book are derived from best practices. The ideas are field proven, down to earth, and straight forward, making it an invaluable resource for those striving for process improvement. This overview helps readers enrich their knowledge of measurements and analysis, best practices, and demonstrates how ordinary analysis techniques can be applied to achieve extraordinary results. Easy-to-understand tools and techniques show how metrics create models that are indispensable to decision-making in the software industry." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0849316618/sr=8-16/qid=1139704717/ref=sr_1_16/002-0106436-3224068?_encoding=UTF8 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Westfall Team: Partnering for Excellence in Software http://www.westfallteam.com/ 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software metrics don't solve problems - people solve problems. What software metrics can do is provide information so you can make informed decisions and better choices. According to the new ISO/IEC 15939 Software Measurement Process standard, decision criteria are the thresholds, targets, or patterns used to determine the need for action or further investigation, or to describe the level of confidence in a given result. In other words, you need decision criteria to obtain guidance that will help you interpret the measurement results. This paper by Linda Westfall shows you how to establish useful decision criteria for different types of metrics. (13 pages) http://www.westfallteam.com/Papers/Are_We_Doing_Well.pdf 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Linda Westfall's "12 Steps to Useful Software Metrics" introduces the reader to a practical process for establishing and tailoring a software metrics program that focuses on goals and information needs. The process provides a practical, systematic, start-to-finish method of selecting, designing and implementing software metrics. It outlines a cookbook method that the reader can use to simplify the journey from software metrics in concept to delivered information. (13 pages) http://www.westfallteam.com/Papers/12_steps_paper.pdf 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Linda Westfall is an expert software metrics practitioner and President of The Westfall Team. Her specialties include Software Quality Engineering, Metrics, Project & Risk Management, Requirements Engineering & Management, Peer Reviews, Testing, and Process Definition & Improvement. Linda has more than twenty years of experience in real time software engineering, quality and metrics. She is the past Chair of the American Society for Quality (ASQ) Software Division. Our interview between Ms. Westfall and Michael Milutis, the IT Metrics and Productivity Institute's Executive Director, took place in November of 2005. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/lindawestfallinterview1.pdf 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Metrics: Establishing a Company-Wide Program by Robert B. Grady, Deborah L. Caswell From the Forward by Tom DeMarco: "...Fortunately, there are at least a few examples of sensible approaches to measurement, and one of the most compelling of these is described in Software Metrics: Establishing a Company-Wide Program." This book tells of one company's need for a measurable, controllable software process and of the very professional effort the company mounted to meet that need. If the effort had been less ambitious, this book would have ended its days as a long memo, of interest only within the authors' company. But the approach was so broad and so multi-faceted that it covers most of the ground necessary to set up such a program in any company. It tells of the metrics chosen, the tools used to collect and digest them, the selling job to get people involved, the forms, the training sequences, the documentation, the results and the costs." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0138218447/sr=8-6/qid=1139708359/ref=pd_bbs_6/002-0106436-3224068?_encoding=UTF8 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Common Software Measurement International Consortium http://www.cosmicon.com/ 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by Karl E. Wiegers of Process Impact identifies ten traps that can sabotage unsuspecting metrics practitioners. Several symptoms of each trap are described along with some possible solutions. By being aware of these common risks, you can chart a course toward successful measurement of your organizations software development activities. (9 pages) http://www.processimpact.com/articles/mtraps.html 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT If metrics are to provide useful information, everyone involved in designing, implementing, collecting data for and utilizing software metrics must understand their definition and purpose. This paper by Linda L. Westfall of Software Measurement Services outlines seven steps for documenting the design of software metrics in order to insure this understanding. Areas covered include objectives, basic definitions, models, counting criteria, success criteria, metrics reporting, and the human factor. (6 pages) http://www.benchmarkqa.com/PDFs/software_metric.pdf 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This report by Donald R. McAndrews of the Software Process Measurement Project presents guidelines for establishing a measurement process as part of an organizations overall software process. Methods are suggested that can be used to design a repeatable measurement process. This report also suggests some steps for starting a measurement program. (46 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/93.reports/pdf/tr16.93.pdf 22 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Dr. Howard A. Rubin is a Gartner Senior Advisor and Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at Hunter College of the City University of New York. He is also a former Board member and Executive Vice President of META Group. After years of experience and research, Dr. Rubin has managed to collect and organize data into what may well be the world's largest information technology benchmarking and trend tracking IT and business database. The database draws on data gathered through a network of more than 30,000 professionals across 10,000 companies and 50 countries. Our interview with Dr. Rubin, which covers subjects ranging from technology benchmarking to global IT spending patterns to the future of the software engineering discipline itself, took place in January of 2006. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/howardrubininterview1.pdf 08 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This report, produced by Dr. Howard Rubin and Jed Rubin, provides a high level overview of the findings from the 2006 04:00:00 GMT edition of the Worldwide IT Benchmark Report, including key spending and staffing trends by industry and geography. (38 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/worldwide_benchmark_report_2006.pdf 08 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT This presentation by Dr. Howard Rubin explores the following subjects: 1) Definition of Benchmarking; 2) Historical View of IT Spending; 3) A View of How and What to Benchmark; 4) Integrated Measurement - The New IT Scorecard; and 5) Benchmarking, Measurement, Agility, and Competitive Advantage. (57 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/benchmarking_breakthroughs.pdf 08 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT SEI's Software Engineering Information Repository http://seir.sei.cmu.edu/ 08 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Benchmark Release 8 "The Benchmark Release 8 analyses the factors that affect software project duration as well as the quality & productivity of software projects, whether in terms of development, enhancement, or package customisation. The information in this book will help you with: Future project estimations Software project risk analysis Development contract negotiations Assessment of the impact to project duration of platforms, languages and tools The content of this book is based on the information that the International Software Benchmarking Standards Group has gathered on 2,027 software projects from around the world. In this Benchmark release you can find answers to the following questions: Is project duration (time to market) now the main priority? How are faster project delivery times achieved? Is productivity compromised to achieve faster delivery? If I buy a software package, what will be the impact of customisation compared to turnkey implementation? What project characteristics influence the rate of defects in software? What defect rate can I set as acceptable for my out-sourcing or in-house development agreements? What is the post-implementation cost of high defect software? What level of function point output can I expect from a developer? http://www.isbsg.org/isbsg.nsf/weben/The%20Benchmark%20Release%208%20book 08 Mar 2006 04:00:00 GMT Quality Software Project Management by Robert T. Futrell, Donald F. Shafer, Linda I. Shafer From the Preface: "Quality Software Project Management was written by and for software practitioners who need a hands-on guide to the non-deterministic but leading-edge task of managing software development projects. The book takes its overall outline from the successful Software Project Management (SWPM) certification program at The University of Texas at Austin's Software Quality Institute, a division of the College of Engineering's Center for Lifelong Engineering Education (CLEE). If you are a professor or instructor of software engineering, this text will suffice for a semester-long course in software engineering plus project management. The bodies of knowledge for project management, software engineering, and software quality, recognized by several professional societies (IEEE, SEI, PMI, ASQ) are presented in a clear and explanatory style." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0130912972/sr=1-1/qid=1139018442/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-4978267-0465722?_encoding=UTF8 28 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Athens Group http://www.athensgroup.com/index.htm 28 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software risk management is the formal process in which risk factors are systematically identified, assessed, and mitigated. The determination of the risk in a project either due to external or internal causes is a major part of project management. This article by Don Shafer, IEEE Computer Society Editor-in-Chief, seeks to aid the project manager in risk determination and management, by answering basic questions about risk identification, risk quantification, risk response development, and risk response control. (19 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/Software_Risk_Shafer.pdf 28 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by Don Shafer looks at case studies of software problems present in all complex oil drilling and production rigs. The problem analysis was done by software engineers who have been involved in the verification, validation, and software integrity management of drilling rigs in the Atlantic, Pacific, Caspian, Gulf of Mexico, and Africa. Actions to be taken for software risk mitigation are presented. (8 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/Software_With_That_Shafer.pdf 28 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Don Shafer is Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Computer Society Press. He is also co-founder, corporate director and Chief Technology Officer of Athens Group, Inc. Shafers work experience includes positions held at Boeing and Los Alamos National Laboratories. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and an adjunct professor in graduate software engineering at Texas State University. Shafer is the author of Quality Software Project Management. Our interview with Mr. Shafer was conducted in December of 2005. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/donshaferinterview1.pdf 28 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Tom is recognized as a pioneer in software metrics and Evolutionary project management, as well as the inventor of the planning language Planguage. He is directly recognized as the idea source for parts of the Agile and Extreme programming methods (primarily the incremental cycles). He has published nine books, including "Principles of Software Engineering Management" (1988, 20th printing), "Software Inspection" (1993, 13th printing), and "Competitive Engineering: A Handbook for Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering using Planguage," which was published in July of 2005. Tom's methods are widely and officially adopted by many organizations such as IBM, Nokia, Ericsson, HP, Intel, Citigroup, Symbian, and Philips Medical. In our interview with Tom, conducted in December of 2005, Tom discusses Evolutionary (EVO) development methods. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/tomgilbinterview1.pdf Mon, 20 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT The underlying principle of Evolutionary (EVO) development methods is the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle. In other words, the "process control cycle" as taught by Walter Shewhart of AT&T and, by his pupils, W. Edwards Deming and Joseph Juran. In this chapter excerpt from Tom Gilb's new book "Competitive Engineering", Tom explains how EVO expands upon the statistical process control cycle of Plan-Do-Study-Act to address the software project management challenges facing us today. It is a lucid and thorough introduction to the subject of EVO, one that covers principles, fundamental process descriptions, and practical real world examples. (30 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/Evo-Ch10-GilbBook.pdf Mon, 20 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Evolutionary (EVO) development focuses on early delivery of high value to stakeholders, and on obtaining and utilizing feedback from stakeholders. This paper by Tom Gilb and Trond Johansen describes, from a project manager's viewpoint, the positive experiences that one organization rapidly achieved on switching from using the Waterfall method to Evo. Major benefits came from paying greater attention to the quality requirements as opposed to the previous practice of concentrating solely on the required functionality. (11 pages) http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/FIRM-FromWaterfall2Evo.pdf Mon, 20 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Tom Gilb's Home Page http://www.gilb.com/ Mon, 20 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Competitive Engineering: A Handbook for Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering, Using Planguage by Tom Gilb From the Back Cover: "Competitive Engineering documents Tom Gilb's unique, ground-breaking approach to communicating management objectives and systems engineering requirements, clearly and unambiguously. Competitive Engineering is a revelation for anyone involved in management and risk control. Already used by thousands of managers and systems engineers around the world, this is a handbook for initiating, controlling, and delivering complex projects on time and within budget. Competitive Engineering copes explicitly with the rapidly changing environment that is a reality for most of us today. Elegant, comprehensive and accessible, the Competitive Engineering methodology provides a practical set of tools and techniques that enable readers to effectively design, manage, and deliver results in any complex organization - in engineering, industry, systems engineering, software, IT, the service sector and beyond." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750665076/sr=1-1/qid=1138849798/ref=sr_1_1/103-1184362-6387804?_encoding=UTF8 Mon, 20 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Software Maintenance is central to the mission of many organizations. Thus, it is natural for managers to characterize and measure those aspects of products and processes that seem to affect cost, schedule, quality, and functionality of a software maintenance delivery. This article by George E. Stark of the Mitre Corporation answers basic questions about software maintenance for a single organization and discusses some of the decisions made based on the answers. (23 pages) http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/crosstalk/1997/07/maintenance.asp 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT The software maintenance function suffers from a scarcity of management models that would facilitate its evaluation, its management, and its continuous improvement. This article by Mohamed Zitouni and Alain Abran proposes an evaluation model of the quality of the software maintenance process. The proposed model is based on the CMM-SEI model developed by Carnegie Mellon University to evaluate and improve the software development process. The architecture of the CMM model has been retained almost as is while its content, which was specific to the development process, has been either modified or extended to take into account the characteristics specific to the maintenance function. (18 pages) http://lrgl.uqam.ca/publications/pdf/67.pdf 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT In an effort to find out more about the tools, procedures, and techniques project personnel use in their work, the Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) Environments Project interviewed personnel in eight software maintenance projects within an agency of the US government. This report by Susan Dart, Alan M. Christie, and Alan W. Brown of the SEI highlights the findings of these interviews, provides an analysis of findings, and makes recommendations for improvement in the areas of tools, people, and process. (58 pages) http://www.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/93.reports/pdf/tr08.93.pdf 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT 22nd IEEE International Conference on Software Maintenance http://icsm2006.cs.drexel.edu/ 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Practical Software Maintenance: Best Practices for Managing Your Software Investment by Thomas M. Pigoski From the Amazon Book Description: "The amount of time and expense spent debugging, customizing, updating, and maintaining software far outstrips the amount spent buying it. This book provides a simple and straightforward introduction to software maintenance activities that work. It is the first book to cover software transition--the process of moving the product from developer to maintainer. Written by one of the world's foremost experts on software maintenance, it draws on real world case studies to explore basic do's and don'ts, IEEE and ISO requirements, organizational issues, and the often sticky issue of metrics. Other topics addressed include object-oriented software and client/server software, corporate education and training programs, creative cost controls, and more." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471170011/qid=1138325246/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-3988256-9803227?n=507846&s=books&v=glance 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT While Six Sigma is clearly an alternative to broad-based quality initiatives such as Total Quality Management, proponents say it works just fine with extant project management software, CRM, Balanced Scorecard and other operational and valuation methodologies if (and it's a big if) those methods and measures are customer-centric. This article from CIO Magazine elaborates. (1 page) http://www.cio.com/archive/120103/sigma_sidebar_1.html 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma has been successfully used within many diverse industries. While Six Sigma philosophy and technique came out of manufacturing environments, it also has been used in projects that span the entire functional organization. A reasonable question therefore is whether Six Sigma is adaptable for software development and maintenance. Software manufacturing deals with the duplication, packaging and distribution of software. While software firms should take sufficient care to ensure the quality of these operations, it is really the development process (requirements through quality assurance) that is the source of concern. While there are many parallels between manufacturing and software development, there are many differences as well. Consequently, one is not surprised that the software industry has come up with its own methodologies and tool sets. This article by Jack Horgan of EDA Weekly attempts to compare and contrast. (12 pages) http://www10.edacafe.com/nbc/articles/view_weekly.php?articleid=209200 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT PSP and TSP are software development process definitions that are compatible with a wide range of software development concepts such as spiral development, object oriented development, and various other sets of techniques, each with certain advantages in modeling requirements and designs for software systems. Six Sigma for Software, on the other hand, is not a software development process definition; rather, it is a far more generalized process for improving processes and products. PSP, TSP, and also CMM are several potential choices for software development process definitions that can lead to improved software project performance. However, the full potential of the data produced by these processes cannot be fully leveraged without applying the more comprehensive Six Sigma for Software toolkit. This article by Gary Gack of Six Sigma Advantage explains why. (5 pages) http://software.isixsigma.com/library/content/c030502a.asp 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six-Sigma programs have proven results, especially in the manufacturing and service industries. A Six Sigma program builds on many of the building blocks of organizational quality that a CMM program would have put in place. However, the program is a lot more rigorous at the highest level. It can deliver extraordinary results, but it requires equally exceptional effort. Several billions of dollars have been saved through these programs. That's why many Indian software companies are looking at Six-Sigma as the next logical step after their CMM programs. Find out more in this article by R. K. Singh. (4 pages) http://www.india-today.com/ctoday/20020401/mit2.html 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma Advantage, Inc. http://www.6siga.com/ 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Six Sigma Software Development by Christine B. Tayntor From the Book Description: A popular tool in manufacturing organizations, the Six Sigma methodology can reduce defects and improve financial performance. The tools and processes of Six Sigma can be equally effective for a service function like IT. This book illustrates how Six Sigma concepts can be applied to all aspects of the evolving system development process, including not only the traditional waterfall model and support of legacy systems, but also to more recent development innovations, such as rapid application development, packaged software implementation, and outsourcing. Six Sigma Software Development provides a clear explanation of Six Sigma concepts and their application." http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0849311934/qid=1137537635/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/104-3131754-9889507?s=books&v=glance&n=283155 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT This article by Walker Royce, Vice President and General Manager of Strategic Services at the Rational Software Corporation, summarizes some thoughts on making the transition from conventional software management techniques to modern ones. In particular, the author endorses the improvements in the Software Engineering Institute's CMMI approach and seeks to motivate development organizations to apply the approach correctly. (11 pages) http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/rational/library/content/RationalEdge/feb02/ConventionalToModernFeb02.pdf 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Although CMMI documentation is comprehensive, it's difficult to use. The sheer amount of documents, pages, and perceived overlap overwhelms newcomers in particular. Nevertheless, two books on the CMMI offer guidance to help users navigate and find what they need. This article by Christof Ebert of IEEE Software provides a succint and pragmatic review of these two books. (3 pages) http://csdl2.computer.org/comp/mags/so/2004/04/s4092.pdf 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institutes CMMI Site http://www.sei.cmu.edu/cmmi/ 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT IT Service Management: An Introduction by Jan Van Bon, George Kemmerling, and Dick Pondman From the Book Description: Understanding ITIL Key Process Relationships"In recent years, IT service management has developed into a field in its own right, with organizations now so dependent on the automation of large parts of their business processes that the quality of IT services and the synchronization of these services with the needs of the organization are essential to their survival. IT Service Management provides a thorough introduction to the field, as well as an introduction to the books in the IT infrastructure library, and preparation materials for the Foundation Certificate exam on IT service management. Based on the latest edition of the ITIL books on service support and service delivery, the text encourages discussion and comparison of best practices based on IT managers' own experiences." About the Author: Jan van Bon, one of the founders of the IT Service Management Forum in the Netherlands, is chief editor of ITSMF publications, and currently manages the only Internet portal on IT Service Management, ITSM PORTAL. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9080671347/ref=cm_bg_d/002-4597858-2351264?v=glance&n=283155 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Balanced Scorecard (BSC), intially developed by Kaplan and Norton, is a performance management system that should allow enterprises to drive their strategies on measurement and follow-up. In recent years, the BSC has been applied to information technology. This article by Dr. Wim Van Grembergen of the University of Antwerp shows how the IT balanced scorecard can be linked to the business balanced scorecard and in this way support the IT/business governance and alignment processes. (4 pages) http://www.itgi.org/template_ITGI.cfm?template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=5550 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Exxon Mobil leaped from last to first in profitability within its industry from 1993 to 1995, a rank it maintained for the next four years. Cigna Insurance was losing $1 million a day in 1993, but within two years it was in the top quartile of profitability in its industry. Then in 1998 it spun off a $3.5 billion division. What's the key to these dramatic turnarounds? These companies attribute at least part of the solution to having implemented the Balanced Scorecard. This article by Eric Berkman of CIO Magazine explains how its done. (5 pages) http://www.isixsigma.com/offsite.asp?A=Fr&Url=http://www.cio.com/archive/051502/scorecard.html 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Twenty years ago, managers were frustrated because financial measures were the only way to assess their operations. The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) answered their complaints. This performance measurement tool, which includes financial and non-financial metrics, provides a more nuanced, more strategically useful, view of performance. In the last several years, however, corporations have loaded down the BSC with too many metrics. This article by Arthur M. Schneiderman explains how to streamline your scorecard and ulimately enhance its impact. (2 pages) http://www.schneiderman.com/AMS_publications/Unbalanced%20Scorecard/unbalanced_scorecard.htm 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Don Shafer is Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Computer Society Press. He is also co-founder, corporate director and Chief Technology Officer of Athens Group, Inc. Shafers work experience includes positions held at Boeing and Los Alamos National Laboratories. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and an adjunct professor in graduate software engineering at Texas State University. Shafer is the author of Quality Software Project Management. Our interview with Mr. Shafer was conducted in December of 2005. http://www.compaid.com/caiInternet/ezine/donshaferinterview1.pdf 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT IT Service Management: An Introduction by Jan Van Bon, George Kemmerling, and Dick Pondman From the Book Description: "In recent years, IT service management has developed into a field in its own right, with organizations now so dependent on the automation of large parts of their business processes that the quality of IT services and the synchronization of these services with the needs of the organization are essential to their survival. IT Service Management provides a thorough introduction to the field, as well as an introduction to the books in the IT infrastructure library, and preparation materials for the Foundation Certificate exam on IT service management. Based on the latest edition of the ITIL books on service support and service delivery, the text encourages discussion and comparison of best practices based on IT managers' own experiences." About the Author: Jan van Bon, one of the founders of the IT Service Management Forum in the Netherlands, is chief editor of ITSMF publications, and currently manages the only Internet portal on IT Service Management, ITSM PORTAL. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9080671347/ref=cm_bg_d/002-4597858-2351264?v=glanc&n=283155e 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT The Balanced Scorecard (BSC), intially developed by Kaplan and Norton, is a performance management system that should allow enterprises to drive their strategies on measurement and follow-up. In recent years, the BSC has been applied to information technology. This article by Dr. Wim Van Grembergen of the University of Antwerp shows how the IT balanced scorecard can be linked to the business balanced scorecard and in this way support the IT/business governance and alignment processes. (4 pages) http://www.itgi.org/template_ITGI.cfm?template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cf&ContentID=5550m 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Exxon Mobil leaped from last to first in profitability within its industry from 1993 to 1995, a rank it maintained for the next four years. Cigna Insurance was losing $1 million a day in 1993, but within two years it was in the top quartile of profitability in its industry. Then in 1998 it spun off a $3.5 billion division. What's the key to these dramatic turnarounds? These companies attribute at least part of the solution to having implemented the Balanced Scorecard. This article by Eric Berkman of CIO Magazine explains how its done. (5 pages) http://www.isixsigma.com/offsite.asp?A=F&Url=http://www.cio.com/archive/051502/scorecard.htmlr 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT Twenty years ago, managers were frustrated because financial measures were the only way to assess their operations. The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) answered their complaints. This performance measurement tool, which includes financial and non-financial metrics, provides a more nuanced, more strategically useful, view of performance. In the last several years, however, corporations have loaded down the BSC with too many metrics. This article by Arthur M. Schneiderman explains how to streamline your scorecard and ulimately enhance its impact. (2 pages) http://www.schneiderman.com/AMS_publications/Unbalanced%20Scorecard/unbalanced_scorecard.htm 15 Feb 2006 04:00:00 GMT