Clik here to view.
Do not defer the difficult in IT projects
When an IT project starts, those involved — both managers and developers — want to feel that they’re making progress. They also want to demonstrate that progress to those above them in the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Active risk management: doing IT projects wrong
IT projects are typically full of risks. There can be many human factors, many external factors, and many unknown factors, all of which can interact in unexpected ways. Because of that, it is critical...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Active risk management: doing IT projects right
In a prior post, I talked about IT project risk management and gave a real-world example of doing it wrong, with the expected consequences. But some organizations do it right, and it’s worth looking...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Septic code: why some large IT projects never go into production
I should actually have a photo of a septic wound here, but you really don’t want to see that. A common pattern in the failure of large IT software projects is “the Never-Ending Story”, which I...
View ArticleThe 5 books every IT manager should read right now
In a prior post I talked about setting up a reading program for your IT department. However, whether or not you can get your IT engineers to read, you yourself need to be aware of the fundamental...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Remember Conway’s Law
Some years ago, I was called in to lead a team of three other people in reviewing a major project at a Fortune 50 corporation. This project, which I’ll call QUBE, was a major end-to-end re-engineering...
View ArticleTeaching CS 428 (Software Engineering) at BYU
This (Winter 2017) semester, I am teaching Computer Science 428 — “Software Engineering” — for the Brigham Young University Computer Science department. I am actually taking over this class from Dr....
View ArticleCS 428 (Fall Semester, 9/11): Lecture on The Mythical Man-Month (Brooks),...
OK, it’s a bit embarrassing to realize it’s been nine months since I last posted here. But a new semester has started, and with it, my lectures on software engineering for CS 428 (at Brigham Young...
View ArticleThe Mythical Man-Month by Fred Brooks, part 1 (CS 428, Winter 2019)
My in-class lecture covering the first few chapters of The Mythical Man-Month by Fred Brooks.
View ArticleThe Mythical Man-Month, part 2 (CS 428, Winter 2019)
My in-class lecture covering chapters 4, 7, 11 and 14 of The Mythical Man-Month by Fred Brooks.
View Article