During the speaker panel at SCNA this past weekend, Chad Fowler (@chadfowler) asked, "How many projects fail because of the code?". Given the context, I assumed he was making the point that projects fail due to business issues, not code. The room was silent. While one might have assumed this meant the entire group thought it rhetorical, I concluded everyone agreed with Chad. Projects fail not due to code, but due to business issues.
On The Scrum Compliance
A recent article by Tobias Mayer has been getting a lot of attention. "The Scrum Compliance" is an accounting of why Tobias is moving on from the Scrum Alliance. This article is not the first on the ugliness that has become the Scrum Alliance.
Esther Derby asks: Are we aiming too low?
Esther Derby put together a nice post on the importance of design for a web site in which she asks, "Are we aiming too low?"
Agile methods manage business risk. They can bring back enjoyment and pride in work for development teams. For the people who use our software, they make work life maybe less frustrating, because the software isn’t buggy, and maybe a little easier because the software does what it’s supposed to do. But I think we are aiming too low. Can we also make software a pleasure to use?
Technical Debt versus Cruft
I repeatedly find myself in discussions with really smart and experienced people regarding Technical Debt. And I consistently find myself ranting about how cruft and technical debt are not the same thing. I am beginning to feel I am merely tilting at windmills.
Values Revisited
In 1992, I started a custom software development company out of my basement. I started it because I was angry. At a relatively young age, I was already keenly aware of the gross dysfunction that existed in most organizations. I didn't want to be a part of that. I wanted to be a part of something different; something better. I had no plan, but I had an abundance of temerity.
A blank wall and a fist full of index cards
Motivating the Unmotivated
I read a post recently from teknophyl entitled "Motivating the Unmotivated". He asked me to read it and give him some feedback. I started a reply in the comments and realized this one was going to take some time.
I encourage you to read his blog entry. I am willing to bet it will resonate with most of you, either as a participant in a similar series of events, or at least as a witness.
Excellent Developers Are the Best Hires
I recently read a post wherein the author was condoning the hire of excellent programmers with abrasive personalities over bad programmers with cordial personalities. Superficially, I agree with this advice as it is ultimately better to have an individual who does their job well and delivers over an individual who you get along with very well, but who cannot produce.
A false dichotomy
The notion that you must choose between great developers with bad personalities or bad developers with great personalities is just plain false. The dynamics involved are far more complex than that, but let's assume for a brief moment, that there are only two criteria any company hires on; raw skill and congeniality.
Roshambo Estimating
This is a quick post. I just want to share a technique we've been using for initial story estimating. I first used this technique at ThoughtWorks when we were working on a project that required a lot of estimating. I think it came about because 1) we did not have any estimating cards immediately available and 2) that is the kind of place ThoughtWorks is. I later came to discover that the technique is not only fun, but it actually has a few additional benefits.
It's our own damn fault
It ain't easy slinging code
Over the course of my more than twenty years in the software development industry, I've worked with hundreds if not thousands of developers. Many of the projects I've been involved with have suffered from the same malady; a disconnect between expectations and realistic possibility.
Value is more than money
Michael Nygard tweeted
'The phrase "business value" seems to hide uncertainty behind vagueness. Can we just say "money" instead?'
I disagree. Or more accurately, I disagree with what I infer Michael means by this single tweet. I cannot say with any certainty what he meant, much less address the context of or inspiration behind his statement.
Take Control of your Development Career
I got the opportunity to do a little road-trip with my daughter this past weekend. I had an opportunity to speak at the Carolina Code Camp. They accepted all three of my submissions, so I figured I should make the trip. She spent a couple of semesters at High Point University in North Carolina and was looking forward to seeing some friends, so she offered to come along.
The trip was great. We had a total of fourteen hours together in the car, which gave us plenty of time to catch up, talk philosophy, talk a little politics, and just hang out. If you think fourteen hours is a lot of time to fill talking, you haven't met my daughter or me. Separated, we are fairly loquacious, but together, we can get into a zone and move from subject to subject with nary a pause.