- Hardcover: 192 pages
- Publisher: Addison Wesley; 1 edition (29 Mar 2009)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0321509358
- ISBN-13: 978-0321509352
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.5 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 154,043 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
The Economics of Iterative Software Development
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Product Description
Product Description
Results-Based Software Management: Achieve Better Outcomes with Finite Resources
Effective software development is no longer merely an IT concern: today, it is crucial to the entire enterprise. However, most businesspeople are not ready to make informed decisions about software initiatives. The Economics of Iterative Software Development: Steering Toward Better Business Results will prepare them. Drawing on decades of software development and business experience, the authors demonstrate how to utilize practical, economics-based techniques to plan and manage software projects for maximum return on technology investments.
The authors begin by dispelling widespread myths about software costs, explaining why traditional, “engineering-based” software management introduces unacceptable inefficiencies in today’s development environments. Next, they show business and technical managers how to combine the principles of economics and iterative development to achieve optimal results with limited resources. Using their techniques, readers will learn how to build systems that enable maximum business innovation and process improvement–and implement software processes that allow them to do so consistently.
Highlights include
- How to repeatedly quantify the value a project is delivering and quickly adjust course as needed
- How to reduce software project size, complexity, and other “project killers”
- How to identify and eliminate software development processes that don’t work
- How to improve development processes, reduce rework, mitigate risk, and identify inefficiencies
- How to create more proficient teams by improving individual skills, team interactions, and organizational capability
- Where to use integrated, automated tools to improve effectiveness
- What to measure, and when: specific metrics for project inception, elaboration, construction, and transition
The Economics of Iterative Software Development: Steering Toward Better Business Results will help both business and technical managers make better decisions throughout the software development process–and it will help team and project leaders keep any project or initiative on track, so they can deliver more value faster.
From the Back Cover
Results-Based Software Management: Achieve Better Outcomes with Finite Resources
Effective software development is no longer merely an IT concern: today, it is crucial to the entire enterprise. However, most businesspeople are not ready to make informed decisions about software initiatives. The Economics of Iterative Software Development: Steering Toward Better Business Results will prepare them. Drawing on decades of software development and business experience, the authors demonstrate how to utilize practical, economics-based techniques to plan and manage software projects for maximum return on technology investments.
The authors begin by dispelling widespread myths about software costs, explaining why traditional, “engineering-based” software management introduces unacceptable inefficiencies in today’s development environments. Next, they show business and technical managers how to combine the principles of economics and iterative development to achieve optimal results with limited resources. Using their techniques, readers will learn how to build systems that enable maximum business innovation and process improvement–and implement software processes that allow them to do so consistently.
Highlights include
- How to repeatedly quantify the value a project is delivering and quickly adjust course as needed
- How to reduce software project size, complexity, and other “project killers”
- How to identify and eliminate software development processes that don’t work
- How to improve development processes, reduce rework, mitigate risk, and identify inefficiencies
- How to create more proficient teams by improving individual skills, team interactions, and organizational capability
- Where to use integrated, automated tools to improve effectiveness
- What to measure, and when: specific metrics for project inception, elaboration, construction, and transition
The Economics of Iterative Software Development: Steering Toward Better Business Results will help both business and technical managers make better decisions throughout the software development process–and it will help team and project leaders keep any project or initiative on track, so they can deliver more value faster.
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6 reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Solid discussion on business value of iterative versus waterfall development
1 July 2009
Format:Kindle Edition
This is a lean book (small size, only 170 pages) which attempts to help managers and decision makers move to iterative approaches over waterfall. The book's well written and has some good, thought-provoking discussion in it.
You won't find discussions of specific methodologies in this book, but you will find repeated emphasis on critical concepts like delivering running systems over useless documentation (not ignoring documentation, mind you, but delivering the right amount of it). Doing the right amount of planning at the project's start is also emphasized: avoiding over-architecting and big design up front.
It struck me that much of the authors' definition of "iterative" development is subtly scattered around the book. It's not always In Your Face, and that's actually OK because you're able to better focus on their deeper points.
The economics part of the book's title comes through some good discussion on ensuring you're delivering business value, plus an entire section on measuring your project's success. There's good discussion in those sections to help you understand opportunity cost (if I do this, what else am I unable to do?), net present value, and a great example on prioritizing features based on their value to the business.
Some things in the book are a little vague for my tastes, but the authors did a nice job of keeping the book brief, concise, and on target.
Overall it's a very good, useful read.
You won't find discussions of specific methodologies in this book, but you will find repeated emphasis on critical concepts like delivering running systems over useless documentation (not ignoring documentation, mind you, but delivering the right amount of it). Doing the right amount of planning at the project's start is also emphasized: avoiding over-architecting and big design up front.
It struck me that much of the authors' definition of "iterative" development is subtly scattered around the book. It's not always In Your Face, and that's actually OK because you're able to better focus on their deeper points.
The economics part of the book's title comes through some good discussion on ensuring you're delivering business value, plus an entire section on measuring your project's success. There's good discussion in those sections to help you understand opportunity cost (if I do this, what else am I unable to do?), net present value, and a great example on prioritizing features based on their value to the business.
Some things in the book are a little vague for my tastes, but the authors did a nice job of keeping the book brief, concise, and on target.
Overall it's a very good, useful read.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
economics and development for managers
17 May 2009
Format:Hardcover
The title of "The Economics of Iterative Software Development - Steering Toward Better Business Results" jumped out at me since I'm a software developer at a bank. Software and economics in the same title - cool!
The book is what I call good airplane reading. It's interesting to read, easy to read without a whole pile of focus, can be read in a few hours and doesn't physically weigh to much. The book is mainly geared towards software development managers. Particularly those who want to being iterative development or make their projects more iterative.
The economics comes in through the model of COCOMO, a number of graphs and formulas like net present value. It's not the kind of economics that you have to be an economist to understand. Or even like math for that matter.
In addition to the economics, the book covers things like factors for resistance to change. I particularly liked the section on measurements and how people adjust their over/under reported based on how they think the measurement will be used. I also like the appendix listing the top ten books for managers (like Peopleware) and why to read each one.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the book. I think it is a good book to either show your manager or to read to get a feel for the criteria important to management when selling an idea. And without having to read a whole project management book at that.
The book is what I call good airplane reading. It's interesting to read, easy to read without a whole pile of focus, can be read in a few hours and doesn't physically weigh to much. The book is mainly geared towards software development managers. Particularly those who want to being iterative development or make their projects more iterative.
The economics comes in through the model of COCOMO, a number of graphs and formulas like net present value. It's not the kind of economics that you have to be an economist to understand. Or even like math for that matter.
In addition to the economics, the book covers things like factors for resistance to change. I particularly liked the section on measurements and how people adjust their over/under reported based on how they think the measurement will be used. I also like the appendix listing the top ten books for managers (like Peopleware) and why to read each one.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the book. I think it is a good book to either show your manager or to read to get a feel for the criteria important to management when selling an idea. And without having to read a whole project management book at that.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
The Circle of Software Life 40 years in the Making!
7 Mar 2010
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Congratulations Walker for clearly communicating what your father Winston tried to tell the software world 40 years ago. The waterfall was a "virus" wrongfully extracted from Winston Royce's famous 1970 paper "Managing the Development of Large Software Systems". You should have dedicated the book to him!
While some minor points in this book may be misleading for the agile novice, it contains sound advice and core reasons why companies need to improve by implementing agile processes. The basic premise is sound and the key factors of reducing complexity, getting the right people, improving the process, and creating a great development environment will help companies ready to make that commitment have a much better chance of beating the odds.
Thank You!
While some minor points in this book may be misleading for the agile novice, it contains sound advice and core reasons why companies need to improve by implementing agile processes. The basic premise is sound and the key factors of reducing complexity, getting the right people, improving the process, and creating a great development environment will help companies ready to make that commitment have a much better chance of beating the odds.
Thank You!
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