Ethods & ools

  • Real T
  • Skills P
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Abstract

Every software professional that has been part of more than one project knows for sure: no two projects are the same. Different circumstances make most software projects unique in several aspects. And with different situations come different approaches to handle project life effectively: there are multiple ways to " do " a project. Different circumstances require different approaches. Although a project is to a large part defined by the required end results and technology used, the main determining factor of what makes a project different from another is people. The entire process of software project management is strongly stakeholder-driven. It is their wishes, fears, dreams—their stakes— that determine the course of the project. You have to handle a project to really grasp the impact of people on your endeavour. You have to " live " a project to know the force of political games and power trips. You have to lead a team to deliver a project under time pressures to appreciate the constructive power of motivated people or the destructive power of demotivated team members. In a project, it is the people that are the main cause of problems. Time schedules, financial projections, and software goals may be abstractions, but it is the flesh-and-blood people whose work determines your project's status. It's the programmer that misses a deadline and holds up everyone else, it's the financial manager that goes berserk if you can't produce some good budgetary indications, and it's the key user that doesn't give a darn but didn't tell you about his dismal lack of motivation; these are the folks who can cause serious trouble.

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APA

Real, T., & Skills, P. (2006). Ethods & ools. Methods, 14(4).

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