Making Process Improvement Work: A Concise Action Guide for Software Managers and Practitioners - Softcover

Potter, Neil; Sakry, Mary

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0201775778 ISBN 13: 9780201775778

Publisher: Addison Wesley, 2002

Synopsis

Every development organization can benefit by paying attention to process improvement, yet all too many "process improvement initiatives" fail to deliver on their promises. In this concise book, two of the field's leading consultants present easy-to-apply techniques for achieving rapid and quantifiable benefits -- and then maintaining your momentum to deliver even greater value over time. Drawing on their experience with more than 3,000 developers and 100 organizations, Neil S. Potter and Mary E. Sakry show you exactly what works -- and what doesn't work. Next, they present a step-by-step guide to identifying your best opportunities for process improvement, deploying changes effectively, and tracking your progress. The book also includes a detailed example plan document designed to help you jumpstart your process improvement initiative. Making Process Improvement Work includes a foreword by noted software process expert Karl Wiegers. For all developers, project and IT managers, and clients seeking to maximize the effectiveness of the software development process and the value of the software it delivers.

About this title

About the Author

Neil Potter is a co-founder of The Process Group, a company that consults in software engineering process improvement. He has been working in software development, software engineering, and process and project management since 1985. He is an SEI-authorized Lead Assessor.

Mary Sakry is a co-founder of The Process Group, a company that consults in software engineering process improvement. She has been working in software development, software engineering, and process and project management since 1976. She is an SEI-authorized Lead Assessor.

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From the Back Cover

“This book hits the mark for three important issues:

How to keep focused on real improvements

How to develop an implementable improvement plan

How to develop meaningful and useful measurements

I will definitely recommend it to my clients who are just beginning or are having trouble with their improvement program.”
―Norman Hammock, SEI Authorized Lead Assessor

“At last a common sense and business-oriented approach to process improvement. This book gives very practical instruction that is easy to apply. Your people will thank you for it.”
―Nancy K. M. Rees, Vice President and Chief Engineer, Xerox Corporation

“...gets right to the heart of process improvement with specific, concrete steps and excellent examples. It’s a book you can use today.”
―Dennis J. Frailey, Principal Fellow, Raytheon Company

“Too many organizations develop a checklist mentality targeted at achieving the next process maturity level or passing an audit...Neil and Mary remind us to focus on pragmatic mechanisms for achieving superior business results...”
―Karl Wiegers, Principal Consultant, Process Impact

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 CMM^® and CMMI^SM, 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.

0201775778B02262002

Edition details

• Publisher: Addison Wesley
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0201775778
• ISBN 13: 9780201775778
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192