Software Project Management

A Unified Framework
By: 
Walker Royce, et al.
Published: 
1998
Pages: 
448
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Book Description

(From the Publisher )

Software Project Management presents a new management framework uniquely suited to the complexities of modern software development. Walker Royce's pragmatic perspective exposes the shortcomings of many well-accepted management priorities and equips software professionals with state-of-the-art knowledge derived from his twenty years of successful from-the-trenches project management experience.

This book provides a clear and provocative discussion of the economics, metrics, and management strategies needed to plan and execute a software project successfully. Royce discusses-with refreshing candor-some of the fads, follies, and excesses of the software industry, clearly differentiating proven techniques from obsolete methods. Paired with this insightful examination are compelling arguments for new management approaches that are sure to stimulate debate.

The relative impacts of these new techniques are quantified through simple economic analyses, common sense, and anecdotal evidence. The resulting framework strikes a pragmatic balance between theory and practice that can be readily applied in today's challenging development environment. An extensive case study of a large-scale, million-line project-deployed successfully on schedule and under budget using these techniques-further illustrates their application. Software Project Management provides the software industry with field-proven benchmarks for making tactical decisions and strategic choices that will enhance an organization's probability of success.

This book includes:

  • Top ten principles for modern software management
  • Methods for keeping software engineering teams motivated and effectively prioritized.
  • Insight into how technology, people, and economics impact project management.
  • Metrics and forecasting guidance for project costs, schedules, and quality control.
  • Strategies for smoothly transitioning an organization to modern processes and technologies (such as Rational's Unified process)

    • Member Reviews: 

    Review By: Harry Acosta
    05/28/2004This is a great book for companies that want to create quality software without negatively affecting their bottom lines. And what is quality software but software that meets all of the requirements that have been defined by the client or prospective user of the application? The book focuses on the fact that building quality software is also about reducing waste (waste of time and resources fixing what should have been right the first time), increasing reusable parts, and automating processes by means of a sound and highly structured project management approach.

    The first section of the book deals with the evolution of software management and what role software economics has played in the transition from conventional software engineering to a lifecycle-based iterative process. Then it shows how to apply a project management framework to measure, control, and fine tune what the author calls the seven core metrics of project control: Work and Progress; Budget, Cost, and Expenditures; Staff and Team Dynamics; Traffic and Stability; Breakage and Modularity; Rework and Adaptability; and MTBF and Maturity.

    To finalize the nicely crafted exposition of a unified vision of software project management, the author looks ahead to the opportunities, challenges, and new economic cost models of current practices as well as how the software management landscape is being shaped by the introduction of new and innovative techniques.

    Appendix D is especially important because, based on the Software Engineering Institute Capability Maturity Model (SEI CMM), it outlines a ‘Maturity Questionnaire’ that should help companies achieve a managed performance level where the outcome is very predictable and trustworthy.

    Although this book is worthy of an academia curriculum on software project management, it does not provide insights to the end-customer of the produced software regarding the implementation of the application. It is especially lacking in terms of qualification and validation of the software and/or required computing and network infrastructure in highly regulated businesses, such as hospitals, pharmaceutical, and medical devices firms. In these types of organizations that are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, the firm is responsible for demonstrating that the software meets their own business requirements, that it does what it is purported to do, and that it does so with a consistent degree of quality and performance. Furthermore, the organizations are also required to demonstrate adherence of the system as a whole to strict record and access controls.

    It is in this respect that the book lacks the information sought by firms that are interested in implementing proper project management techniques to implement software applications. For future editions of this book, GAMP 4 (Good Automated Manufacturing Practices), a publication of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering, as well as other references to the waterfall model of computerized system validation would be an excellent starting point of reference.

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