Monday, November 3, 2008

Ready for take-off...

...3...2...1

I have just begun a new job working on a government contract as a software developer. The process is very rigid as you might expect from the gov. There have been claims of the use of Scrum but if Scrum is here it's an elusive creature and really I'm afraid that if I've really missed it for these past few weeks then it's bound to jump out from it's hiding place at any moment and maul me to death.

But no, I have not worry of such things. Scrum is not here, nor is any form of Agile software development as far as I can see. RUP is the government approved standard and really it should be renamed to the Rigid Unproductive Process because it sure as heck doesn't seem rational to me and unified is a further stretch with the seemingly endless numbers of silos of expertise, turf politics and the like.

So this new blog of mine will be a place where I place my thoughts and devise my plans for trying to add value to this place. This blog is a pet project. I don't expect to change the world, I'd just like to take strides (even small ones) in order to change my world.

until next time
Les

3 comments:

Unknown said...

If you have to add a word to a description, then it probably doesn't count. E.g., computer science is not a science.

Rational Unified Process is not rational, as you've observed.

I wonder what other, much more interesting examples, apply?

garrick & grace said...

I'm here along for the ride. Go forth and change your little corner of the world!

mark said...

I will say Agile is better than RUP, RUP is better than Waterfall and Waterfall is better than no process at all.

No process in the world can trump bad teams and bad leadership.

You can get software done in a RUP process, you can not get software done in a meaningful way with bad teams, bad team members and bad leadership.

If you provide good leadership, they will come!