Herding Cats

Estimates, Forecasts, Projections (Update)

There is a misuse of the terms of statistics and probability in many domains. Politics being one. The #Noestimates advocates are another of the most prolific abusers of these terms. Here are the mathematical definitions. Not Wikipedia definitions. Not the... Read more →

Quote of the Day

When you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers, you know something about it; but when you cannot measure it, when you cannot express it in numbers, your knpowledge is of a meager and unsatisfactory... Read more →

Risk Management is How Adults Manage Projects

Risk Management is How Adults Manage Projects - Tim Lister Here's how we manage risk on our software intensive system of systems using Agile. Risk management requires making estimating of the reducible and irreducible uncertanties that create risk. If you're... Read more →

The Myth of the Scrum Master and Actual Life Experiences

Just listened to Tony Richards "The Capital Role of Scrum" in Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast (yes I know, this is Vasco's podcast and it does have value when he sticks to Scrum topics). Vasco describes the scrum Master as the... Read more →

Little Book of Bad Excuses

Long ago there were a set of small books from the Software Program Managers Network and Norm Brown's work on Industrial Strength Management Strategies, which was absorbed by an organization which is no longer around. I have all the Little... Read more →

The Agile Cannon

The paper Agile Base Patterns in the Agile Canon, Daniel R Greening, 2016 49th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences is an important contribution to the discussion of agile at scale in organizations beyond 5 developers at the table with... Read more →

Veterans Day

For all of us who have served, are serving, and those who gave their lives in service of our country - honor them today Read more →

Book of the Month

It's been a busy month for reading. I've been on the road, so I try and focus on reading rather than on working while on the plane. Here are three books underway that are related for the programs we work... Read more →

Estimating is a Learned Skill

Estimating is a learned skill, used for any purpose from every-day life to management of projects. When I left for the airport this morning to catch my flight to a customer site I estimated, given the conditions, how much time... Read more →