Herding Cats

Vietnam War Veterans Day - A Real Story

Yesterday was National Vietnam War Veterans Day. I served in Vietnam from August 1969 to August 1970. This story (an actual one, with photos from my scrapbook), it's meant to honor those who have served and still serve our nation.... Read more →

What's Missing from the Agile Software Development Paradigm

Agile software development is framed by a manifesto, a set of 12 principles, several methods. These are all focused on developing software, delivering that software to those paying the developers. There is a fundamental critical success factor missing from this... Read more →

Quote of the Day

Just as there is no loss of basic energy in the universe, (1st law of thermodynamics) so no thought or action is without its effects, present or ultimate, seen or unseen, felt or unfelt. ― Norman Cousins Read more →

National Vietnam War Veterans Day

There are 6.4 million living Vietnam veterans and 9 million families of those who served in Vietnam., either in-country, in-theater, or stationed elsewhere during the Vietnam War period - between November 1, 1955, and May 15, 1975. I served in... Read more →

Quote of the Day

“The important question about methods is not ‘how’ but ‘why’” - Tukey Read more →

Agile for Project Managers

I rarely republish other blogs or presentations. But this one is timeless and needs to be restated at every opportunity. I've corresponded with John over the years. Here's the presentation. As well but John's books. Here's the one we use... Read more →

Quote of the Day

The course of conflict is not determined by the person who initiates but by the person who responds. Said by Duncan, in the third episode, "Silent Symphony" of the first season of the Amazon series "Mozart in the Jungle" and... Read more →

Quote of the Day

Expert judgment is typically the crux of cost and schedule estimates but in the spectrum of the risk management process, quantification of expert judgment is the weakest area - Fred Raymond, Acquistion Review Quarterly - Spring 199., pp. 147-154 Making... Read more →

The Integrated Master Plan Defines what Done Looks Like

My colleague, Pat Barker, is an instructor at the Defense Acquisition University. Pat has produced Practical Advice for Integrated Master Plans. Click on the image below to get started. The resources there will guide you through the development and use... Read more →

Quote of the Day

I am used to thinking three to four months in advance, about what I must do, and I calculate for the worse. If I take so many precautions it is because it is my custom to leave nothing to chance... Read more →

High Integrity, Fail Safe, Software Systems

I was an invited speaker at the University of Colorado, Boulder for an Advanced Embedded Systems Development graduate class. Here are the charts. Starting on Page 29, I was the Software Development Manager for the Tricon. Safe, Reliable, Available, High‒Integrity,... Read more →

10 Signs You're a Project Controls Engineer

These 10 signs came from a colleague at an NNSA site Becoming tired of having a social life beyond work Spending hours planning and re-planning Friday night out Thinking Rommel would have been more effective if he'd used a Gantt... Read more →

Quote of the Day - Risk Pre-Mortem

A risk management premortem is an approach where the project manager and project stakeholders envision a future where the project has failed, and then work backward to determine the story and circumstances that could have led to the project failure... Read more →

Quote of the Day

If a profession is to sharpen its skills, to develop new skills and applications, and to gain increasing respect and credibility, then theory and practice must be closely related – Martin Shrub Process and Practices without Principles are of little... Read more →

Quote of the Day

"I wisely started with a map and made the story fit... the other way about lands one in confusions and impossibilities." — J. R. R. Tolkien When we have no map, no Product Road Map, no Integrated Master Plan, no... Read more →