In an earlier blog post, I suggested that Machine Learning might be an interesting alternative to rigorous facilitation for the discovery of business rules. Today I’d like to talk about how we might identify domains where we might consider Machine Learning. Broadly speaking, there are two large classes of Machine Learning algorithms. In supervised Machine […]
Tag: software
First, break all the requirements
What? In 1999, Buckingham and Coffman authored First, Break All the Rules. They used Gallop data from manager interviews to identify how good managers drive employee satisfaction. Internally at ArgonDigital, we use the methodology described in the book for gauging employee satisfaction. People who join us are sometimes surprised by our survey. We ask a number of […]
From analysis to delivery: BPM tools as accelerators
I recently had the opportunity to work with a company that had a long sales and construction process. In their industry it generally took three months to complete the process, but with this company they knew it was taking much longer. They were challenged to even measure what their cycle time was with any degree […]
I’m sure they have that DOCUMENTED…right?
In the world of software development, especially the Agile part of it, it is easy to live in the now and the current development effort. The Agile Manifesto values “Working software over comprehensive documentation.” Some people interpret this to mean that they do not need to worry about documentation as long as the software works. […]
Bring your Playbook
Have you ever bought something that required assembly or a new gadget/software? Did you read the assembly instructions or the user manual? I have an engineering background, so every once in a while I will forego the manual and just try to figure it out. When I have the time, this works just fine. Of course mistakes […]
Ignore tasks, focus on decisions.
We all have our reasons for using a piece of software. Maybe it makes staying in touch easier, maybe it helps organize, or for that matter, make us money, maybe it’s just fun to interact with…whatever those reasons may be, the drive to get things done is not, and cannot be the only reason why […]
Sprint Carry-Over: An Agile Team’s Dirty Little Secret
What does “Done” mean, really? Working on an Agile project is really an exercise in honesty and self-reflection; if your team can’t predictably complete its work, can’t progress through each of its sprints; it’s safe to assume each of your team’s releases will be equally unpredictable. And here lies the crux of an Agile team’s […]
Visualizing data in the RAW
During the search for a better, easier ways to create images to represent software concepts, I’ve come across a few tools that do a good job creating basic, official-looking graphs. Many of these tools offer teaser trials in hopes of inducing you to buy a full featured version. Not so with the open web app […]
Delivering Success When Replacing a Software System – adapted from Software Requirements, 3rd Edition
Many IT projects today are replacement system projects instead of new software development. A replacement project replaces an existing software system with a new custom-built system, a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) system, or a hybrid of those. The challenges that most replacement projects share include: stuffing in unnecessary functionality, degrading the organization’s operational performance, users refusing […]