Book Title: Agile Software Development

Author: Alistair Cockburn

Publisher: Addison Wesley

ISBN: 0-201-69969-9

Review by Barbara De Vries

We used this book in a workshop studying methodologies.

Some key points of interest are:

Methodologically Successful Projects  (Chapter 4, page 145)

Have three characteristics:

• The project was delivered.  I don’t ask if it was completed on time and on budget, just that the software went out the door and was used.

• The leadership remained intact.  They didn’t get fired for what they were doing.

• The people on the project would work the same way again.

 Seven principles useful in designing and evaluating methodologies: (page 148)

1. Interactive, face-to-face communication is the cheapest and fastest channel for exchanging information.

2. Excess methodology weight is costly.

3. Larger teams need heavier methodologies

4. Greater ceremony is appropriate for projects with greater criticality.

5. Increasing feedback and communication reduces the need for intermediate deliverables.

6. Discipline, skills, and understanding counter process, formality, and documentation.

7. Efficiency is expendable in nonbottleneck activities.

I recommend this book for reference and for justifying techniques with management in more traditional companies.