Lean Software Development: An
Agile Toolkit by Tom Poppendieck
The Best Introduction I've Read
Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit Mary Poppendieck Tom
Poppendieck Forewords by Jim Highsmithand Ken Schwaber *Adapting
agile practices to your development organization *Uncovering and
eradicating waste throughout the software development lifecycle *Practical
techniques for every development manager, project manager, and
technical leaderLean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit Lean
software development: applying agile principles to your organization In
Lean Software Development, Mary and Tom Poppendieck identify seven
fundamental lean principles, adapt them for the world of software
development, and show how they can serve as the foundation for agile
development approaches that work. Along the way, they introduce 22
thinking tools that can help you customize the right agile practices for any
environment. Better, cheaper, faster software development. You can have
all three--if you adopt the same lean principles that have already
revolutionized manufacturing, logistics and product development.

*Iterating towards excellence: software development as an exercise in
discovery *Managing uncertainty: decide as late as possible by building
change into the system.*Compressing the value stream: rapid
development, feedback, and improvement *Empowering teams and
individuals without compromising coordination *Software with integrity:
promoting coherence, usability, fitness, maintainability, and adaptability
*How to see the whole--even when your developers are scattered across
multiple locations and contractors Simply put, Lean Software Development
helps you refocus development on value, flow, and people--so you can
achieve breakthrough quality, savings, speed, and business alignment.
Personal Review: Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit
by Tom Poppendieck
It's pretty much all been said by previous reviewers but this one is worth
another accolade. As a CIO with over 20 years in software engineering,
I've just about read it all, seen it all, tried it all. As a result I'm a big believer
in Lean/Agile, and this is the best introduction I've come across. It's a nice,
practical mix of principles and practices and touches on all the right
themes.
A previous reviewer laments the authors' distaste for CMMI and PMI. For
instance:
"Between PMI and CMM certification programs, a heavy emphasis on
process definition and detailed, front-end planning seemed to dominate
everyone's perception of best practices...spending a lot of time and getting
the requirements right upfront was the way to do things `right the first
time'...CMM, in its eagerness to standardize process, leaves out the heart
of discovery and innovation..." Spot on.
As a PMP with CMMI experience, I couldn't agree more with the
Poppendiecks' observations and concerns. They go on to say, "This is not
to say that CMM and PMI are bad, but only that for anyone who has lived
through the lean revolution, they tend to give the wrong flavor to a software
development program." That "wrong flavor" is called "waterfall."
Of course there are Level 5 Agile shops out there, and the author's
recognize that "CMM is not supposed to dictate approach, but only
assess..." But here's the problem: "CMM programs...may standardize on
less than ideal practices...they may be better implemented separate from--
and after--process improvements."
This book is a must read for software development managers and other
business execs pursuing the promise of an Agile company (vs. IT shop). I'll
definitely be passing out a few copies!
For More 5 Star Customer Reviews and Lowest Price:
Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit by Tom Poppendieck 5 Star Customer
Reviews and Lowest Price!