This document provides advice for working with developers. It recommends learning common development jargon, getting good at project estimation by partnering with an experienced manager, understanding cloud computing and Software as a Service models, and different development paradigms like agile development. Local developers are valuable because they understand local needs and can tailor remote services. The document advocates using local talent like students and treating developers as people with career paths.

1. Paul
Walk
paul@paulwalk.net
@paulwalk
http://www.paulwalk.net
Working with developers
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2. what’s in a name?
2

3. things
you
need
to
know
3

4. http://freetheanimal.com/2013/01/corralling-­‐the-­‐paleo-­‐movement-­‐is-­‐like-­‐herding-­‐cats.html
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5. learn some of the jargon
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6. get good at estimating
• this
is
often
not
done
very
well,
because
• it’s
hard
• they’re
too
close
to
make
an
objective
estimation
• you
need
to
either
be
or
to
make
friends
with
an
experienced
project
manager
6

7. understand what ‘the cloud’ means
• where
your
infrastructure
is
outsourced
• pros
• no
need
for
local
low-­‐level
systems-­‐support(i.e.
hardware,
operating
system)
• may
still
need
to
conDigure
and
maintain
the
particular
system,
even
if
it
is
running
in
the
cloud
• elastic
‘hardware’
provision
-­‐
more
Dlexible/responsive
to
rapidly
changing
requirements
-­‐
easier
to
budget
for
• cons
• not
necessarily
cheaper
(contrary
to
popular
opinion)
• some
loss
of
control
&
data
privacy/jurisdictional
issues
7

8. understand what Software as a Service means
• where
your
system
or
service
is
outsourced
• pros
• all
the
advantages
of
using
cloud
infrastructure,
plus:
• reduced
or
no
requirement
to
maintain/conDigure
the
SaaS
system
• potential
for
continuous
improvement
-­‐
“perpetual
beta”
• cons
• reduction
in
control,
especially
ability
to
customise
to
local
requirements
• the
ability
to
innovate
locally
is
impacted.
The
provision
of
good
APIs
by
the
remote
service
may
mitigate
this.
• the
con
that
might
actually
be
a
pro
• good
APIs
offer
a
good
opportunity
for
local
innovation
-­‐
better
than
locally
customising
third-­‐party
software
8

9. development
paradigms
9

10. engineering
• software
development
is
called
many
things:
we
talk
about
‘writing’
software,
software
‘engineering’,
software
as
a
‘craft’,
as
an
‘art’....
• “The
last
time
people
constructed
a
vocabulary
for
software
development
was
in
the
late
1960s,
when
they
coined
the
phrase
software
engineering,
as
both
a
wish
and
a
direction
for
the
future.”
Agile
Software
Development,
Alistair
Cockburn,
2000
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11. http://www.Elickr.com/photos/tonymangan/349034093/sizes/l/in/photostream/
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12. communications - documenting & modelling
http://www.agilemodeling.com/essays/communication.htm
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13. Manifesto for Agile Software Development
We
are
uncovering
better
ways
of
developing
software
by
doing
it
and
helping
others
do
it.
Through
this
work
we
have
come
to
value:
Individuals
and
interactions
over
processes
and
tools
Working
software
over
comprehensive
documentation
Customer
collaboration
over
contract
negotiation
Responding
to
change
over
following
a
plan
That
is,
while
there
is
value
in
the
items
on
the
right,
we
value
the
items
on
the
left
more.
http://agilemanifesto.org
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14. “rough consensus, running
code”
Internet Engineering Task Force
http://www.ietf.org/tao.html
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15. http://farm6.staticElickr.com/5310/5616474374_ea5007a5a9_o_d.png
http://www.Elickr.com/photos/improveit/1684378416/sizes/o/in/photostream/
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16. 16

17. Scrum
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18. local
development
in
a
recession
18

19. innovation
happens
in
a
local
context
local
developers
empower
the
organisation
to
innovate
19

20. the value of the local developer
• can
understand
local
conditions
better
than
an
external
supplier
• is
more
accessible
-­‐
especially
when
adopting
agile
development
techniques
• through
web
APIs,
can
tailor
remote
services
to
idiosyncratic
local
needs
-­‐
can
make
cheap
services
into
good
services
• can
engage
the
technical
people
in
an
external
supplier
-­‐
not
just
the
pre-­‐sales
people!
• can
engage
with
and
exploit
available
open
source
developments
20

21. use the local talent!
• Student
as
Producer
at
Lincoln
University
• sourced
developer
effort
and
skills
from
the
student
cohort
• “demonstrated
to
us
that
students
can
have
the
requisite
skills,
enthusiasm
and
experience
to
enable
us
to
innovate
rapidly”
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22. developers
are
people
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23. "If
the
UK's
creative
businesses
want
to
thrive
in
the
digital
future,
you
need
people
who
understand
all
facets
of
it
integrated
from
the
very
beginning.
Take
a
lead
from
the
Victorians
[...]:
bring
engineers
into
your
company
at
all
levels,
including
the
top."
Eric
Schmidt,
Chairman
of
Google
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24. the case of the missing career path....
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Higher Education Institution
}
}
}?
Undergraduate
Postgrad researcher/developer
Employed developer
1 2 3 4
Academic
Manager
5
Spontaneous technical
innovation does
happens here
Strategic leadership
for technical
innovation could
happen here
?
Spontaneous technical
could happen here
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25. Paul
Walk
paul@paulwalk.net
@paulwalk
http://www.paulwalk.net
thank you!
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