topsyWidgetPreload({ “url”: “http%3A%2F%2Ftynerblain.com%2Fblog%2F2006%2F07%2F20%2Firon-triangle-kills-in-boston%2F”, “style”: “big”, “title”: “Iron Triangle Kills in Boston…” }); … Skyline Unharmed Short-sighted demands on software teams usually don’t kill people. Software development is often described with a construction analogy. The Big Dig construction project was under exactly that kind of pressure. On July 10th, 12 tons of tunnel ceiling collapsed and [...]
Marcus Ting-A-Kee has a post on his blog with a great magic square diagram describing a perspective on innovation. This framework provides us with an easy way to assess the potential impact of an innovation. We will…
* show how to use the square
* look at some example innovations
* and use the square to prioritize requirements
Net present value, or NPV is the great equalizer of financial analysis.
NPV allows us to compare any two investments and determine which is the better investment.
NPV tells us how many dollars, today, we would be willing to spend to receive money in the future. NPV lets us compare investments that pay back money in very different ways – we can decide if we would rather have $10,000 in one year, or $500 per month for 20 months. Without NPV, the two investments appear to be the same (they both return $10,000), but one of them is better than the other.
The main point of Laura’s article is the importance of engaging users to find out what they really care about. In this post we are going to pick up on another point she makes indirectly.
Laura also points out indirectly that the inclination of companies is all too often to build software that looks good on paper instead of software that is good in practice. A sort of rat-race of me-too’s and copycatting. Companies that add features solely because the competition has them are in for trouble.
topsyWidgetPreload({ “url”: “http%3A%2F%2Ftynerblain.com%2Fblog%2F2006%2F02%2F26%2Fdilbert-gathers-requirements%2F”, “style”: “big”, “title”: “Dilbert gathers requirements” }); Another great Dilbert – http://www.dilbert.com/comics/dilbert/archive/dilbert-20060226.html I won’t show the cartoon here, but here’s a quote from the first two panels: Pointy-haired boss: Why is your project four months behind? Dilbert: I still don’t have the user’s requirements because she’s a complete nut-job. [...] This cartoon [...]
topsyWidgetPreload({ “url”: “http%3A%2F%2Ftynerblain.com%2Fblog%2F2006%2F02%2F23%2Fwhat-do-you-hate%2F”, “style”: “big”, “title”: “What do you hate?” }); What do you hate about Tyner Blain’s blog? ack/nak posted a great idea – ask customers what they hate about you. Seth Godin has a book – Permission Marketing: Turning Strangers into Friends and Friends into Customers, and in his free ebook, Flipping the [...]
These articles are written primarily for business analysts and product managers. Hopefully they are helping you with thinking, doing, and learning. Welcome aboard!
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