Review of Software Management, 6th Edition (Paperback)

This collection of IEEE and ACM papers written by an all star case of industry experts is showing its age in many areas.For example Barry Boehm's "A Spiral Model of Software Development and Enhancement", while valid for high-risk projects that push the technical envelope, is too risk-adverse for rapid or incremental development projects that are in increasing use.

However, some papers that you may be tempted to reject out-of-hand, such as TRW's Ada Process Model for Incremental Development of Large Software Systems is actually worth reading for organizations that have committed to the Rational Unified Process.

Overall, the range of papers covers every aspect of software engineering project management.The applicability of the papers collected in this book to contemporary practices is uneven.Some practices are either thoroughly documented and accepted best practices (the entire section of papers on project management), or are transitioning to newer models (the material on the CMM).On the other hand, some papers in this collection are gems and make this book worthwhile despite its age (planning and estimation papers).

One final note - the layout and design of this book could be greatly improved.Despite the age and some of the shortcomings I noted this is still a worthwhile resource for software engineering professionals who are working in a CMM Level 2 or above organization.

Product Description
This sixth edition of Donald Reifer's popular, bestselling tutorial summarizes what software project managers need to be successful. The text provides pointers to the current issues, challenges and experiences that shape their jobs. It explores recent advances in such dissimilar fields as management theory, distance education, knowledge management, motivation theory, process improvement, organization dynamics, and technology transfer.

Software Management, Sixth Edition provides software executives and corporate officers with the knowledge they need to develop their software engineering management strategies for the future. It also gives the software project manager insight into the tools and techniques that they can use to improve their ability to deliver high quality software products on time and within budget obligations. The book also provides sufficient instructional material to serve as a text for a course on software management.

Reifer's goal is to achieve a balance between theory and practical experience. He systematically addresses the skills, knowledge and abilities that software managers, at any level of experience, need to have to practice their profession effectively.

This book contains fourteen original articles by leaders in the field specifically written for this sixth edition, as well as a collection of reprints. About 40 percent of the material in this edition has been produced specifically for this volume. Only about half of the papers from the previous edition appear in this revision.

From the Back Cover
This sixth edition of Donald Reifer's popular, bestselling tutorial summarizes what software project managers need to be successful. The text provides pointers to the current issues, challenges and experiences that shape their jobs. It explores recent advances in such dissimilar fields as management theory, distance education, knowledge management, motivation theory, process improvement, organization dynamics, and technology transfer.

Software Management, Sixth Edition provides software executives and corporate officers with the knowledge they need to develop their software engineering management strategies for the future. It also gives the software project manager insight into the tools and techniques that they can use to improve their ability to deliver high quality software products on time and within budget obligations. The book also provides sufficient instructional material to serve as a text for a course on software management.

Reifer's new edition achieves a balance between theory and practical experience. He systematically addresses the skills, knowledge and abilities that software managers, at any level of experience, need to have to practice their profession effectively.

This book contains fourteen original articles by leaders in the field specifically written for this sixth edition, as well as its collection of reprints. About 40 percent of the material in this edition has been produced specifically for this volume. Only about half of the papers from the previous edition appear in this revision.

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