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Summary: The truth behind the failure of software projects
Review: Programming languages come and go with an occasional paradigm shift thrown in. However, the thought processes and the mental gyrations needed to complete large software projects remain largely unchanged in the decade since the first edition of this book was published. Unfortunately, management skills also remained stagnant as well. In this book, the authors lay out the ugly truth as to why much of software development fails. It is not a lack of technical or technological competence on the part of developers, but a strong tendency by management to treat programmers as mere code generators possessing accelerator buttons. Simply prod, bribe, threaten, cajole or berate them and the button is pressed causing them to work overtime with a smile, with no associated loss of productivity. The authors lay out examples of all of these techniques.
Quality developers must possess a great deal of originality, creativity and pride in what they do. Destroy that using the techniques listed in this book and the consequences are obvious. Even brown, scorched earth looks green by comparison and the quality people depart. A large percentage, perhaps even the majority, of software development projects fail. Many studies support the position that it is largely a failure of middle management. Millions of dollars could be saved if all who fall into that category would read this book and have the courage to act on what they read. Unfortunately, that will probably not happen. After all, the authors did come out with a second edition, didn't they?
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Summary: An absolute must-read!
Review: I cannot overstate just how great this book is!DeMarco and Lister don't mess around. They go right to the heart of project and team management and tell you exactly what makes one company succeed while so many others fail: it's not technology, it's people. With reckless abandon, they attack cubicles, dress codes, telephones, hiring policies, and company core hours and demonstrate how managers who are not insecure about their positions, who shelter their employees from corporate politics, who, in short, make it possible for people to work are the ones who complete projects and whose employees have fun doing so. The authors use no-nonsense writing, statistical evidence, and even humorous anecdotes to drive their points home. While the first edition was as appropriate to today's corporate cultures as it ever was, the authors have added analysis of some of the latest trends in management in this new second edition, and show what's good and what's not. The update includes coverage of the dangers of constant overtime, the stupidity of motivational posters, the side effects of process improvement programs, how to make change possible, and the costs of turnover. As with the rest of the book, all topics receive thorough and thoughtful treatment. Although the book is weighed heavily towards software engineering projects, you'll find that much of what DeMarco and Lister say apply to projects where creativity and analytical skills are required. If you're a manager of such a project, consider this book required reading before you do anything else today. If you're a team member on such a project, buy a copy for your boss, and an extra one for your boss's boss. One final note: I'd wager that Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, must use this book as inspiration for his comic strip. Dilbert's encounters with his moronic boss and idiotic company policies seem to come right from the pages of Peopleware's advice on what not to do.
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Summary: If you Manage Software Projects -- Buy This Book!
Review: When I was first offered a management position, I bought tons of management books -- most of which were of absolutely no use, especially when it came to software development projects. This book kicks all the others out of the picture. Now, I just need to get my boss to read it...
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Summary: Best book I've read on Project Management
Review: This is without a doubt the best book on management and project management I have ever read, and I have read tons. The reviews below say it all. Buy this book, read it, and then read it again and again until it is committed to memory. Buy it for your boss too.
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Summary: A really great book.
Review: This book has lots of solid information about what makes software developers do a good job. Some of the information is really thought provoking. Some is just a very clear way of saying -- and logically proving -- things that you already know. The general philosophy in the book is that software developers want to do a good job. The job of the manager is to create conditions where the developers can do a good job. The book have 2 - 3 chapters that I will try to get my bosses to read, because they pinpoint our problems so precisely. Other chapters are about aspects that luckily are not problems for us. The book is really easy to read. Once I started I could not stop. Still the individual chapters describe different aspects and can be read separately. I will invest some money in a better work situation by buying this book as a Christmas gift for my boss. I just hope that the boss will read it.
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Summary: Finally! Recognition that P.M. is about *people performing*
Review: and NOT about managers "getting" people to get their work done. I've read many many books on project management, and they're pretty much all identical at the root: tools and techniques for dealing with the "project" as a thing. Nothing on dealind with the people doing the work. _Peopleware_ is the first book I've seen that's focused on the human dynamic as THE critical componment of project success. When I read the first edition, I was amazed that a book so deliberately (and so joyfully) positioned against the catalogue of corporate commonplaces had made it into print--and now a second, expanded edition? This is too much to hope for! Needless to say, I _immediately_ bought three copies of this new edition (one for me, two for friends and colleagues), and I'm drafting a list of everyone else I'll be sending a copy to. Truly, DeMarco and Lister are iconoclasts of the first order--a trait which in of itself makes them worth reading. But they're also skilled writers and, perhaps most importantly, a POSITIVE and encouraging voice for corporate change. When's the last time you laughed reading a book on project management?
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Summary: all new managers should read this book
Review: I think it's one of the best books on management available. The worst managers I've met were ones who never read this book or who read this book but didn't take it's advice to heart. It's possible to be a good manager without having read this book (management comes from the heart and from the guts), but if you even consider management something that's a skill you can learn at all, this book has something to teach you.
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Summary: Peopleware Is Now Updated with Eight New Chapters!
Review: Two of the computer industry's best-selling authors and lecturers return with a new edition of their 1987 classic on the management of software development. With humor and wisdom drawn from years of management and consulting experience, DeMarco and Lister demonstrate that the major issues of software development are human, not technical -- and that managers ignore them at their peril. Now, with a new Preface and eight new chapters, the authors enlarge upon their previous ideas and add fresh insights, examples, and anecdotes. Discover dozens of helpful tips on * putting more quality into a product * loosening up formal methodologies * fighting corporate entropy * making it acceptable to be uninterruptible Peopleware shows you how to cultivate teams that are healthy and productive. The answers aren't easy -- just incredibly successful. Reviews of the First Edition "Many of the book's recommendations have become watchwords for today's leading-edge companies: providing developers with private offices, turning off the public address system, providing phones that can be set to 'do not disturb,' auditioning software job candidates, and so on. . . . With this influential track record, the new revision of Peopleware is one of the few books I will buy sight unseen." -- Steve McConnell, IEEE Software "I strongly recommend that you buy one copy of Peopleware for yourself and another copy for your boss. If you are a boss, then buy one for everyone in your department, and buy one for your boss." -- Ed Yourdon, American Programmer "challenges the modern myth that technology is the cornerstone of productivity. It makes you think about creating a culture that allows people to work (more) effectively." -- Rose Ann Giordano, Digital Equipment Corp. "addresses the fundamental issues of knowledge worker productivity that managers have for so long ignored." -- Michael W. Bealmear, Coopers & Lybrand "casts a new light on human behavior in development projects." -- Tomoo Matsubara, Hitachi Software Engineering Co. "DeMarco and Lister are, at once, entertaining story tellers and astute observers of the project management scene." -- John H. Taylor, E.I. du Pont Nemours & Co. "If you hire people for their brains, you can't treat them like modular components and expect an able, creative crew to emerge. That's the basic message in Peopleware. . . . fun to read because the authors illustrate their analyses and solutions with war stories drawn from their consulting experience. But this well-researched book is also persuasive because its advice is backed up by firm scholarship." -- PC World ". . . the authors buttress their assertions with empirical data collected from studies involving some 900 programmers and analysts. . . . All of the chapters contain insights and novel approaches that will make readers and managers look at important issues from a new vantage point. . . . Its messages are important, and the book deserves a place on the shelf of every software manager and every software management consultant." -- T. Capers Jones "Lister and [DeMarco] savagely destroy a sizeable chunk of received wisdom, using by turns well-picked example, epigramatic darts, careful reasoning and even data. . . . even if you disagree with what DeMarco and Lister say, you will enjoy how they say it, and you will go away thinking. Get the book and read it. Then give it to your manager. Or, if you dare, your subordinates." -- Alan Campbell, Computing, London "The book is an unremitting defense of the people part of the productivity equation, backed by statistics and anecdotes." -- George Harrar, Computerworld "In addition to being critically important, the book has a rare characteristic: it is fun to read. . . . it provides ideas and information for any systems development manager to help improve the craft of system development." -- Albert L. LeDuc, CAUSE/EFFECT "It would be an understatement to call this book a must for project managers. In seeking a new job, I would ask my prospective boss what he thought of this book. A positive response would be worth about $5000 in comparing job offers." -- Rich Cohen Partial Contents MANAGING THE HUMAN RESOURCE Somewhere Today, a Project Is Failing Make a Cheeseburger, Sell a Cheeseburger Quality -- If Time Permits Laetrile THE OFFICE ENVIRONMENT The Furniture Police "You Never Get Anything Done Around Here Between 9 and 5" Saving Money on Space Bring Back the Door Taking Umbrella Steps THE RIGHT PEOPLE Hiring a Juggler Happy to Be Here The Self-Healing System GROWING PRODUCTIVE TEAMS Teamicide A Spaghetti Dinner Open Kimono Chemistry for Team Formation IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE FUN TO WORK HERE Free Electrons Holgar Dansk INTRODUCING PART VI: SON OF PEOPLEWARE CHAPTER 27 Teamicide Revisited CHAPTER 28 Competition CHAPTER 29 Process Improvement Programs CHAPTER 30 Making Change Possible CHAPTER 31 Human Capital CHAPTER 32 Organizational Learning CHAPTER 33 The Ultimate Management Sin Is . . . CHAPTER 34 The Making of Community Notes, Bibliography, Index
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Summary: Book is fantastic; a must read for those who want change
Review: This book is very good. This book points out the obvious pitfalls that are in place in many of the workplace environments today. I highly recommend the book for those who have a sincere interest in seeking to change the normal corporate mentality that permeates most workplaces today. This book is very practical but yet sound in it's foundation and findings. This should be required reading for all of those involved in facilities planning and related decisions. A must read book for all who are involved in the workplace and especially those starting a new business!
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Summary: In the age of technology, people still matter.
Review: In a fairly short book, the authors manage to touch all the important issues that prevent people from doing their best. One of the "findings" of the book is that people should enjoy their job and the environment (other people and the physical aspects) to be productive. This seems to be forgotten in some places.
If you notice that several of the problems mentioned by the author are in your organization, do not despair. You are not alone. Keep on reading and watch out for the suggestions they give. Some of them are simple and can be implemented right away. Some other suggestions require more time (and influence), but are long lasting.
Particularly interesting (for a programmer) is their study that shows a 10 to 1 performance difference between the best and the worst programmer. That is not all: this ratio is also true for organizations, so (they say) good people are attracted by good organizations (the opposite is also true: bad people are...).
Get the book are prepare yourself to have it stolen by some co-worker.
P.S.: It did not get a 10 because a few suggestions are too simplistic.
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