Creating High-Performance Software Development Teams

There are two potential audiences for this book - those who have scars earned from projects and jobs and will get the message the author is conveying and those who are looking for easy answers and just won't get it.For the first group this book will reinforce past experiences because the author distills all of what's best in the way of practices into a slim, well written book. What's nice is the wisdom is tied to life cycle stages so you can relate the team building practices to past experiences at a particular point in a project or the functional area in which you participated. The second group won't get it because they are the people who are destined to remain second tier professionals. You can spot them because they are always looking for a silver bullet or waiting for someone to tell them what to do next. This book will go over their heads because the answers that the author provides requires reasoning and thought.If you're in the first group you'll find this book to be a wonderful read and an inspiring text that will motivate you to continually improve. You're either a leader of have definite leadership material. If you are the type who expects a book to spell it out for you, stick with coding, doing moves/adds/changes or whatever it is you do and buy "101" and "For Dummies" books. This one will go right over your head.

This is the second book I've read (and reviewed) by Mr. Ginac. He is a master at packing a maximum amount of information and wisdom into books with minimal page counts. This requires real talent on the author's part and I, for one, appreciate it when I can improve my professional knowledge with a book that can be read in one sitting.This book is about project management, development processes and leadership, all of which are interwoven into seven succinct chapters. The parts of this book that I especially liked are: (1) The sensible and business-oriented approach to requirements in Chapter 1. This is a recipe for success and encapsulates some of the best practices I've come across in a single short chapter. (2) The focus on team building and leadership that is given in Chapters 2 through 4 and 6. I've endured poor leadership and have had the pleasure of working for some of the best in my 25 years of experience, so I have a good feel for what works and what doesn't. These three chapters capture all of the good examples that have taken me a quarter of a century to discover, and provides some of the best advice and guidance you'll find in any book. (4) The chapter on planning, like the others, distills into a few short pages some of the best advice a project manager or team leader should carefully heed. Like the body of the book, the appendix is rich with information that is crammed into a short page count. I'm obviously a fan of Mr. Ginac, due in no small part to this book. If you read this one and want more I highly recommend that you read Customer Oriented Software Quality Assurance, which is also short, informative and well written. 5 stars for this one!

123 pages. A refreshing and quick read covering the fundamental aspects of software management. Guidance on building a high performance team through hiring qualified developers, matching skills with positions, training, and harnessing individual strengths. Discusses software developers as people instead of as resources. Presents hierarchical, flat, and matrix organization structures. Illustrates the importance of requirements gathering, return on investment (ROI) calculations, and planning. Distinguishes between management and leadership. Explains how to execute with passion and keep the project on track by managing the critical path. The author uses relevant analogies and personal stories in a few places to illustrate the points. Watch out for the "chasing the shiny coin syndrome."

I found the points raised in the book almost painful - I've made many of the mistakes Mr. Ginac illustraits. While the book does not offer the detail you might find in a 1000 page book, it does focus on the aspects of software development that are often overlooked by developers, especially those in small organizations. By adopting many of the methods and ideas presented, I've improved the software development process in a very real and practical way at our office.

As a person who is not in the computer industry, but who works in management, I found this book filled with practical, relevant information. I found the author's style of writing to be well organized and thoughtful. Mr. Ginac's honest, straight forward approach to building teams that truly work together was inspiring. I look forward to his next work.