Process Failures - Reality Check

For every role, job profile - Dev, Test, Support there would be areas of improvements / continuous improvements / Removing Muda (Waste) / Kaizen ....

From Customer perspective - Looking for working product @ the earliest time
From IT Project Team perspective - Meet the Requirement, Beat the Schedule, Manage the Cost
From Development Perspective - Functionality agreed and Signed off to Freeze Design
From Test Perspective - Access functionality changes in every iteration and test it

Where is the Noise

• Everything looks fine with the first draft version of functional spec.During Design when it changes this has ripple effect in design, testing, schedule and timeline.
• Not Every Business Team is IT Savvy. Not every IT team understands the project business value
• Communication does to flow across the team consistently. Keeping whole in same page requires effective communication

What Actually Happens

• Developer spending late nights @ work to make code release
• Test Team testing during weekends/working beyond office hours to meet the schedule  
• Work + Work - Life, Work Life Balance Issues

Reality of Process Implementation

• Process is a guideline not the best practice, Getting better at things we do helps us improve ourselves and Improve working environment
• I really doubt every developer aware of best coding practice / Every tester aware of best testing practices
• I have a team of 10 Developers. How do we ensure everyone develops the same quality of code
• Enforce-Use tools to implement Code Checks - This is a reactive way in my perspective
• If I know this is the best practice to handle this problem. Memory use, Better Logic. Make everyone understand rationale behind usage of particular approach.
• Knowing facts is not sufficient. You also need to know Why?
• Have this best practices shared in Email Communications, Employee Kits, Notes, Posters
• Subscribe to a newsletter for a subject and learn it thoroughly
• Best practices once developed never get communicated (marketing) - selling part of it is often poor. A best practice should justify why it is a best practice, how it evolved, Future reading....
• Knowledge Sharing Sessions - Reading Subject matter experts blog - Blogging your learnings are good ways of learning and sharing....

Sometimes it is worth to re-learn!!

Happy Reading!!