This is the digital version of the printed book (Copyright © 2003). To succeed in the software industry, managers need to cultivate a reliable development process. By measuring what teams have achieved on previous projects, managers can more accurately set goals, make bids, and ensure the successful completion of new projects. Acclaimed long-time collaborators Lawrence H. Putnam and Ware Myers present simple but powerful measurement techniques to help software managers allocate limited resources and track project progress. Drawing new findings from an extensive database of software project metrics, the authors demonstrate how readers can control projects with just Five Core Metrics–Time, Effort, Size, Reliability, and Process Productivity. With these metrics, managers can adjust ongoing projects to changing conditions–surprises that would otherwise cause project failure.  

Table of Contents:
&>   Introduction 3 The Evolution of the Metrics 5 Computing Nuclear Weapons Effects 6 Computer Budgets in the Pentagon 7 Applying the Rayleigh Concept to New Projects 10 The Rayleigh Concept Leads to the Software Equation 12 Second Key Relationship: Manpower Buildup Equation 15 The Rayleigh Curve As a Process Control Vehicle   16 Part I  What Software Stakeholders Want 19 Chapter 1 Some Software Organizations Are Doing Very Well 21 Maturity Assessments Reflect Hope 24 Has Software Development Mired Down? 26 Way Down Low 27 Intelligence Can Guide Us 28 Chapter 2  A Finite Planet Makes Measurement Essential 31 What Makes Metrics Effective? 33 What the Right Metrics Are 33 How the Core Metrics Relate 34 The Management of Software Projects Is Very Difficult 34 Specifications 35 Capability Maturity Model 35 Process 36 Measure What Has Been Done 36 These Five Metrics Work Together 37 Chapter 3  Integrate Metrics with Software Development  40 Metrics Meter Limited Resources 40 What Is the Process? 42 Phase One: Inception 44 Phase Two: Elaboration 45 Phase Three: Construction 48 Phase Four: Transition 50 Chapter 4   "I Want Predictability" 52 The Software Situation Is Serious 53 Department of Defense Calls for Predictability 54 The Underlying Reasons Are Complex 54 Competition Stirs the Pot 55 The Limits of the Possible 56 There Are Certain Limits 60 Part II  The Metrics Needed for Effective Control 63 Chapter 5  The Measurement View 65 The Profound Difference 67 One Fact Is Minimum Development Time 68 The Core Measurements Underlie "Getting Work Done"  68 The Key Concepts 69 Expressing the Key Concepts in Metrics 71 Time 71 Effort 71 Quality 72 Amount of Work 72 Process Productivity 73 Chapter 6  Estimating Size as a Measure of Functionality Shannon's Path 78 Representing the Amount of Functionality   81 Sizing Functionality by Calibration 82 Sizing Implications of Reuse 83 Estimate Size 84 Get the Facts 85 Get the People 86 Get the Data 86 Allow Time 86 Employ an Estimating Method 86 Chapter 7  Penetrating the Software Productivity Jungle 89 Finding the Right Relationship 90 The Relationship of Time to Size 90 The Relationship of Effort to Size  91 The Software Equation 92 The Effect on Productivity 92 Conventional Productivity Varies Widely 93 Schedule Is a Factor in Productivity 94 How Conventional Productivity Behaves 94 How Process Productivity Behaves 97 Obtain Process Productivity by Calibration 98 Don't Do It This Way! 101 Do It with Process Productivity 101 Chapter 8  Defect Rate Measures Reliability 103 The Fifth Core Metric 104 Software Development Is in Trouble 106 Why Do We Commit Errors? 107 Plan Projects to Minimize Error-Making 107 Limit Functionality 108 Allow Sufficient Schedule Time 108 Allow Sufficient Effort   109 Improve Process Productivity 109 Find Defects 110 Some Defects Remain at Delivery 110 Part III  Control at the Project Level 113 Chapter 9  Do the Hard Stuff First—Establish Feasibility 115 The Vision Comes First 116 What to Build 116 Risk 117 Economic Constraints 117 An Endless Task 117 How We Got into This Leaky Boat 119 The Inception Phase Establishes Feasibility 120 Delimit Scope 121 Select an Architecture Possibility 122 Mitigate Critical Risk 123 A Feasibility Decision, 150 Years Later 123 Make the Business Case 124 Where Do the Resources Come From? 126 Were Our Ancestors Shrewder? 127 Chapter 10  Do the Tough Stuff Next—Functional Design 128 The Tough Stuff   129 Meshing the Activities 131 Formulating Requirements Is No Longer Simple 132 Difficulties Fixing Requirements 133 What We Need to Do 134 Key Requirements Lead to Functional Design 134 Identify Significant Risks? 135 The Business Case at Phase Two 136 Supporting Phase two Itself 136 Nearing the Bid Decision 137 Chapter 11   The Power of the Trade-Off 138 Avoid the Impossible Region 140 Stay Out of the Impractical Region 141 Trade-Off Time and Effort 141 Trade-Off Time and Defects 142 Small Is Beautiful 143 Once More with Emphasis: Small Is Beautiful! 144 Selecting the Software Relationship 151 There Must Be a Relationship 152 The Relationship Must Be Reasonably Accurate 153 Management Must Use the Relationship   156 The Bid Is Different from the Estimate 158 Chapter 12  Turning Your Range Estimate Into Your Client's Point Bid 159 The Uncertainty Drivers 160 The Time-Effort Curve Is Uncertain 160 Estimators Face Constraints 161 Manage Estimating Risk 163 Get Out of the Uncertainty Trap 164 Work with Uncertainty, Not in Defiance of It 166 Chapter 13  The Main Build Leads to Operational Capability 169 Staff Allocation 171 Projecting Functionality 175 Detecting Defects in Test 177 Apply Statistical Control to the Core Metrics 177 Track System Size 180 Track Defects 182 The Essential Point: Control 185 Chapter 14  The Operation and Maintenance Phase 186 Where Does Phase Four Begin? 187 What Goes On in the Phase? 188 Find and Fix Defects 189 Improve Reliability 189 Adapt the System 190 Modify the System 190 When Does the Phase End? 191 How to Estimate the Phase 192 Chapter 15  Replan Projects in Trouble 195 The Award Differs from the Original Estimate 196 The Award Reflects the Estimate 199 Replan Troubled Projects 200 Replan Periodically 201 Part IV  Control at the Organization Level 203 Chapter 16  A Telecommunications Company Evaluates Its Software Suppliers 205 Lessons from Construction 206 Lack of Facts Leads to Pain 206 Lower Tier, the Same 208 PTT Telecom BV Gets Real 209 The PTT Faces Competition 210 The Telecom Considers What to Do 210 How to Do It? 211 Purchasing Alerts Management 212 The Telecom Gets Results 213 Results on Sample Projects 215 Chapter 17  Evaluate Bids on the Facts 217 The Reality Is Research and Development 217 Getting to the Facts 218 The Bidder Cooperates 219 The Evaluators Consider Schedule 219 The Evaluators Consider Effort 222 The Evaluators Consider Reliability 223 The World of Wild Bidding 223 The Vendor Tries to Buy In 224 The Vendor Gold Plates 225 Experience Supports the Factual Approach 225 Who Needs the Facts? 226 Chapter 18  Managing a Portfolio of Projects 227 A Senior Manager Can Master-Plan 228 Good Project Plans Underlie a Good Master Plan 229 What a Master Plan Does 232 The Master Curve Shows Declining Staff 232 The Master Curve Shows Increasing Staff 233 Control of Project Backlog 233 Coping with Powerful Project Managers 234 Planning Staff at the Enterprise Level 234 Chapter 19  Improving the Software Development Process 236 Performance Comes from the Entire Process 237 Pre-Phase: Needs 238 Inception Phase (or Feasibility) 239 Elaboration Phase (or Functional Design) 240 Construction Phase (or Main Build)   241 Transition (or Operation and Maintenance)   241 Phases Are Implemented by Workflows  241 Process Improvement Comes Hard 242 Process Productivity Rises Slowly 243 Process Productivity Extends Over a Great Range 243 Why Has Process Improvement Been Hard? 244 Trapped in the Economy 245 Need for Client Participation 245 Software Development Is Difficult 246 Some Organizations Are Improving Their Process 247 The Place to Start Is Where You Are 250 Chapter 20  Managing Reusable Components 251 The Five Stages of Reuse 252 Hip-Pocket Reuse 252 Reuse from a Repository 252 Product-Line Reuse 254 ERP Systems Are a Form of Reuse 255 Architecture-Wide Reuse 255 What Are the Essential Supports for Reuse? 257 Architecture Accommodates Components 257 Interfaces Enable Inter-Component Communication 258 Variation Mechanisms Multiply Adaptability 258 Process Provides Locations for Selection 258 Modeling Language Provides the Means 259 Tools Implement These Needs 260 Internet-Hosted Services 260 Estimating in the Age of Reuse 260 Components from a Repository  261 Product-Line and ERP Reuse 261 Any Metric Measuring Functionality Will Do 261 Finding That Metric  261 Calibration to the Rescue 262 Fundamental Principle Reinforced 263 Architecture-Wide Components Increase Reuse 264 Functionality or Process Productivity? 264 Size Adjustment Seeks "Effective" Size 266 Second Approach Adjusts Process Productivity 266 Chapter 21   Metrics Backstop Negotiation 269 Negotiation Bridges Gaps 270 The Principal Gaps 272 Different Interests at Stake 273 A Job for Negotiation Man! 273 The Core Metrics Support Negotiation 274 Software Development Depends on Negotiation 276 Negotiation Depends Upon Metrics 277 Chapter 22 Motivating Participants in the Software Development Process 278 People Are the Ultimate Resource 279 Hire Good People 279 Build Organizations 280 Keep People 280 Give People Time 281 Five Essential Motivating Factors 282 Extending Estimating Wisdom More Widely 282 Ten Great Truths 284 The Five Great Truths About Metrics 284 The Five Great Truths About Software Development 285 Appendix A Good Enough Is Better Than Floundering 287 Appendix B  Behavior of the Core Metrics 290 Study Results  291 Size 292 Effort 293 Time 294 Staff 295 Process Productivity 296 Mean Time To Defect 297 Will the Next Period Reverse Again? 298 Bibliography 301 Index 305