Datasheet

software creates change for the users, and subsequent changes to the software
create more change.
Today’s software developers and their managers face three major forms of
change. Firstly, there’s the need to adopt Agile methods. Agile and Lean
development techniques are now established and are moving into the main-
stream arena. In order to adopt these techniques, development teams must
change the way in which they work.
Secondly, having adopted Agile development, these best-performing teams
need to move far beyond the current methods and best practices. Before long,
simply adopting the prescribed practices of a methodology such as eXtreme
Programming won’t be enough. Each team must learn for itself what works best.
Finally, IT is all about creating change in others. IT deployments that inflict
change on helpless users don’t recognize the true benefits of IT; indeed, many
such projects are outright failures. Those developing and deploying software
must appreciate the need for change and learning by the end users.
Learningandchange are complicatedfields.All toooften,peoplesee changeas
the simple application of raw authority: tell someone to do it differently, tell someone
to use a new system, punish them if they get it wrong. Unfortunately, this technique
doesn’t work very well. In particular, it isn’t effective with knowledge workers
who may actually know more about the problem than anyone in a position of
authority. So we need a new view of change to help us with these problems.
Fortunately, the best people in IT – and, in particular, the actual software
development side – like learning. Much, if not most, IT work is problem solving,
which is itself a form of learning. Therefore, we need to help people learn, help
them learn the right things and ensure that this learning is maximized through
meaningful change.
1.1 Why Read this Book?
Even if you don’t wish to embrace Agile software development, there are good
reasons to embrace learning and create a learning culture. Building a learning
environment and culture can help improve the way in which you create
software and benefit your company in many ways.
This book is primarily written for software developers and managers who
want to improve the way in which they, and their teams, develop software.
Software developers who are making, or have recently made, the transition to
team leadership and development management should find the ideas particu-
larly interesting.
There’s an additional group of people who I hope will find this book
interesting: those dependent on the work of a software development team.
Knowled
g
e = Learnin
g
+ Action
Figure 1.1 Knowledge is.
2 Chapter 1