97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know

Chapter 29. Value Results, Not Just Effort

Venkat Subramaniam

DEVELOPING SOFTWARE TAKES A LOT OF EFFORT. However, if you hear someone brag, "I work on an application with over 3 million lines of code," ask him or her how many of those lines of code are really needed.

Often, extra code is added with some perceived extensibility^[10] in mind. Extensibility is important, but if not done correctly, it can have the opposite effect. It can delay your current project.

Extra, out-of-scope code is a symptom of software project managers who reward only extra time and extra effort. If you routinely insist that the programmers work long hours, be sure they are actually producing additional, useable results.

I like my lawn to be green, and rely on my sprinkler system to water it every day. My first summer in Colorado, I noticed that one of my maple trees had lost most of its leaves. Assuming that the hot and arid conditions were the reason, I watered longer but noticed no improvement. The expert I consulted asked me, "How frequently and how long do you water?" Hearing my answer, he said, "That's the problem! Reduce the duration and frequency by half, and you will see improvement."

I was killing the tree with excessive water. Having slightly less water actually helps these trees. It builds their resistance and helps their growth. Two weeks after following his advice, my tree was healthy and full of leaves. ...