Software Engineering and articles

Improving When Working on Projects

Eight practices for improving the productivity and profitability of software projects, from realistic estimates and clear requirements to protecting the team's focus.

South Summit 2015

A reflection on South Summit 2015 and the value of attending professional events to discover projects, meet people, and learn from others' experiences.

Hiring the Best (and How Not to Reinvent the Wheel)

Reusing existing components and solutions lets us focus our time and talent on what adds value, reduce costs, and avoid rebuilding work that has already been done.

Is Your Boss a Good Software Project Manager?

A good software project manager coordinates, protects, and develops the team, shares success, and creates the conditions for people to work with confidence.

These Months of 2015

A look back at the projects, technologies, reading, and lessons of the first half of 2015, from JavaScript and web performance to work management.

On Performance

Web performance affects user experience and business outcomes. Measuring and optimizing it from the start helps build responsive, scalable systems.

A Deep Dive into NodeJS 0.12

A practical experience with NodeJS 0.12: backend modules, testing, cloud services, task automation, and principles for organizing a professional application.

On Spreadsheets, Email, Task Management, and Workflows

Effective work depends less on overtime than on organizing tasks, defining workflows, and choosing tools designed to manage work.

The Last-Mile Theory (Applied to Software)

Small reviews and extra improvements, practiced as a habit, raise the quality of everyday software development and help us get closer to excellence.

When Should You Deploy a New Solution?

Deploying early to an environment similar to production helps uncover differences, validate features, and avoid surprises at the end of a project.

Developing for the Cloud

Developing for the cloud means more than hosting an application: cloud services shape its architecture, scalability, costs, and the products we can build.

First the "What," Then the "How"

Separating requirements from technology decisions helps teams choose solutions that fit the problem and avoid unnecessary costs, risks, and constraints.