---
# System prepended metadata

title: Introduction to Software Project Management - BSUP
tags: [SPM, BSUP]

---

# Introduction to Software Project Management - BSUP
###### tags: `BSUP`, `SPM`

## If I am studying software development, why should I bother?
* More and more systems are software controlled.
* Nowadays, the expenditure on software represents a significant fraction of gross national product (GNP) in all developed countries.
* Individual approaches were unable to scale up to larger and more complex systems.
* The “software crisis” (Naur and Randell, 1969), the birth of “software engineering” in 1968.
    * http://homepages.cs.ncl.ac.uk/brian.randell/NATO/nato1968.PDF
* Between the 1970s and 1980s, a variety of software engineering techniques and methodologies were developed together with tools and standardized notations…
* … and this trend is still continuing.
* … however, after 50 years, developing software is still a challenging endeavor that can fail.

## Cases Ariane 5 Flight 501
* 4th June 1996. Approximately 37 seconds after a successful lift-off, the Ariane 5
* launcher lost control (a 370kk dollar firework).
* The crash report identifies a software bug as the direct cause (integer overflow).
* Incorrect control signals were sent to the engines and these swiveled so that
* unsustainable stresses were imposed on the rocket.
* It started to break up and was destroyed by ground controllers.
* The system failure was a direct result of a software failure. However, it was symptomatic of a more general systems validation failure.
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariane_5_Flight_501

## Cases Denver airport
* June 1991 - United Airlines plans to build an automatic baggage system at the Denver airport.
* Summer 1991 - The management of the airport requests the baggage system for the complete airport.
* August 1992 - De-scoping saves $20kk
* Target airport opening shifts from October 1993 (to December 1993) (to March 1994) (to May 1994) to February 1995 while tests continue to fail
* August 2005 - the system is scrapped in favour of a fully manual system. Maintenance costs reached $1kk/month
* Estimated loss of $600kk over 10 years

## Cases Death Star
* General Tagge — “Until this station is operational, we are vulnerable. The Rebel Alliance is too well equipped. They’re more dangerous than you realize.”
    * Admiral Motti — “Dangerous to your starfleet commander, not to this battle station.”
* Admiral Motti — “Any attack made by the rebels against this station would be a useless gesture, no matter what technical data they’ve obtained. This station is now the ultimate power in the universe.”
    * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zzs-OvfG8tE&feature=youtu.be&t=9s

## What is a project?
Project = A planned piece of work that is designed to find information about something, to produce something new, or to improve something.
![](https://i.imgur.com/ALYAm0H.png)

## Characteristics of a project
* Non-routine tasks are involved.
* Planning is required.
* Specific objectives are to be met or a specific product is to be created.
* The project has a predetermined time span.
* Work is carried out for someone other than yourself.
* Work involves several specialisms.
* People are formed into a temporary work group to carry out the task.
* Work is carried out in several phases.
* The resources that are available for use on the project are constrained.
* The project is large and complex.

## What is a project?
![](https://i.imgur.com/Q8jVPMd.png)

![](https://i.imgur.com/tH4Deja.png)

## SPM versus PM What is special?
* Complexity
* Conformity
* Changeability [Flexibility]
* Invisibility

## Terminology 
* Method / Process model — Abstract representation of a systematic way of accomplishing something (e.g., eXtreme Programming).
* Methodology — A series of related methods guided by some principles (e.g., Agile methods).
* Plan — Implementation of a method.
* Practice — Reality. The observable implementation of a plan.
* Product — “A set of software intensive systems sharing a common and managed set of features satisfying the specific needs of a particular market segment or mission” (Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute).

## Organizational Structures
### Different organizational structures
![](https://i.imgur.com/QXRImCh.png)

- Oracle?
- Google?
- Amazon?
- Microsoft?
- Apple?
- Facebook?

## Assignment for next week?
- [ ] A take home assignment will be posted on LearnIt soon.
- [ ] Before that, I need to have groups (BNDN groups are allowed).
- [ ] I will create breakout rooms for you to coordinate, if needed.
- [ ] In 15 min, I need the groups, with the initials in my inbox.
- [ ] This exercise will force you to coordinate.
- [ ] Objective
- [ ] Have all active BSUP students in a group