I’m currently reading Watts S. Humphrey’s Reflections on Managment. After being doubtful at first, I really started enjoying to read the book after a while.
One thing, which I think is really important is Humphrey’s demand to always make a plan (1). Plans prevent chaos, the are (2)
- A basis for agreeing on the cost and the schedule for a job
- An organizing structure for doing the work
- A framework for obtaining the required resources
- The standard against which to meaure job status
- A record of what was initially committed
The reason most people don’t like planning and plans is that they are used to incomplete plans and plans which by far do not reflect reality. Good plans (3)
- Have to be accessible to everyone involved in the project (really everyone)
- Have to be clear
- Are specific – what, when, by whom, for how much?
- Are precise – Relative term! A three year project, probably won’t be described in days. A two day project however could be described with a detail level of hours.
- Are accurate
Inaccuracy of plans is one of the most common reasons why people don’t like plans and don’t make plans in the first place. You’ll often hear “Why to make a plan, it will be out of date tomorrow”. That’s not a reason. Building software is a very dynamic process. Therefore, if you can’t plan accurately, you have to plan often (4).
(1) Reflections on Management, page 139.
(2) page 29
(3) page 30
(4) page 32
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