Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mdcbbs!devsim.mdcbbs!jmi
From: jmi@devsim.mdcbbs.com (JM Ivler - MDC - Douglas Aircraft - Long Beach, CA)
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: Bootstrapping a group of programmer into engineers
Message-ID: <514.25a87b3d@devsim.mdcbbs.com>
Date: 8 Jan 90 11:36:29 GMT
References: <15413@well.UUCP>
Distribution: comp
Organization: McDonnell Douglas M&E, Cypress CA
Lines: 50

In article <15413@well.UUCP>, berger@well.UUCP (Robert J. Berger) writes:
> 
> How have other people dealt with transforming a team of narrow minded 
> prima donna programmers into engineers? Is it doable?
> 

Bob,

The simple answer is yes. To do it you have to take the one programmer that is 
most interested in increasing thier productivity, and give them a small 
sub-task to perform. 

You must write a simple paragraph that explains what you want done then have 
them perform the task as follows:

1) write a simple paragraph that details what the program is supposed to do
2) write a simple paragraph of how the program is going to do it
3) write what the expected inputs and outputs of the individual process are
4) write, in simple english, the structure of the individual routines
5) write a plan to test the input and outputs (as expected)
6) write the code
7) perform the tests

Once completed, explain the significance of the individual documents. 

Yours: Requirements
Thiers:
1) Analysis
2) initial design
3) detailed design
4) psudo-code
5) test plan
6) program
7) testing and integration

Now, take another programmer and ask them to add a function to this piece of 
code. Provide them with the associated documentation and tell them that they 
have to follow this same set of procedures. Within a day or so that progammer 
will see how easy it is to modify the existing code. This will start the cycle 
of re-educating the programmers.

This cycle is *very* time consumming and intensive. There are no real shortcuts 
I have tried that have ever worked. This is the only method that I have used to 
date that will establish the desire within the programmers to change, and 
without that desire, there can be no change.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
| J.M. Ivler at Douglas Aircraft in Long Beach, CA  - VOICE: (213) 496-8727 |
| INTERNET:  jmi@devsim.mdcbbs.com  | UUCP:  uunet!mdcbbs!devsim.mdcbbs!jmi |
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