Starting Strong – 5 Ways to Establish Good Team Dynamics & Norms
You just kicked off a project, and it went well! Everyone is happy, hopeful, and on the same page. But how do you keep that momentum and camaraderie going?
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Why Your Big-Team Software Project Needs a Utility Player
Projects with big teams introduce a slew of interesting problems–problems like keeping developers fed with multiple tracks of work, understanding areas with large technical risks, and sharing knowledge. On a recent project, we developed a role to help solve these problems. I call it the utility player. In this post, I’ll define the role, the […]
Choosing the Right Software Partner, Part 4: The Engagement Management Process
A strong engagement management process keeps complex, custom software development projects on track for success. It’s essential that you (the client) are regularly involved in conversations about the budget, scope, and key decisions.
Choosing the Right Software Partner, Part 3: Evaluating Experience
Experience is the best teacher. When evaluating custom software development partners, it’s important to know if your potential partner has a track record of success with companies like yours and projects of similar complexity.
Type-Driven Development – Replacing Unit Tests with Types in Typescript
Being explicit about the return type of the function is the most under-utilized feature of TypeScript. At least, that’s true for the way I write my code. When I first started using TypeScript, I was really impressed with the way it inferred the return type of the function, and having these types perpetuate throughout the […]
Reviving the Handwritten Thank-You Note: Tips, Tools, and a 4-Sentence Template
I’m pretty sure you already think handwriting thank-you notes is a good move. So why don’t you more often? Does it seem old-fashioned? Too much work? Overly time-consuming? Not sure what to say? Do you associate it with obligatory notes to Aunt Martha, thanking her for your itchy birthday socks?
Creating a Fast, Easy Daily Log with Bear & aText
I am a big note taker, mostly because I tend to be forgetful. No matter how significant or recent a discussion may be, I often forget the details of what was said or decided–unless I take effective notes.
Choosing the Right Software Partner, Part 2: Evaluating for Great People
Engaging with a service firm isn’t like buying a product. It’s about hiring a set of people to do work on your behalf. Yes, the company as a whole matters, but you also need to be confident that the people there have the right set of skills for your project.
Commit Messages – the Easiest Documentation You’ll Ever Write
When it comes to writing documentation, nobody wants to do the job. And whatever documentation does get written is quickly outdated because nobody wants to update it, either. The most accurate documentation of how a system works is the code itself, but even “self-documenting” code falls short of describing why it was written that way. […]
With Jetpack, Android Development Has Leapfrogged iOS
Over the past six years, I’ve done a lot of iOS development (and written a lot about iOS). I would say it’s been the primary focus of my career. But as a software consultant, I need to be flexible, and I’ve done my fair share of Android development as well. I’m currently working on a […]