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That's probably why, when building a skyscraper, modern construction practices dictate that all the subcontractors just "do their own thing" and sort out with e

That's probably why, when building a skyscraper, modern construction practices dictate that all the subcontractors just "do their own thing" and sort out with each other when it's OK to put in walls, pipes, wiring and structural alterations. The N^2 communication overhead is OK, because PMs are just useless overhead anyway. I heard sometimes building projects fail because the PM only understood what was supposed to be happening and who was responsible for what, as opposed to having advanced plumbing, HVAC, electrical and structural engineering knowledge. </sarcasm> (I don't usually resort to it... promise...)

pekk 14y ago
That would be great if software were exactly analogous to building skyscrapers, and developers were idiot construction workers who do nothing but put the sheetrock and nails where they are asked. (Note: I am not saying that construction workers are idiots, I am saying that programmers are not idiot-construction-workers.) There is not just one way to organize a project.
- jbooth 14y ago
  Construction workers and programmers are both tradesmen, for most values of the word. I know you added a disclaimer already but I figured I'd just emphasize the point.
- rhizome 14y ago
  Code is the sheetrock and nails of software business.
- xyzzy123 14y ago
  PM is a team function, that of (in a nutshell) managing and tracking resources and tasks. It's also a field of study, and optionally a job title. At the level of abstraction of PM, software is exactly analogous to building skyscrapers, building a rocket, producing a theatre production or capping deepwater horizon. You are right that there is not just one way to organise a project. However, if the project is being organised at all, at least one person is doing project management. It's just that the acting PM(s) may not be formally trained it in, or have "PM" as their job title. That's fine.
- andrewflnr 14y ago
  Programming is a lot closer to drafting a design for a building than actually constructing it, which is more akin to compiling.

pekk 14y ago

That would be great if software were exactly analogous to building skyscrapers, and developers were idiot construction workers who do nothing but put the sheetrock and nails where they are asked. (Note: I am not saying that construction workers are idiots, I am saying that programmers are not idiot-construction-workers.) There is not just one way to organize a project.

jbooth 14y ago
Construction workers and programmers are both tradesmen, for most values of the word. I know you added a disclaimer already but I figured I'd just emphasize the point.
rhizome 14y ago
Code is the sheetrock and nails of software business.
xyzzy123 14y ago
PM is a team function, that of (in a nutshell) managing and tracking resources and tasks. It's also a field of study, and optionally a job title. At the level of abstraction of PM, software is exactly analogous to building skyscrapers, building a rocket, producing a theatre production or capping deepwater horizon. You are right that there is not just one way to organise a project. However, if the project is being organised at all, at least one person is doing project management. It's just that the acting PM(s) may not be formally trained it in, or have "PM" as their job title. That's fine.
andrewflnr 14y ago
Programming is a lot closer to drafting a design for a building than actually constructing it, which is more akin to compiling.