Scott’s Comments (group member since Feb 26, 2015)

Scott’s comments from the Berkun reading group group.

Eleonora: I know why I failed - I got bored once the prototype proved the design. Being a leader/designer fits my psychology better than coding.

Eleonora:

On Weinberg:

if you do any kind of spec or requirement writing:
http://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Requi...

If you're interested in being a better thinker / decision maker:
http://www.amazon.com/Are-Your-Lights...

If you work with technical people and want to understand their psychology: http://www.amazon.com/The-Psychology-...

Kye:

The sacred thing still drives me crazy. I can't stand pretense: yet management and engineering have an abundance of it. I love people who let their work speak loudest and can laugh about themselves and their profession. They're more likely to be open to new ideas and to admit when they've made a mistake: two huge assets for teams and projects.

Process vs. goals is a core part of most of the Agile processes. Do you have experience with them? On average I think they're better, but any idea can be beaten to death by a suitably moronic manager.

Gerald Weinberg was a big influence on me. He's one of the few voices in this whole domain that emphasized it's really about relationships, not processes and not tools. Peopleware by Demarco is another rare voice of sane human centricity.

Hi Kyle: Welcome aboard! You can jump in and out as you wish of course. I'll have a separate discussion thread for each chapter. Cheers.

My top gripe so far is goodreads doesn't have threaded comments - I'd much prefer to be able to visually see which replies are to which comments.

Looking around at other message board websites it seems none of them have this basic feature either. If anyone has a recommendation let me know.

Eleonora:

1) The public sector is generally more process oriented and bureaucratic. There is also more respect for tradition - that because things were done one way in the past they should always be done that way. But the public sector is often more willing to invest long term. The private sector is the opposite - more room to try new things, less fondness for tradition, and far worse at investing long term.

Those are sweeping generalizations of course - every industry is different - but that's what comes to mind.

2) Contractors always have less political power. The upside is they can be hired to focus on a tactical thing and work independently. The downside is when they are used on strategic work (often because they are cheaper) they don't have the authority and support to make that strategy happen. You can end have an endless revolving door of contractors continually failing because they really need to have a staff role to do the job. Of course a great manager hiring a PM contractor can make sure they have the influence and power they need to do the job well.

Ok folks - Game on! Each week I'll create a new discussion for the chapters of the week. You can post thoughts or ask questions there.

Chapter 1 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Chapter 2 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I'm also going to set up a weekly livechat Q&A. Working on details for when/how and I'll post that soon.

So here's how this will work:

I'll create a new discussion for each chapter. You can post thoughts or ask questions there.

Chapter 1 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Chapter 2 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I'm also going to set up a weekly livechat Q&A. Working on details for when/how and I'll post that soon.

Up to chapter two? If yes, this topic is for you.

Eleonora: Sad to hear your have a less than stellar PM :( If I could hit them over the head with a copy of the book for you (it's heavy!) I would.

I found it entertaining that I referenced the pyramids as we're *still* not sure how they built them, nor how that project was managed.

Lisa: Sure - this is the first week so lets see how active things are here. There might not be that much conversation to summarize :)

decades? 2005 It wasn't *that* long ago :) The rise of agile and lean has helped move power lower down in the hierarchy which is good, but any method can be abused and misused and they often are.

I still think the human element is too often disregarded, in favor of tools and methods, but that perhaps reflects culture at large.

I still like much of chapter 1. The sections on history and the balancing act are my favorites. Do you folks think those ideas have held up?

George: I abandon books often so I hold no grudges for people who abandon one of mine :) I wrote MTH to be modular - most chapters work on their own so if you get bored, just skip to the next one.

Theresa: I confess if this experiment goes well I'd gladly do it for the other books. For now just trying to figure out the best way to run one of these.

Finished chapter 1? WOOT. Leave your thoughts, questions or comments here and I'll reply.

Hi Prateek: Thanks for asking. The decision to make an audiobook isn't mine alone - it's primarily up to the publisher (in this case OreillyMedia). I'll pass on the request.

Hi Bram: Serendipity FTW!

Hi Marcelo & Bonnie. Thanks for joining - hope you enjoy this spin with the book.

Lisa: Retrospectives sound great. Are you volunteering to do the first one? :)

I looked around for which tech to use and GoodReads seemed the simplest. Although I do wish they had threaded conversations. Happy to move if we have a truly better alternative.

Hello Maya, Jeffrey, Sophia and everyone I've missed. Thanks for joining!

Here's a post with more detailed thoughts on how I imagine this working week to week. Comments and suggestions welcome.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Hello! Thanks for joining this group.

As Monday March 9th approaches the question on my mind is how exactly this reading group will work. I've never done, nor seen an author do, something quite like this before. So here's what i have in mind, but feedback is welcome.

1. Each Monday morning I'll start a new discussion thread for the week (and the 2 or 3 chapters).
2. I'll offer my thoughts on what I read.
3. I'll gladly listen for thoughts from you folks.
4. I'll answer any questions that come up.
5. Perhaps every Wednesday I'll do a live Q&A to mix things up for the week.
6. I'll close the week by trying to summarize, or asking for a volunteer to do it.


Sound good? Better way to do this? Ideas welcome.

Cheers,

-Scott

Here's the outline I'm thinking of for what we'll cover each week. Every Monday I'll start a new discussion and I'll answer questions and offer thoughts.

Does this pace seem right to you?

3/9 - Chapters 1-2
3/16 - Chapters 3-4
3/23 - Chapters 5-6
3/30 - Chapters 7-8
4/6 - Chapters 9-10
4/13 - Chapters 11-12
4/20 - Chapters 13-14
4/27 - Chapters 15 & 16

5/6 - 10 Year Anniversary Celebration

And if someone can suggest a good tool to use, I'd be open to having a weekly live Q&A in a chat room, where we could do something more interactive.