Trying to streamline things at work and make it so we are producing higher quality code I have learned a few things. Mind you I have only been in my new position for a few weeks, but already I along with our Account Manager have discovered some long lingering holes that need to be plugged. Nothing major, but nevertheless, we need to fill the holes. Some of the uncovered issues are: communication, processes and specifications for developers. It is not enough to get the projects done, but we need to do it right and right on spec.
For communication; it is going have to be a collaborative effort of my team with me, me with my account manager and in the reverse is also true. No one is immune to this issue. More face to face with email follow-ups for at least the short term is going to be key. Having the appropriate information ready at the appropriate time is also key. There is so much on this topic that it will be an on going process.
For Process; I am trying some new things, this is simplified for now.
- Personally doing the hand-off with the Account Manager
- Breaking the specifications into smaller user stories
- Tracking the user stories in Trello ( seems like another blog topic )
- Assigning a developer to each story / story board in Trello
- Work with the developer ( if possible ) at the end to walk through and conduct the QA
- Hand back to the Account Manager to hand-off to the customer
My hopes is:
- better specification to the developer prior to beginning to develop.
- better experience for the development team
- get projects done faster
- get projects done more accurately
- get projects done and handed off with less or no bugs
I do not see this to be the end all to the issues. I see this as a start to streamlining the process to become more efficient on all fronts. The process will continue to evolve with the input of the entire team until we are all happy with it. This will not happen overnight, but with time it will get to be better.
Andrew Pallant (@LdnDeveloper) has been a web, database and desktop developer for over 16 years. Andrew has worked on projects that ranged from factory automation to writing business applications. Most recently he has been heavily involved in various forms for ecommerce projects. Over the years Andrew has worn many hats: Project Manager, IT Manager, Lead Developer, Supervisor of Developers and many more - See more at: http://www.unlatched.com/#sthash.8DiTkpKy.dpuf
