Beaverton Public Library - Conference Room

For many years the Rose City SPIN (Software Process Improvement Network) has provided a forum for networking and industry speaker presentations to the software development community in the Portland, OR area. If you have enjoyed SPIN presentations in the past and want to see them continue, NOW is the time to step forward. We need your input and help. This meeting will discuss how this group will move forward. If you are interested in the Rose City SPIN and would like to help mold and support the future of the group, come on down and join the discussion! We are also looking for people who are willing to volunteer their time to help continue this organization. This will be an open collaboration - we want to hear your thoughts! Agenda:

• Introduction and short history of the Rose City SPIN

• Goals and purpose of SPIN and the needs of the community

• Open discussion of how this group should be organized to meet its purpose

• Call for SPIN volunteers

• If time allows, discussion on future topics, meeting locations, communications and more!

A Special Treat from PNSQC

Plan on coming early! In collaboration with the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference (PNSQC http://www.pnsqc.org) the SPIN meeting will have pizza and pop provided by PNSQC beginning at 5:30 pm. Meeting will start at 6:00pm

PNSQC is the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, a group of volunteers interested in Software Quality. The Mission of the PNSQC is to enable knowledge exchange to produce higher quality software. As a non-profit, it seeks to promote software quality by providing education and opportunities for information exchange within the software community.

How to Register

This is a FREE lecture sponsored by the Rose City SPIN. RSVP to [email protected].

Sizing and Prioritizing Stories – a Visual Approach to Cost/Benefit Analysis presented by Ian Savage, McAfee

This is a free talk sponsored by the Rose City SPIN.

Networking starts at 5:00 PM Talk starts at 6:00 PM

Abstract

Between three different sessions at the Agile Open Northwest 2008, the author and another software professional developed a cost/benefit charting scheme that:

1. enables development teams and customers to prioritize features,
2. identifies features that should be a. quashed, b. pursued, or c. further decomposed, and
3. allows stakeholders to monitor and manage priorities during a project.

This quick collaboration produced a diagramming technique that can be used in Agile shops and in shops using more traditional methods. The chart is a basic Cartesian plane with Cost (Points) on the x-axis, Value on the y-axis, and something other than dots at the intersections. We call this technique Analyze This as it focuses analysis where it is needed.

Speaker Bio

A quality evangelist at McAfee, Ian is a veteran software developer, quality assurance engineer, and manager with experience in the manufacturing, financial services, construction estimating, and security domains. For more than 30 years he has worked to improve productivity and software quality through rigorous development methods and now through the pragmatic application of Agile methods.

Ian serves on the Software Association of Oregon’s board and Program Committee. He co-founded and serves on SAO’s QA Forum committee and the Central Oregon chapter board. He also serves on the boards of Agile Open Northwest and Agile PDX. He is a member and supporter of the Agile Alliance and has served PNSQC in various capacities (think: free pizza). Earlier he contributed to American Society for Quality’s certification program for software quality engineers and was among the first to earn ASQ’s CSQE.

How to Register

This is a FREE lecture sponsored by the Rose City SPIN. Please RSVP to [email protected].

About Rose City SPIN

The Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) is a monthly forum for networking, mutual support, and promotion of effective software practices. We exchange practical experiences, ideas, knowledge, wisdom, and war stories about the technical, business, and human facets of software process improvement. The Rose City SPIN serves the software development community of the Portland/Vancouver metro area. Whether you work for a large company or a small one, corporate or self-employed, industrial or academic setting, you are welcome at the Rose City SPIN

Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) Seminar

Dates/Times: Thursday, May 27th, 2010; Networking @ 6:00 PM with Pizza; Seminar 7:00-8:00 PM This event is free and open to the public.

Abstract

Retrospectives can be one of the most effective tools in process improvement. They allow projects and organizations to identify the key issues and improvements for success and provide a platform to create buy in and clear steps to implement positive change. Come join Debra Lavell from Intel Corp. as she shares a case study taken from a real project from Intel, where a project manager has been asked to gather and share key learnings from a very important software program. The twist – this team has zero travel budget, complex cross-organizational cultural differences, and a high level of resistance to change. Debra will discuss how a retrospective is different from other review practices such as post mortems, after action reviews, etc. She will explain the four phases of a retrospective process with emphasis on the role of the facilitator so when you leave, you can design and deliver an effective retrospective when you get back to your organizations.

Speaker Bio

Debra Lavell is the Organizational Learning & Retrospective Program Manager in the Corporate Platform Office at Intel Corporation. With over 10 years of experience, Debra has delivered over 300 Project and Milestone Retrospectives for Intel world-wide. Prior to her work in quality, Debra spent over 5 years managing an IT department responsible for a 500+-node network for ADC Telecommunications. Debra is a member of the Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) Steering Committee. She currently is the President of the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, Portland, Oregon. She holds a Bachelor's of Arts degree in Management with an emphasis on Industrial Relations

A Special Treat from PNSQC

Plan on coming early! In collaboration with the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference (PNSQC) the SPIN meeting will have pizza and soda provided by PNSQC beginning at 6:00 pm.

PNSQC is the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, a group of volunteers interested in Software Quality. The Mission of the PNSQC is to enable knowledge exchange to produce higher quality software. As a non-profit, it seeks to promote software quality by providing education and opportunities for information exchange within the software community.

How to Register

This is a FREE lecture sponsored by the Rose City SPIN.

Rose City SPIN

The Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) is a monthly forum for networking, mutual support, and promotion of effective software practices. We exchange practical experiences, ideas, knowledge, wisdom, and war stories about the technical, business, and human facets of software process improvement. The Rose City SPIN serves the software development community of the Portland/Vancouver metro area. Whether you work for a large company or a small one, corporate or self-employed, industrial or academic setting, you are welcome at the Rose City SPIN.

Applying the Concept of Wicked Problems and 7 Principles for Dealing with Them presented by Bill Gilmore

Networking @ 6:00 PM; Seminar 7:00-8:00 PM This is a free seminar open to the public. Hosted by the Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN).

Abstract

Many of you may have heard about "wicked problems". For example, in many cases one can define the problem, then pursue a solution; but with wicked problems, one can't define the problem well until they finally have the solution. Wicked problems have several other interesting characteristics as well. An approach of "taming wicked problems" contradicts the wisdom of trying to make the nature and complexity of the solution fit the nature and complexity of the problem.

The concept of wicked problems can be used as a paradigm for understanding many real world situations, including many in software development, managing teams and leading projects, organizational change, strategic planning, and more. In this presentation, you'll hear about 7 principles that can be applied for dealing with wicked problems. We'll look at several examples of problems, some more wicked than others, and how to analyze and deal with them. We'll also look at several seminal ideas in software engineering and see how the principles were used. Finally, we'll gather some problems from the audience and practice characterizing the problems and applying the principles for planning how to cope with them.

Speaker Bio

Bill Gilmore has worked in software engineering for over 20 years in various development, management, process and consulting roles. He worked in two small companies, then worked at the Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon. He moved to Oregon in 1993 to head up the Software Process Improvement program at Tektronix. Most recently he worked at Intel for 10 years with several product teams and business groups on software product quality, product life cycles and several areas of software engineering. He led CMM and product life cycle assessments and organized and led follow-on improvement programs. Today, Bill is the President of the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference (PNSQC). Bill has a Ph.D. in Astronomy; has published papers in Software Engineering, Strategic Planning, and Astronomy; and has presented at several conferences.

A Special Treat from PNSQC

Plan on coming early! In collaboration with the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference (PNSQC) the SPIN meeting will have pizza provided by PNSQC beginning at 6:00 pm.

PNSQC is the Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, a group of volunteers interested in Software Quality. The Mission of the PNSQC is to enable knowledge exchange to produce higher quality software. As a non-profit, it seeks to promote software quality by providing education and opportunities for information exchange within the software community.

About Rose City SPIN

The Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) is a monthly forum for networking, mutual support, and promotion of effective software practices. We exchange practical experiences, ideas, knowledge, wisdom, and war stories about the technical, business, and human facets of software process improvement. The Rose City SPIN serves the software development community of the Portland/Vancouver metro area. Whether you work for a large company or a small one, corporate or self-employed, industrial or academic setting, you are welcome at the Rose City SPIN.

This seminar reviews all components of an effective, compelling business plan. You'll learn from two seasoned OEN experts why certain information is important and how your audience will evaluate what you present. Besides learning what is critical to include in an effective business, you'll take away valuable handouts and a listing of key resources.

Registration is required, and space is limited to 15 entrepreneurs.

When: Wednesday, January 20th Time: 4:00 - 6:15 PM Where: Beaverton Library, 12375 SW 5th St, Meeting Room B, Beaverton, Oregon 97005 (corner of SW 5th St. and SW Hall Blvd)

OEN Member Registration: $30.00
Non-member Registration: $70.00

This Rose City Software Process Improvement (SPIN) event is free and open to the public.

Networking @ 6:00 PM; Seminar 7:00-8:00 PM

Location: Beaverton City Library, Meeting Room A, 12375 SW 5th Street, Beaverton, OR 97005

Abstract This talk reflects on lessons learned from preparing for, presenting, and conducting architecture reviews. Complex software projects often have quality problems and don't deliver all that was promised. Often such problems are the result of inadequate or inappropriate software architecture. Sometimes the biggest issues are technical ones. Other times, the biggest issue is that too much attention has been placed on the technical architecture to the exclusion of other essential factors.

A software architecture review is one tool that helps reveal architectural risks and strengths as well as uncover unidentified issues that need addressing. A software architect needs to compellingly present the software architecture and build confidence that key architectural decisions have been thoughtfully made. An effective reviewer needs to be skilled at quickly interpreting complex information, asking probing questions, and effectively giving advice. Both architects and reviewers can benefit from being aware of biases that get in the way of people interpreting information and tactics for overcoming these biases

Presenter Bio Rebecca Wirfs-Brock, president of Wirfs-Brock Associates and IEEE Software's Design Columnist, is a well-known and respected software practitioner. She invented the way of thinking about objects known as Responsibility-Driven Design and is the lead author of Object Design: Roles, Responsibilities, and Collaborations (2003) and the classic Designing Object-Oriented Software (1990). Through her writing, teaching, consulting, and speaking she popularizes the use of informal techniques and thinking tools for architects, designers, and analysts. Rebecca is a past board member of the Agile Alliance and one of the co-founders of the Agile Open Northwest conference. Most recently she reviewed enterprise architectures and major designs, developed courses on agile use cases, enterprise application design and developing and communicating software architecture. She mentors teams on agile design, object modeling, architecture, agile use case writing, meshing usage scenarios with use cases and agile user stories, and managing incremental, iterative projects. She practices what she teaches!

About the Rose City SPIN: The Rose City Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN) is a monthly forum for networking, mutual support, and promotion of effective software practices. We exchange practical experiences, ideas, knowledge, wisdom, and war stories about the technical, business, and human facets of software process improvement. The Rose City SPIN serves the software development community of the Portland/Vancouver metro area. Whether you work for a large company or a small one, corporate or self-employed, industrial or academic setting, you are welcome at the Rose City SPIN.