Developer and the PM - Will the twain meet?
Day 1
PM: "Please make sure this user story is done in 5 days, client is waiting for it."
Developer: "I can't do it in 5 days, it needs at least 3 weeks."
PM: "Come on.. you know how important this client is for us, how can you take so much time? You have to do it in 5 days."
Developer: "But I can't do it in less time! I have to make sure all scenarios work, there are many complicated ones here, and they will take time to develop and test. If I do it in 5 days, I can only do primary scenarios, skip some testing, not incorporate code review feedback.."
PM: "I don't know what you have to do, we all need to be customer-focused, it is important to deliver this on time, otherwise client will be mad at us and it will be a problem. If you need any help, I am here, but please do it in 5 days."
Developer: "I am not sure, I will try my best.. "
Day 30 (end of sprint)
Developer: "I tried very hard to convince the PM that we need this time, but he was not willing to budge. I told him we will have to make some shortcuts and compromise the quality and he was fine with it. what can I do about it? I did what I could.The company doesn't feel quality is important."
PM: "The Developer didn't understand the urgency, I helped him understand it. He has some concerns but he promised he will do the work in 5 days without compromising quality too much. We need to work together for delivering to customer needs."
Day 90 (customer reports issues)
Developer: "I told the PM I will have to cut the scenarios that I can test for and I need more time if we want to do a good job. However, he was adamant and wanted to deliver on time so quality suffered. He should have managed this better, I don't think PM is playing his role well."
PM: "Developer is responsible for quality and I always assumed he will produce high quality even if he is pressed for time. He should have tested this scenario since it was important for the customer. Developer hasn't lived up to the expectations from a software engineer."
And another software project tumbled down a path of mediocrity and obsolescence.
Image Credit: Flickr (Alex)