Shy Boys: Notes from ten years of working with software engineering giants
Shy Boys: Notes from ten years of working with software engineering giants
About the Book
This is the story of a small group of people who set out to change the world of software engineering. The initiative became known as SEMAT which stands for Software Engineering Method and Theory.
SEMAT refers to the community of volunteers that developed a new framework referred to as Essence. The initiative was started by Ivar Jacobson, Bertrand Meyer and Richard Soley primarily to address repeating problems observed within the software industry, but its value extends beyond just software as you will learn from this story.
The story begins with the initial SEMAT meeting which occurred in Zurich, Switzerland in March, 2010, and is told from the personal perspective of one of the participants who subsequently became deeply involved in the initiative over the following ten years.
There are multiple reasons why I wrote this book. First, this book is a compilation of stories from my personal notes intended to provide insight into the motivation, challenges and thinking behind Essence. Second, I share with the reader information about some of the principle people who structured and influenced the SEMAT effort. Third, I share reflections on events that shaped the evolution of my thinking on this journey.
In its simplest form Essence can be thought of as a thinking framework-- or a mental model practitioners can keep in their head to guide their daily decisions.
Prior knowledge of SEMAT and Essence is not required to understand the stories in this book. However, for those interested in learning more, references are provided in Chapter Seven.
The intended audience for this book is information technology professionals including software developers, testers, systems engineers, analysts, project and organizational managers/leaders, support personnel and those involved in education and research.
The title of this book was chosen based on a phrase Ivar Jacobson often used when conversing with the author during our many meetings which occurred between 2010 and 2019.
When I started to write this book I did not know exactly where the story would go. One of the reviewers of this book observed that I spoke a great deal about the significance of emotion throughout the book. The cover of the book showing a runner handing the baton to a teammate was chosen because it is a critical moment in track that is essential to a relay team being successful.
The stories in this book reflect the author's recollection of events. Some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed to protect the privacy of those depicted. Dialogue has been re-created from memory.
Essence was adopted as an official Object Management Group (OMG) standard in June, 2014. The mission of the OMG is to provide technology standards that provide real-world value.
What people are saying about "Shy Boys"
”A fascinating retelling of one man’s journey to become part of an ongoing and never-ending revolution in software engineering. The stories of the people, places, and ideas involved in the revolution are coherent and interesting, especially some of the big personalities who were involved, or refused to be involved. This serves not only as a warning for those trying to start a revolution in their chosen field, but also as lighter fluid to get the fires burning.” Brent Beckley, Marketing Director, Morgan & Claypool Publishers
“You've made the seemingly ‘untouchables’ in our industry, reachable. You made them more human.” Elaine Harmon, Senior Program Manager, Aviation Systems, L3Harris Technologies
“’Shy Boys’ is a collection of stories written from one man’s perspective as a member of a volunteer team that developed a new software engineering standard, referred to as Essence. One of those stories that struck me, as I reviewed the book, relates to the development of the Essence checklists.
As I read this story, I reflected on the fact that to place oneself in the shoes of another is difficult. It requires commitment, empathy, and a willingness to silence one’s own thoughts to better understand those of another. It is in this context that I consider the fact that the Essence checklists took two years to develop. Reviewing the checklists, it is amazing that something so straight-forward would have taken more than a month, or less, to create. But herein lies the rub. Creating a checklist with a single culture in mind may be a snap because we have grown up in that culture; it is familiar and pervasive.
But to consider those cultures with which we are unfamiliar that come from many other countries around the world requires a trait not well formulated in the human being: listening.
The fact that it only took two years to create the checklists is remarkable! So how did the Essence team manage to do this?
The simple fact you learn from this book is that anything is possible if a team commits to listening, discussing, and reaching a solution that works for the common good. The creation of the Essence checklists proves that human beings from different parts of the world and different cultures can develop a product that has a strikingly powerful impact on and within an industry.
When you read the stories in ‘Shy Boys’ you also learn that those involved were willing to check their ego’s at the door and listen to try their best to understand viewpoints different from their own. While there are many stories worth learning from this book, the overarching story about how a small group of people from different parts of the world came together to produce a simple product that captures the “essence” of successful software engineering makes this book a must read for all IT professionals.” John Troy, Program Manager (Retired) Rockwell-Collins
“As professionals, software engineers need to know what’s going on in their profession beyond just the latest tools and techniques. If they don’t keep up, they run the risk of falling behind which could be considered malpractice in an industry that moves ‘at the speed of light.’
‘Shy Boys’ provides a window into the motivation and thinking behind the new software industry Essence standard. Essence isn’t just another tool or technique. As you learn from this book, it is a practical thinking framework software professionals can employ to aid daily decision-making. As an operations management consultant it also struck me when reading ‘Shy Boys’ that the lessons could easily be extended beyond software to aid in solving common operations challenges, such as those often faced by my own clients.” Jim Grebey, President, Diligent Inc.
“I had the opportunity and pleasure to read ‘Shy Boys’ and thoroughly enjoyed it for its approach, candor, insight and openness in telling the behind the scenes story of SEMAT and the development of the Essence Model.
I learned from an early age that there are two kinds of people in the world: Dreamers and Doers. This book by Paul McMahon tells a story of both kinds of people working together to define and develop a simple and practical framework to help software teams succeed by focusing on guided critical-thinking. The reader learns through the story about the software industry giants who provided their vision and theories and the volunteers from around the world who carried that vision forward. Paul takes on the Herodotus role to describe and detail the 10 year span of time with the many personalities involved in the Essence model creation.
I suppose I should provide full disclosure and actually admit that I not only read ‘Shy Boys’, but re-read it 3 more times, and each time walked away with a new pearl of wisdom or insight regarding how I might use this model in my previous roles as a process improvement lead, a professional military fighter pilot, and even now as a commercial airline Captain.
‘Shy Boys’ leads the reader along a path of discovery. By the end of the book, this reader discovered that the great vision was achieved by people like you and me who “stood on the shoulders of real giants.” The book captures the thoughts, insights, questions and even the quirks related to how the SEMAT volunteers worked to create the final Essence product. I guarantee you will re-read this short book more than once. Enjoy 'Shy Boys' and Thank You Paul for writing it!” Michael Oakes, PhD, Former Process Improvement Team Leader, Alion Science and Technology
Table of Contents
- What people are saying about “Shy Boys”
- Acknowledgements
- Foreword by Barry Myburgh
- What you need to know before reading this book
- Chapter One – An email from Alistair Cockburn
- Chapter Two – Dinner at Bertrand Meyer’s apartment
- Chapter Three – Helping Watts Humphrey
- Chapter Four – Stand out memories from the SEMAT kickoff workshop
- Chapter Five – Kicking off the SEMAT tracks & working with Watts Humphrey
- Chapter Six – Why did I give so much of my time to SEMAT?
- Chapter Seven – The value of working with people from different parts of the world
- Chapter Eight – Why learn the things that never change?
- Chapter Nine —Scott Ambler– “Will anybody notice?”
- Chapter Ten – Ivar Jacobson – “Shy boys”
- Chapter Eleven – Alistair Cockburn –The emotional side
- Chapter Twelve – Larry Constantine– “All the egos in the room”
- Chapter Thirteen – On Essence taking off and its value simply stated
- Chapter Fourteen — Where’s the theory?
- Chapter Fifteen — On acting professionally and telling the truth
- Chapter Sixteen – What success could look like in the future
- Conclusion
- Epilogue
- More praise for “Shy Boys”
- References
- About the Author
Authors have earned$9,882,857writing, publishing and selling on Leanpub, earning 80% royalties while saving up to 25 million pounds of CO2 and up to 46,000 trees.
Learn more about writing on Leanpub
The Leanpub 45-day 100% Happiness Guarantee
Within 45 days of purchase you can get a 100% refund on any Leanpub purchase, in two clicks.
See full terms
Free Updates. DRM Free.
If you buy a Leanpub book, you get free updates for as long as the author updates the book! Many authors use Leanpub to publish their books in-progress, while they are writing them. All readers get free updates, regardless of when they bought the book or how much they paid (including free).
Most Leanpub books are available in PDF (for computers), EPUB (for phones and tablets) and MOBI (for Kindle). The formats that a book includes are shown at the top right corner of this page.
Finally, Leanpub books don't have any DRM copy-protection nonsense, so you can easily read them on any supported device.
Learn more about Leanpub's ebook formats and where to read them
Top Books
C++ Best Practices
Jason TurnerLevel up your C++, get the tools working for you, eliminate common problems, and move on to more exciting things!
Functional Design and Architecture
Alexander GraninSoftware Design in Functional Programming, Design Patterns and Practices, Methodologies and Application Architectures. How to build real software in Haskell with less efforts and low risks. The first complete source of knowledge.
OpenIntro Statistics
David Diez, Christopher Barr, Mine Cetinkaya-Rundel, and OpenIntroA complete foundation for Statistics, also serving as a foundation for Data Science.
Leanpub revenue supports OpenIntro (US-based nonprofit) so we can provide free desk copies to teachers interested in using OpenIntro Statistics in the classroom and expand the project to support free textbooks in other subjects.
More resources: openintro.org.
R Programming for Data Science
Roger D. PengThis book brings the fundamentals of R programming to you, using the same material developed as part of the industry-leading Johns Hopkins Data Science Specialization. The skills taught in this book will lay the foundation for you to begin your journey learning data science. Printed copies of this book are available through Lulu.
C++20
Rainer GrimmC++20 is the next big C++ standard after C++11. As C++11 did it, C++20 changes the way we program modern C++. This change is, in particular, due to the big four of C++20: ranges, coroutines, concepts, and modules.
I am a Software Engineer and I am in Charge
Alexis Monville and Michael DoyleI am a Software Engineer and I am in Charge is a real-world, practical book that helps you increase your impact and satisfaction at work no matter who you work with.
In the book, we will follow Sandrine, a fictional character who learns to think in a new way enabling her to take a different course of action.
Invest In Digital Health - The Medical Futurist's Guide
Dr. Bertalan MeskoArtificial Intelligence and Digital Health are booming. In this book, we explain why now it's a good time to invest in Digital Health and give recommendations on where to invest by looking at the top 24 technological trends we find the most promising.
Atomic Kotlin
Bruce Eckel and Svetlana IsakovaFor both beginning and experienced programmers! From the author of the multi-award-winning Thinking in C++ and Thinking in Java together with a member of the Kotlin language team comes a book that breaks the concepts into small, easy-to-digest "atoms," along with exercises supported by hints and solutions directly inside IntelliJ IDEA!
The Hundred-Page Machine Learning Book
Andriy BurkovEverything you really need to know in Machine Learning in a hundred pages.
Mastering STM32
Carmine NovielloWith more than 600 microcontrollers, STM32 is probably the most complete ARM Cortex-M platform on the market. This book aims to be the first guide around that introduces the reader to this exciting MCU portfolio from ST Microelectronics and its official CubeHAL.
Top Bundles
- #1
Software Architecture for Developers: Volumes 1 & 2 - Technical leadership and communication
2 Books
"Software Architecture for Developers" is a practical and pragmatic guide to modern, lightweight software architecture, specifically aimed at developers. You'll learn:The essence of software architecture.Why the software architecture role should include coding, coaching and collaboration.The things that you really need to think about before... - #2
The Future of Digital Health
6 Books
We put together the most popular books from The Medical Futurist to provide a clear picture about the major trends shaping the future of medicine and healthcare. Digital health technologies, artificial intelligence, the future of 20 medical specialties, big pharma, data privacy and how technology giants such as Amazon or Google want to conquer... - #3
Cisco CCNA 200-301 Complet
4 Books
Ce lot comprend les quatre volumes du guide préparation à l'examen de certification Cisco CCNA 200-301. - #4
CCDE Practical Studies (All labs)
3 Books
CCDE lab - #5
"The C++ Standard Library" and "Concurrency with Modern C++"
2 Books
Get my books "The C++ Standard Library" and "Concurrency with Modern C++" in a bundle. The first book gives you the details you should know about the C++ standard library; the second one dives deeper into concurrency with modern C++. In sum, you get more than 600 pages full of modern C++ and about 250 source files presenting the standard library... - #6
Modern Management Made Easy
3 Books
Read all three Modern Management Made Easy books. Learn to manage yourself, lead and serve others, and lead the organization. - #7
Programming with Ease
3 Books
Alle drei Bände der Serie Programming with Ease in einem Paket. Darin findest du alles, was ich dir zu den wichtigsten Phasen der Softwareentwicklung im Hinblick auf Clean Code Development für langfristig hohe Produktivität sagen kann.Im Band Slicing findest du die Anforderungsanalyse im Rahmen eines iterativ-inkrementellen Vorgehensmodells aus... - #8
Vagrant Ansible
2 Books
Unveil the power of Ansible and Vagrant with this bundle at a special price. You'll have everything you need to get started with Vagrant - learn the basics and how to create your virtual development environments, using Ansible as provisioner! About Vagrant Cookbook Vagrant Cookbook is a complete guide to get started with Vagrant and create your... - #9
Mastering Containers
2 Books
Docker and Kubernetes are taking the world by storm! These books will get you up-to-speed fast! Docker Deep Dive is over 400 pages long, and covers all objectives on the Docker Certified Associate exam.The Kubernetes Book includes everything you need to get up and running with Kubernetes! - #10
Growing Agile: The Complete Coach's Guide
7 Books
Growing Agile: Coach's Guide Series This bundle provides a collection of training and workshop plans for a variety of agile topics. The series is aimed at agile coaches, trainers and ScrumMasters who often find themselves needing to help teams understand agile concepts. Each book in the series provides the plans, slides, handouts and activity...