WS2

Workshop

Monday 1400-1700

Collaboration in the object development lifecycle

Laura Hill

BancAmerica Robertson Stephens

Adrian Kunzle

JP Morgan

Collaboration is one of the latest buzzwords in the software industry, but what does it really mean? Too often used as a synonym for co-ordination (assigning meeting times, collecting and distributing notes, engaging in on-line discussions, and so on), real collaboration should be a much richer activity. Objects are touted as the common language that will bring together all the stakeholders in software development: business users, analysts, developers, and managers. This may be true, but what is needed to bring the technology and its multiple participants together successfully is a closer look at collaboration techniques and technologies to complement the objects.

Today's software development is a team effort that requires experts in domain, user interface, programming, management, testing, communication, reuse, training, and deployment. With projects and systems so large that individual team members have a difficult time comprehending their entirety, what chance do these individuals have of successfully working together? A new batch of tools are emerging to exploit internet/intranet technology and claim to take computer-aided collaboration to its next logical step. But do they really? Do we really understand the human barriers to collaboration to such an extent that tools and processes can be developed to directly overcome these barriers?

This workshop examines the factors that empower and inhibit the development team through the different stages of the software development lifecycle, and proposes techniques and tools to facilitate successful collaboration.

Key topics

Identifying collaboration requirements in the software development life cycle

Identifying people-oriented barriers to collaboration

Designing processes, roles, and tools that defuse these barriers and facilitate a collaborative approach to software development

Laura Hill is the Vice President in charge of application development at BancAmerica Robertson Stephens, a San Francisco based investment bank. She has been involved with object technology for the past eight years specifically as a technical manager, emerging technologist, education director, and Smalltalk programmer.

John Daniels is Technical Architect for Bankers Trust derivatives business. He has responsibility for renewing the IT support to the business in line with new business processes, something that requires a great deal of collaboration! Prior to joining Bankers Trust he was Managing Director of Object Designers. John has worked with object-oriented tools and techniques since 1984, applying them in a wide range of application areas. While at Object Designers he acted as consultant to many projects utilising object technology and frequently presented courses on its use and adoption.