This book contains 170 information-packed pages that describe a comprehensive and effective approach to managing software development risks.
The approach is based on a just-in-time (JIT) strategy. Key elements of this strategy include (1) strategic planning and operational planning, the former is focused on product-line based software and makes a distinction between the software under development being the product itself or a part of the product, and the latter is focused on project planning and controls; (2) early risk identification, and (3) parallel development. When this book was first published parallel development was a complex goal; however, with component-based development strategies the approach is ideal. Perhaps the author was ahead of his time.
Some of the best chapters in this book are: Chapter 4 - provides excellent insights and advice on managing the strategic and operational elements of the JIT strategy, Chapter 5 - comprehensive list of software risk elements and Chapter 7 - another comprehensive list that covers risk metrics.
Chapter 8 describes the JIT method as it applies to each phase in the software development life cycle. This chapter contains valuable tables that can be used as checklists in your own project, and is full of useful information that can be applied to project risk management regardless of whether or not you implement the JIT approach described in this book. Chapter 9 shows how to apply the JIT approach to a project. This chapter is short is really a brief summary of the software engineering risk model (SERIM) from which the JIT approach was derived. Chapter 10 is a collection of JIT examples that can easily be recast into patterns. I especially like the way these examples clarify the information in preceding nine chapters. I recommend that you refer to this chapter as you read through the book because there will almost certainly be an example that will illustrate any fuzzy areas.
This is one of my favorite books on risk management in general and software risk management in particular. The information and approach are not limited to software engineering, although the book was obviously written for that technical domain. I have borrowed techniques from this book and have successfully applied them in other kinds of projects, as I am sure you will. I give it 5 stars and a strong recommendation.
