Definitions


Advisor, Technical Advisor	A person assisting Business Management in terms of explaining and validating information related to a given Software Project.

Bug, Bugs	A general industry term for a discrepency between the expected and actual state of a deliverable. Bugs are generally recorded, tracked, and resolved during a Software Project. Formally, Bugs should have an explicit or reasonably implied basis derived from the project's Feature Specifications.

Business Management	A hierarchical collection of Business Managers and Advisors who manage a business organization.

Business Manager, Business Managers	An agent of a company who determines which projects to do and then secures the necessary resources to complete them. The Business Manager is viewed as a pragmatist who is focused on the financial well being of the organization. The Business Manager needs to readily convey the relative value of a project. The Business Manager needs to know the state of a project in terms of budget and goals. The Business Manager needs to be able to confidently relay the state of project to other Business Managers. The Business Manager does not neccessarily need to know specific technical details of a particular project. A primary metric for Business Managers is their ability to have projects completed on schedule and on budget. A primary metric for Business Managers is that the costs and benefits a project meet the goal criteria used to authorize them. The Business Manager may be managing several projects concurrently.

Deliverables	The expected collection of components, documents, and files produced by a Software Project upon its completion.

Development, Development Team, Development Teams	A collection of technical personnel responsible for implementing the features of a Software Project. Additional responsibilities typically include advising Program Managers of the technical feasibility and cost of implementing features. Additional responsibilities typically include creating Implementation Plans. Additional responsibilities typically include inspecting Feature Specifications and Test Plans.

Development Group, Development Groups	A collection of teams whose purpose is to plan, specify, implement, and verify a Software Project. A Development Group encompasses three primary teams. They are Program Management, Development, and Testing. A primary metric for Development Groups is completing a Software Project on schedule. Additional metrics are the perceived value and quality of the final deliverables. Program Management is generally the primary representative of the Development Group.

Feature Specification, Feature Specifications	A detailed functional description of a feature comprising a Software Project. Feature Specifications are the basis for costing and scheduling a Software Project. They are the end result of the Planning Phase. In terms of bidden projects, they usually become part of the contract agreement. They should detail the constraints and composition of a feature.

Implementation, Implementation Phase	A phase in a Software Project where a set of features is implemented by writing and compiling source code. During this phase, Development is focused on implementing the features according to the corresponding Implementation Plans. Development may release Builds to be evaluated by Testing and Program Management. Ideally, these Builds are used to validate and verify the feature implementations, increasing in the depth and breadth of coverage. Ideally, these builds are used by Program Management to track overall progress and validate feature goals. Ideally the phase ends with all features completely implemented, as per the Implementation Plans and Feature Specifications. Ideally, Testing should be able to fully execute their Test Plans at the conclusion of the Implementation Phase.

Implementation Plan, Implementation Plans	A detailed description of how a feature is to be developed. It details the components and technologies which will be utilized to create the feature. It is derived from one or more Feature Specifications and is usually internal to the Development Group assigned to the Software Project. It should provide sufficient detail in order to confidently schedule and plan the development of the feature.

Outsourcers, Vendors	Unless qualified, this term generally refers to Software Development Outsourcers in the context of this site.

Outsourcing, Software Outsourcing, Software Development Outsourcing	While many types of work may be outsourced, Outsourcing as an unqualified term used within the context of this site refers to Software Development.

Planning, Planning Phase	A phase in a Software Project where various features and feature sets are evaluated specified. The phase generally starts with a prioritized set of project goals and constraints. It also starts with a rough schedule. The primary goal of the Planning Phase is to produce highly detailed Feature Specifications, Implementation Plans, and Test Plans for an optimal set of features which satisfy the project criteria. It is possible that a Software Project will be cancelled if it seems infeasible to meet the core goals and constraints. However, adjustments to the general and core goals and constraints of the project may occur during this phase, in order to establish feasibility. Various feature sets and corresponding schedules are presented to Business Management, with increasing confidence of feasibility. Ideally, the phase ends with a stable set of features, detailed documentation, and specific plans.

Product Group, Product Groups	A hierarchical collection of people responsible for the development, distribution, and support of a Software Product. Typically, a Product Group is comprised of a Development Group, Business Management, Sales and Marketing, and Product Support.

Program Management	A collection of technical personnel responsible for planning, scheduling, tracking, and managing a Software Project. Program Management generally owns the composite schedule. Program Management is the primary interface of a Development Group with Business Management.

Software Development Outsourcers, Software Development Vendors	Business entities external to a Client who are involved with Software Development. Specifically, businesses who provide Planning, Implementation, and/or Maintenance services in regard to Software Development.

Software Development	The process of creating software. In industry, it is typically done by means of a Software Project.

Software Project, Software Projects	A project with the primary goal of implementing a set of features in software by writing and compiling source code. The end goal of a Software Project is to produce Deliverables. A Software Project is executed by a Development Group. A Software Project generally consists of one or more recursive or sequential iterations of three primary phases. They are Planning, Implementation, and Verification.

Test Plan, Test Plans	A formal description of how a feature will be validated as being compliant with the corresponding Feature Specification. It is derived from the relevant Feature Specifications and the Implementation Plans. It should provide sufficient detail in order to confidently plan and schedule the verification of a feature.

Verification, Verification Phase, Verification Phases	A phase in Software Project where the Deliverables of a Software Project are verified to be complete and free of defects. During this phase Testing is primarily engaged in executing Test Plans, and filing Bugs against Builds in order to eventually validate completeness and correctness of the final Deliverables. Testing may also be validating other components of the final Deliverables. Program Management is primarily engaged in validating and prioritizing Bugs. Development is primarily engaged in resolving malfunction Bugs. Iterations of filing, assessing, and resolving Bugs continue until all Bugs are resolved. Ideally the Verification Phase ends with Deliverables that are complete and defect free. Ideally, the final Deliverables satisfy the original intentions of the Software Project.