DSDM: Dynamic Systems Development Method: The Method in Practice [Hardcover]

Jennifer Stapleton (Author), Peter Constable (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 17, 1997

DSDM is about people, not tools. It is about truly understanding the needs of a business, delivering software solutions that work and delivering them as quickly and as cheaply as possible. The Dynamic Systems Development Method provides a framework of controls and best practice for Rapid Application Development. It was created by a consortium of organisations and it has been proved, since its publication in January 1995, to be extremely effective in delivering maintainable systems which match the needs of the business better than those produced using traditional lifecycles. This book, commissioned by the DSDM Consortium and written by the chairman of the Technical Committee which developed the method, explores the day-to-day realities of implementing the method. It is a practitioner's guide, dealing with issues such as how to get people from different disciplines to work together as a team, how to gain commitment and how to manage projects within normal business constraints. Do you want to cut the development time and increase the fitness-for-use of screen based business applications, by orders of magnitude? This book will enable those in organisations which develop or purchase tailored IT systems, to gain a clear understanding of the benefits of the incremental and iterative approach embodied in the DSDM.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

DSDM is about people, not tools. It is about truly understanding the needs of a business, delivering software solutions that work and delivering them as quickly and as cheaply as possible.

The Dynamic Systems Development Method provides a framework of controls and best practice for Rapid Application Development. It was created by a consortium of organisations and it has been proved, since its publication in January 1995, to be extremely effective in delivering maintainable systems which match the needs of the business better than those produced using traditional lifecycles.

This book, commissioned by the DSDM Consortium and written by the chairman of the Technical Committee which developed the method, explores the day-to-day realities of implementing the method. It is a practitionerIs guide, dealing with issues such as how to get people from different disciplines to work together as a team, how to gain commitment and how to manage projects within normal business constraints.

In this book you will find:

• practical guidelines on the implementation of key elements of the method such as "timeboxes" and the MOSCOW Rules
• clear recommendations for the roles and responsibilities of the members of the development team
• advice on which type of application is most likely to benefit from the method
• eight lengthy case studies by well-known companies, providing a benchmark against which to assess the suitability of candidate projects
• numerous examples and anecdotes, enabling the reader to benefit from the authorIs experience putting the method into practice

Do you want to cut the development time and increase the fitness-for-use of screen based business applications, by orders of magnitude?

This book will enable those in organisations which develop or purchase tailored IT systems, to gain a clear understanding of the benefits of the incremental and iterative approach embodied in the DSDM.

0201178893B04062001

About the Author

Jennifer Stapleton, the editor of the book, has been Technical Director of the DSDM Consortium since its inception, and is also Director of Consulting at Empower Dynamics Limited. She is a Fellow of the British Computer Society and was its Technical Vice-President from 1996-2002. She became an independent consultant in 1996, and focuses on helping organisations to improve their processes in project delivery -- always with an eye to delivering real satisfaction for the end-user.

0201178893AB10242002

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional (July 17, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201178893
• ISBN-13: 978-0201178890
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,633,358 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A well-written, if brief, practical book., December 24, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: DSDM: Dynamic Systems Development Method: The Method in Practice (Hardcover)

I would agree with the previous reader's comments. This is a very well written, readable book which explores the subject of RAD using the DSDM framework. The author has taken a very practical stance when writing the book with many references to real-life accounts of project failure/success & as such ensures the book is a useful companion for the practising DSDM project manager (or manager-to-be). If I had a complaint it would be that the book is a tad light on content and some of the case studies have been written by the external systems houses who have used DSDM on projects they feel went well - hence, one gets the impression that in some cases the accounts are a little biased, and have been used to promote the respective companies' abilities. However, the case study of (the then) British Telecom is very interesting in that it covers a pilot DSDM project and refers to social/organisational/political pressures and how these might be avoided. I should also add that the book is endorsed by the DSDM Consortium & is written by the Chairman of its Technical Work Group. I would recommend this book to anyone considering moving into RAD, or anyone who has tried RAD and found it didn't quite work - chances are you'll discover why it failed when you read the book...

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short, concise, well structured introduction to DSDM, August 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: DSDM: Dynamic Systems Development Method: The Method in Practice (Hardcover)

This is a book which the RAD project manager or project leader cannot do without.

The method also seems to have an ideal fit with OO techniques. Anyone planning to start using UML or OMT in their projects should at least concider reading this book to help provide a framework for project planning and control.

The first part of the book contains a short, concise description of the DSDM method. Each chapter describes a well structured set of issues and ends with a short summary of the important points. What is presented is a method which covers the whole software development cycle from feasability to production and the management structures required to achive this.

The second part of the book contains case studies of DSDM projects, which highlight problems, pitfalls, limitations and some solutions. Experienced project personnel can 'feel' the problems described in the texts.

DSDM is a method specifically for Software development, but it encapsulates a series of 'framework' concepts for process management. Some of these concepts can be used to control the delivery of any time cricical product or service.

This is probably the most important book on this subject since James Martins' RAD.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Agile Method/Frame work with a real business focus, June 28, 2003

By 

Dane Falkner (Utah, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: DSDM: Business Focused Development, Second Edition (Paperback)

Today, so many Agile Methods make extraordinary claims. This book gives you an idea of the real world common sense business focus that is encapsulated within this international non-profit consortium's development framework (the framework is a little more than just a method). This book doesn't contain the entire framework and can be used as a primer for DSDM or to augment the actual DSDM manual (which you must become a member at ...to access.)

The Agile Method movement is remarkable and many of the Agile Method's mainstays, such as Extreme Programming, apply a high degree of discipline with real agility to build quality software (measured by defects, not by fit for purpose). DSDM, FDD, and Lean Development are the only major Agile Methods (I am aware of) that have that all-important focus on creating only high-value benefits to the customer (fit for purpose is my preferred measure of quality). Most of the other methods do what they do very well which is to provide a rapid and agile way to write software. DSDM is commonly used with a development shop's existing methods or to wrap around XP or other development methods to add scalability, control, and predictability all at a lower cost for the highest value solutions. This book provides only a little guidance on how this is done. The new DSDM Manual version 4.2 does provide substantial guidance in this area, but you must be a member at ...to access it.

Yes, I am an advocate and practitioner of DSDM and a developer and project manager of over 10 years. This book is a must have companion to any DSDM practitioner or for anyone who wants to learn a new paradigm (even if you already understand Agile).

As demonstrated in this book, no software is built in a vacuum; all stakeholders must be involved in creating the solution. This implies politics, culture, resources, obstacles, etc.

In this book, I would like to have seen more demonstration of DSDM's incorporation and synergy with the other methods.

I recommend all of the books on Agile Software Development in general, but for the DSDM practitioner I recommend they read the free documentation about XP on the Agile Alliance web site ...and buy a copy of "Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit for Software Development Managers"
by Mary Poppendieck, Tom Poppendieck