Better Software Magazine Articles

Metrics that Motivate

To implement a meaningful incentive system for your team, you need to select metrics that encourage the behaviors you need and the results you want. But first you have to decide what you need and want.

Linda Hayes's picture Linda Hayes
Where Do I Go From Here?—Professional Growth for Software Testers

Most professionals have a detailed career ladder upon which to climb and grow their careers. But in many test organizations that ladder has only one rung—and it leads to management. If management isn't your path of choice, these tips can help you market yourself and add value to your career while you build your own technical career ladder.

Matthew Heusser's picture Matthew Heusser
What's on Your Dashboard?

Just because a metric is easy to capture doesn't mean it is useful. The metrics that are really needed are the ones that can help you make good decisions. Find out how to establish a project dashboard with meaningful metrics that will guide your project safely to its destination without getting bogged down in an endless pursuit of unnecessary information.

John Fodeh's picture John Fodeh
Metrics You Can Bet On

An old adage says that you cannot manage what you cannot measure, but Mike Cohn thinks differently. Here, he offers suggestions on when to use metrics and when you can manage without, as well as some guidelines to help you choose your metrics carefully.

Mike Cohn's picture Mike Cohn
Metrics Motivation

Typical metrics are used to predict an outcome by comparing plans to actual results. They are objective and don't influence what you are trying to measure. Biased metrics, on the other hand, are a valuable tool for deliberately altering behavior to improve the performance of a group. Find out how biased metrics can be used on your projects to pinpoint problems in specific areas and to influence people to fix them.

Jan Scott
Measurements that Matter

No one starts a project with the goal of failing, but some metrics experts claim that 80 percent of software metrics initiatives fail. Just as your software project has goals for success, you should have goals for success in your metrics initiatives. Find out what you can do to better your chance for success.

Alan Page's picture Alan Page
Estimates: From Wrong to Real

Need a place to go to get the solutions you've been craving? Management Fix is what you've been looking for. In this issue, find out how to create estimates that make sense.

Johanna Rothman's picture Johanna Rothman
Practical Career Advancement

A word from the Technical Editor

Brian Marick
Go with the Bug Flow

How do you know when your software is done? How do you determine which bugs need to be fixed and which can be tabled for "someday"? Robert Sabourin defines a seven-step process for establishing an effective bug triage system.

Robert Sabourin's picture Robert Sabourin
Leveraging Inspections

You can improve your inspection process, moving from 50 percent to as much as 90 percent defect removal before entering test. Learn how to record and analyze the right data.

Ed Weller's picture Ed Weller

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