Understandably most of you are very familiar with programing, and usual implementation of software. Currently I lead a small startup, I have two average programers, but they honestly aren't "the shit". We have gotten some funding and I want to accelerate the building of the software, can it be done, by just hiring more people. Is there any way to accelerate a Waterfall model, or a way to divide work sort of like a production chain, where each programmer does something. and in the end you polish it up. I'm a physics and economics major, who has dipped his toes in Java and Python but not much else.
Much love,
The Dove
Get a basketball hoop, a mini-fridge and a ping-pong table
>they arent the shit
You should fire them and do all the coding yourself I mean its not that hard rite
>>52506642
Get yourself a proper project manager and/or a lead/senior programmer.
>>52506661
Are you implying with that post that all programmers are pretty much the same?
>>52506656
>>52506661
meme retard answers
op's question is interesting
>>52506642
You are a startup and develop in waterfall? That's suicide, and it's probably holding back your dev's productivity. You should hire a project manager who knows some agile methodology, like kanban or scrum, this is the most important.
Second, what do you mean your devs are average? Are they slow, produce bugs, bad UIX or what? What are you even developing? Generally, tech startups without technical co-founders always fail on the same things, but the very least you need a senior developer who knows his shit and you can trust 100%.
>>52506823
Both waterfall and scrum are counter productive for small companies. Get at least one developer that knows stuff, ask him for options when you think of something. Use libraries to make things easy and quick.
>>52506642
If you don't have a proper grasp on what your programmers are actually doing, you should probably ether let them do their thing and ask them what should be done to speed up development or alternatively hire a project lead who knows what they're doing and resign yourself to marketing, sales or something else than trying to manage people doing something you don't understand.
>>52506867
>Both waterfall and scrum are counter productive for small companies
Not true. The trick is to adopt the best practices, and find out what works for you. Daily standups, user stories, and (bi)weekly sprint plannings are a good foundation for every team.
>Use libraries to make things easy and quick
its like saying "use bricks, makes building your house quicker"
>>52506665
LOL
yeah get more managers
ideally it should be :
You (boss)
PM PM
PM PM PM
Programmer Programmer
First, I am a student, and I spend most of my time learning. I know my graps of the issue is not the best, but Im reading hard. Im taking all my programmers are giving in terms of intellectual output and im finding ways to make their work easier.
No I know all programmers are not the same. Truth is that I want to accelerate work and help these people. We have the functionalities, and a basic outline on how the functionalities should work. We have the designs and everything else up to that point.
Also, I cant hire a project manager, cos Im kinda doing that right now, and because we are putting the money on the creation process rather than the management process.
Before anyone asks, YES i have run and currently run small business endeavors that are highly profitable in marginal terms; so im not entirely experience-less.
How would you suggest I should follow up? Any books on project management for software. Any experiences?
What would YOU do?
I am not one of those assholes, who needs to be right. I need that in the end of the day this to be profitable for all of the people involved. The reason I wanted to create a production chain is bcs I can find cheap programing labour to supplement, what is going on;- all the needs and wants in terms of work, of the current programers have been met 100%.
>>52506949
PS. this was posted by me, the OP.
>>52506823
Then please do suggest another method.
I meant they they are relatively experienced, and that they are slow. The UIX is good, and bugs are rare.
>>52506642
>Waterfall model
its going to go bad
>>52506970
I just did. Read up agile development for starters.
I still think it's cheaper for you to hire a PM or a consultant at least part time, than you trying to apply a methodology you never even used.
>>52507011
Im completely open to suggestions.
We basically followed a logical version of waterfall, where basic functionality and how it would be implemented was decided first, and then the basic design came after. Which leaves the software to be done. Any other ideas. It's never late, actually It's early.
>>52506949
If you're trying to be project manager and are this clueless as to what your programmers are actually doing, you probably shouldn't be the project manager. The fact that you've been successful at running small businesses doesn't translate to project management in a technical field. You need to actually understand a field before you can manage a team in said field. Otherwise it's just going to be like Gunnery Sergeant Hartman from Full Metal Jacket trying to manage a ballet quartet.
This reminds me of the completely incompetent business manager type girl I had in a project course we were supposed to share with the local business school so that the business school people got to have some experience in project management. She was completely clueless and had us waste time on weekly meetings she'd often be absent from because of something with her kids. The other business school guy eventually had to re-do everything she did and completely take over the business side while I took complete control of the technical side of things managing the 3 other technical people.
>>52507021
Well, I can afford to hire students, I cannot afford to hire people from the industry. get my drill. Much better just to hire very experienced dev then and be done with it.
>>52507044
So basically, higher a technical guy that truly knows his shit, and let him run the technical side.
>>52507060
Possibly, but I'd say you should probably hire someone with experience in technical project management to manage the whole project while you take care of things like marketing, funding, sales, etc. and just learning from what he or she is doing.
I know you want to be project manager and all, but the problem is that you've simply overestimated your skills in this regard and thought that managing a business in a field you understand gives you the experience necessary to run a development team in a field you don't fully understand. Project management in the tech sector is really an art form of it's own has people dedicate their lives to learning it. A lot of people think of Steve Jobs and him having no college diploma or experience before starting Apple, but don't realize that Jobs had been an electronics hobbyist ever since childhood and had quite a lot of technical knowledge despite managing other people with the same kind of skills.
>>52507126
I dont WANT, I just have a limited supply of money before i run out, and need to go begging around (which I have done before)- I WOULD LOVE someone to do this for me. Im actually thinking hardcore on how I can get someone with experience to lead this.
>>52506642
>Understandably most of you are very familiar with programing, and usual implementation of software
shit like this is how oracle ruined sun.
You are all a bunch of ficking faggets go kill yourself
You are all a bunch of ficking faggets go kill yourselfss
>>52506930
>its like saying "use bricks, makes building your house quicker"
More like saying go and purchase bricks, instead of firing them out of clay yourself.
>>52506642
Semi-serious question: If you *do* hire more people, would you consider a remote worker (UK)?
>>52507196
Well then it seems like you fucked up and took on more than you could chew. You tried to run a startup in a business you don't understand and you've got to understand that something like that has a very big chance of going wrong.
Simply put: When you don't know what you're doing, failure is the norm, not the exception.
>>52507784
Of course I would.
ITT some ignorant retards create a tech startup in a field outside their specialty and want help without being able to afford it.
>>52507879
I am a theoretical physicist and economist, not an ignorant. Please do not make this /b/ thread.
>>52507922
my guess is you're bad at both of those things which doesn't contradict what i said.
>>52507829
Well, this is a very long shot but- if you send an email to this temporary address
[email protected]
I'll get back to you with some info about myself and what I could offer.
>>52506823
>>52506970
So I understand that you just had an idea for a startup, without you having the technical knowhow to realize it. You just hired 2 devs who don't live up to your expectation. Which you can't seem to describe in any other way than "they dont work fast enough".
You probably hugely undertestimated the cost and time it takes to produce real world software.
>>52506642
Adding more people or funds, or outsourcing, won't necessarily make it faster. (cf: Mythical Man-Month) Good software takes time. You may be asking the impossible. Speak to your programmers and ask them to advise you.
>>52506642
>accelerate a Waterfall model
Really now? It's the most static. If you have endless funding, no deadline and/or don't care what comes out at the end of it, go with waterfall.
>economics major
Project management wasn't part of your curriculum I take it.
How much time have you put into designing what you're doing? What are you doing anyway (roughly)? Game? App? Business related enterprise-something?
>>52508009 (Me)
Actually, make that [email protected]
>>52507922
hi boss, just give us moar money, we will be fine.
/g/ - Hacker News
>>52507879
>used to work for a startup founded by non-tech folk
>ran the company into millions of debt without a functioning product before handing it off to people that knew what they were doing
>company thrives and gets acquired
>the end
>>52506642
Hi senpai, I went through an accelerator myself and now run a startup myself. You're doing it wrong, your first hires should always be fucking genius's far beyond your own level. The kind that's on working all hours 6 days a week without being asked. We found one, they're amazing
