"DeMarco and Lister are very well known for their classic, Peopleware,
which should be mandatory reading for software managers, project managers,
product marketing managers—in fact, anyone involved in the decision-making
process for funding software projects."
—Beth
Benoit
The Rational Edge
"The best software/management
book I have ever read. Being a new project manager, some aspects of the book were
a real eye-opener and others were just common sense, but I was so glad to read
them to give me confidence that what I was doing was right. There are also some
great examples of how not to manage a project, things I have seen far too often
from managers."
—Simon Fry
Project Manager,
Tenix Defence
"This book was one of the most influential books
I've ever read. The best way to describe it would be as an Anti-Dilbert Manifesto.
Ever wonder why everybody at Microsoft gets their own office, with walls and a
door that shuts? It's in there. Why do managers give so much leeway to their teams
to get things done? That's in there too. Why are there so many jelled SWAT teams
at Microsoft that are remarkably productive? Mainly because Bill Gates has built
a company full of managers who read Peopleware. I can't recommend this
book highly enough. It is the one thing every software manager needs to read...
not just once, but once a year."
—Joel Spolsky
Founder, Fog Creek Software
Joel
on Software
"The book's style is conversational and anecdotal,
and uses simple declarative sentences -- no pretentious turgid writing. . . .
"I
still heartily recommend the book. Buy a copy and lend it to your boss. It might
be a good test. If he or she throws a tantrum, maybe it's time to find a new job.
"
—Kirby W. Cartwright
Fresh
Meat
"This classic must-have book exposes fallacies of
software management folklore. Tom and Tim explain how productivity and teamwork
really happen. Peopleware is an enjoyable read, written with a balance of wisdom
and humor."
—Eileen and Wayne Strider
Software
Testing and Quality Engineering
"This is my all-time favorite
software engineering book. Peopleware accurately recognizes that software
engineering is about people, not technology....
"... it's not just
for managers, I strongly recommend this book to everyone, from the most junior
engineer to the CEO....
"This book fundamentally changed my views on
software engineering!"
—Marc A. Herschberg
Javaranch.com
"This book is a treasure trove of valuable
insights into the psyches of software engineers and their managers. . . .
"I
was amazed at the revelations on how (or how not) to build a great team and execute
projects flawlessly. . . .
". . . the closing chapters on the responsibility
of managers for their organization's health are gems of wisdom."
"
. . . the book is a wonderfully entertaining presentation of vital, sociological
issues. Managers who fail to read this are doing a disservice to their teams and
organizations."
—Joe Zec
Software
Quality Professional
"Peopleware has become a classic
on building effective development teams. If you are a manager, you need this book.
It will help you design your team, group culture, and physical environment to
maximize productivity. If you are an individual contributor, you'll find that
this book confirms your suspiciouns that offices are generally designed to prevent
you from doing your job.
"A thin but pithy volume, Peopleware
is both entertaining reading and rich advice. My copy is showing signs of wear;
I refer back to it on a regular basis.
"My favorite chapter is the
"The Black Team" (Chapter 19), in which DeMarco and Lister describe
a particularly effecive testing team.
"There are simiar stories throughout
the book, all drawn from DeMarco and Lister's extensive consulting experience.
These stories make the book a delight to read, and provide real life examples
of successful and unsuccessful management practices."
—Elisabeth
Hendrickson
Quality Tree Consulting
"The basic premise of this book is that the people issues involved with
the development of software must be taken into account in order to be successfull
and productive. This book is geared towards project managers, although in my opinion
all developers should read it. The book provides excellent advice for building
and managing teams that is based on real-world experience. It also provides intelligent
insight into the design of people's work areas, including ergonomic issues and
equipment-related advice. A must read for all project managers and most developers."
—Scott
Ambler
www.ambysoft.com
"When the first edition
appeared, I wrote a review that said "I strongly recommend that you buy one copy
of Peopleware for yourself and another copy for your boss. If you are a boss,
then buy one for everyone in your department, and buy one for your boss." The
advice still holds 12 years later, and my recommendation is even more enthusiastic
Ñ the new edition has 8 new chapters, covering such topics as competition, process
improvement programs, "teamicide revisited," organizational learning, the concept
of "human capital," a discussion of the "ultimate" management sin, and some excellent
suggestions on how best to create a software development community."
—Ed
Yourdon
American Programmer
"challenges the modern myth that technology is the cornerstone of
productivity. It makes you think about creating a culture that allows people to
work (more) effectively."
—Rose Ann Giordano
Digital Equipment Corp.
"addresses the fundamental
issues of knowledge worker productivity that managers have for so long ignored."
—Michael
W. Bealmear
Coopers & Lybrand
"casts
a new light on human behavior in development projects."
—Tomoo
Matsubara
Hitachi Software Engineering Co.
"DeMarco and Lister are, at once, entertaining story tellers and astute
observers of the project management scene."
—John
H. Taylor
E.I. du Pont Nemours & Co.
"The book is an unremitting defense of the people part of the productivity
equation, backed by statistics and anecdotes."
—George
Harrar
Computerworld
"The light
and humorous style of the original is preserved in the new section. Twelve years
after the publication of the first edition, the lessons presented remain as valid
as at the time of original publication, attesting to the fact that, in general,
managers do not read books about management (or at least do not learn from them)."
—J.J.
Hirschfelder
Computing Reviews
"If
you hire people for their brains, you can't treat them like modular components
and expect an able, creative crew to emerge. That's the basic message in Peopleware.
. . . fun to read because the authors illustrate their analyses and solutions
with war stories drawn from their consulting experience. But this well-researched
book is also persuasive because its advice is backed up by firm scholarship."
—PC
World
". . . the authors buttress their assertions
with empirical data collected from studies involving some 900 programmers and
analysts. . . . All of the chapters contain insights and novel approaches that
will make readers and managers look at important issues from a new vantage point.
. . . Its messages are important, and the book deserves a place on the shelf of
every software manager and every software management consultant."
—T.
Capers Jones
CASE Outlook
"Lister
and [DeMarco] savagely destroy a sizeable chunk of received wisdom, using by turns
well-picked example, epigramatic darts, careful reasoning and even data. . . .
even if you disagree with what DeMarco and Lister say, you will enjoy how they
say it, and you will go away thinking. Get the book and read it. Then give it
to your manager. Or, if you dare, your subordinates."
—Alan
Campbell
Computing, London
"In
addition to being critically important, the book has a rare characteristic: it
is fun to read. . . . it provides ideas and information for any systems development
manager to help improve the craft of system development."
—Albert
L. LeDuc
CAUSE/EFFECT
"It
would be an understatement to call this book a must for project managers. In seeking
a new job, I would ask my prospective boss what he thought of this book. A positive
response would be worth about $5000 in comparing job offers."
—Rich
Cohen
"The original publication of
Tom DeMarco and Timopthy Lister's Peopleware was a watershed event. . .
. DeMarco and Lister for the first time presented a compelling case for elevating
people-centered considerations from their common position as an afterthought to
center stage. . . .
"With this influential track record,
the new revision of Peopleware is one of the few books I will buy sight
unseen."
—Steve McConnell
IEEE Software
"There's not a whole lot I can say about the new edition
of Peopleware, except "Buy this book!!!!" If you're not familiar with this
classic of management practice, you have a treat coming. And if you are familiar
with it, DeMarco and Lister have sweetened the pot with eight new chapters covering
everything from the change process . . ."
—Sue
Petersen
Visual
Developer
". . . Now we've all
heard about hardware, software, shareware, and even vapourware. So, what is peopleware?
Well, it is about the only raw material that matters in the software world --
people. It is all about how people must be managed, the kind of work environments
that software companies must provide, and the kind of managers/senior leaders
that you must have in the profession for a company to succeed.
"A
must read book for anyone, including those not in the profession."
Gops
Writings
