01-06-2001

As we wind down the first release of this project and everyone has had a chance to step back and take a deep breath, we're gearing up for the second.

Or at least in an ideal world, it would be like that. At this point, it's more that everyone is frantically trying to get release one into shape so it can be deployed to production, and at the same time we're taking this rather unstable system and intend to start new work on it for the second release. It doesn't seem like the greatest of ideas, but then this is what happens when business runs development instead of I.T.

On the plus side, I'm guardedly optimistic about this second release because, *finally*, all the development teams have realized that gosh, we need to work together. One of the other team leads and I have been conspiring on a list of things that we want to do to make sure that at least this release goes much smoother. We're trying very hard not to repeat the mistakes of the past. The only stumbling block will be if the business tries to get in the way.

I suppose I'm hopelessly jaded when it comes to development, having been a code nerd for years, and lately, a project manager, but on the I.T. side. I understand that the business needs to be involved, but there are times when I wish we could limit that involvement - bring them in on a case-by-case basis as needed, but then shoo them away when we were done with them. They're well-meaning, but at times it's like trying to paint a room with a toddler. They really do want to help and you can't really shut the door because then they'll start to cry, but they slop paint everywhere and even if some of it does get on the walls, you'll simply end up having to smooth it out and do it over anyway.

So we shall see. The next three weeks promise to be insane as we try to nail down design - but then that seems to be the norm lately, so much so that some of us are starting to wonder if we'll ever get back to anything resembling 'normal', ever again.