From the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, methods for organizing for service engagements at scale were developed at IBM. Although this investment in knowledge management was huge, changes in the organization by the late-2000s saw this rich body of intellectual capital practically disappear. Appreciation for the framework remains in the memories of practitioners in the IBM Global Services organization — particularly the methodologists — immersed during that period. Some foundational historical artifacts can be rediscovered on the open Internet:
- 1. Configurable Development Processes (2002)
- 2. Method Adoption Workshops (2000)
- 3. Eclipse Process Framework Composer (2007)
The resemblance to pattern language, as prescribed by Christoper Alexander, is not accidental. Excerpts from these three sources are provided here, to entice readers who might seek out the full articles.
1. Configurable Development Processes (2002)
The Work Product based methods started in IBM at the rise of object-oriented methods. With OO as a new paradigm, incompatibilities across the variety of approaches frustrated clients trying to get work done. The end results seemed pretty much the same. The resolution for IBM came through centering on ends (work products) first, and means (techniques) second. The methods originating in software development became cross-appropriated into services engagement for other domain offerings (e.g. business strategy, organizational change).
Here’s an excerpt that shows the centrality of Work Product Descriptions (WPDs) from:
- Cameron, John. 2002. “Configurable Development Processes.” Communications of the ACM 45 (3): 72–77. https://doi.org/10.1145/504729.504731.
… Read more (in a new tab)Work products cover the full range of project work including project management, business process design, organizational change, requirements, usability, architecture, design, construction, and testing.
From the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, methods for organizing for service engagements at scale were developed at IBM. Although this investment in knowledge management was huge, changes in the organization by the late-2000s saw this rich body of intellectual capital practically disappear. Appreciation for the framework remains in the memories of practitioners in the IBM Global Services organization — particularly the methodologists — immersed during that period. Some foundational historical artifacts can be rediscovered on the open Internet:
- 1. Configurable Development Processes (2002)
- 2. Method Adoption Workshops (2000)
- 3. Eclipse Process Framework Composer (2007)
The resemblance to pattern language, as prescribed by Christoper Alexander, is not accidental. Excerpts from these three sources are provided here, to entice readers who might seek out the full articles.
1. Configurable Development Processes (2002)
The Work Product based methods started in IBM at the rise of object-oriented methods. With OO as a new paradigm, incompatibilities across the variety of approaches frustrated clients trying to get work done. The end results seemed pretty much the same. The resolution for IBM came through centering on ends (work products) first, and means (techniques) second. The methods originating in software development became cross-appropriated into services engagement for other domain offerings (e.g. business strategy, organizational change).
Here’s an excerpt that shows the centrality of Work Product Descriptions (WPDs) from:
- Cameron, John. 2002. “Configurable Development Processes.” Communications of the ACM 45 (3): 72–77. https://doi.org/10.1145/504729.504731.
… Read more (in a new tab)Work products cover the full range of project work including project management, business process design, organizational change, requirements, usability, architecture, design, construction, and testing.
