MNZCS

I applied this week to become a member of the New Zealand Computer Society.  As a Software Professional, regardless of what role I’m playing, I think there’s value in being part of a professional body with a code of ethics and an emphasis on ongoing professional development.  They also have a mentoring program which I’m hoping to get into to be mentored and in time to be able to mentor others.

The code of ethics is actually very good.  Its worth reading to remind us why we are software professionals and what value we are creating for other people:

1. Members’ responsibility for the welfare and rights of the community shall come before their responsibility to their profession, sectional or private interests or to other members;
2. Members shall act in the execution of their profession with integrity, dignity and honour to merit the trust of the community and the profession, and apply honesty, skill, judgement and initiative to contribute positively to the well-being of society;
3. Members shall treat people with dignity, good faith and equity; without discrimination; and have consideration for the values and cultural sensitivities of all groups within the community affected by their work;
4. Members shall follow recognised professional practice, and provide services and advice carefully and diligently only within their areas of competence;
5. Members shall develop their knowledge, skills and expertise continuously through their careers, contribute to the collective wisdom of the profession, and actively encourage their associates to do likewise;
6. Members shall apply their skills and knowledge in the interests of their clients or employers for whom they will act without compromising any other of these tenets;
7. Members shall take reasonable steps to inform themselves, their clients or employers of the economic, social, environmental or legal consequences which may arise from their actions; and
8. Members shall inform their clients or employers of any interest which may be, or may be perceived as being, in conflict with the interests of their clients or employers, or which may affect the quality of service or impartial judgement;

Also – if you haven’t read the IEEE software engineers code of ethics before, its also worth reading:

Software engineers shall commit themselves to making the analysis, specification, design, development, testing and maintenance of software a beneficial and respected profession. In accordance with their commitment to the health, safety and welfare of the public, software engineers shall adhere to the following Eight Principles:

1. PUBLIC – Software engineers shall act consistently with the public interest.

2. CLIENT AND EMPLOYER – Software engineers shall act in a manner that is in the best interests of their client and employer consistent with the public interest.

3. PRODUCT – Software engineers shall ensure that their products and related modifications meet the highest professional standards possible.

4. JUDGMENT – Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment.

5. MANAGEMENT – Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and maintenance.

6. PROFESSION – Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the public interest.

7. COLLEAGUES – Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues.

8. SELF – Software engineers shall participate in lifelong learning regarding the practice of their profession and shall promote an ethical approach to the practice of the profession.

It makes you lift your head up and take a bit more pride in your work.

Tuned-in

I’ve just finished reading Tuned-In, by the guys at Pragmatic Marketing and its a must read for anyone involved in productisation.  

When developing good software, we focus the design and usability on the users, but we need to focus the roadmap and marketing on the buyers.  The tuned-in approach draws your focus to understanding who your buyers are and making sure that you’re solving real problems that exist for them.

Even if your users and buyers are the same, the problems that lead them to buy your software are different to the problems they will experience while using your software. 

How do you know if a problem is worth solving?  It will be urgent enough for people to pay to solve and prevalent enough to give you a profitable market.

It makes me think of many ideas I’ve had and heard, including plenty that people were in the process of committing years of effort into, all of which solved a problem, but none of which solved an urgent or prevalent problem.

Its pretty simple stuff – and the authors have applied their own advice to how they wrote the book, so read it!