The Maturation of Agile Software Development Principles and Practice: Observations on Successive Industrial Studies in 2010 and 2012

The agile model of software development has been mainstream for several years, and is now in a phase where its principles and practices are maturing. The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of an industry survey aimed at understanding how maturation is progressing. The survey was taken across 40 software development companies in Northern Ireland at the beginning of 2012. The paper describes the design of the survey and examines maturity by comparing the results obtained in 2012 with those from a study of agile adoption in the same region in 2010. Both surveys aimed to achieve comprehensive coverage of a single area rather than rely on a voluntary sample. The main outcome from the work is a collection of ‘insights’ into the nature and practice of agile development, the main two of which are reported in this paper.

Contextualisation of international development principles to difficult contexts: a case study of Myanmar

Myanmar is a poor developing country with significant humanitarian needs, but international assistance is limited and restricted due to the political situation. Analysis of new primary data collected through interviews both within Myanmar and across the region sheds light on the implementation of principles of best-practice by International Non-Government Organisations (INGOs) operating within the country. This data highlights the adaptations INGOs make to widely-held development principles, ideas and approaches in order to become effective in this context. Forty-seven interviews were conducted with key individuals from INGOs, UN organisations and local NGOs. As there is no definitive list of best-practice principles for project-based INGO development interventions, a list is compiled from responses during the interviews. The adaptations made by INGOs to the context of Myanmar are discussed in terms of the way they work with civil society, NGOs, donors and officials (partnerships, capacity building, advocacy, rights-based approach and accountability), and the way they work in local communities (participation, equity, sustainability, active citizenry, and context sensitivity).

Integration of Sustainable Development Principles into a Community Park

Characteristics of six operating hot spring recreational facilities were reviewed to identify opportunities for integrating a range of sustainable design and operation approaches into a community park. Potential operating cost savings were evaluated for a conceptual landscape project, bathhouse project, and swimming pool project that reduced the use of electricity, natural gas, water, the discharge of water, and solid waste generation. The projects showed a combined cost savings of approximately $40,000 per year by adopting passive solar design, energy efficient lighting, native vegetation, water efficient fixtures, and a natural swimming pool. The greatest potential operating cost reductions were observed for cutbacks in the use of swimming pool water and reductions in natural gas needed for building and swimming pool heating.

Cotton spinning : its development, principles, and practice : with an appendix on steam engines and boilers /

Includes index.

Manager development, principles and perspectives.

Includes bibliography.

Barriers to sustainable economic development : the Dallas–Fort Worth experience

This article examines the scope of existing economic development activity and the motivations and perceptions of practitioners to shed light on the barriers to sustainable practice. In contrast to related fields like urban planning, the economic development literature has minimally examined how practitioners think about sustainable development and the extent to which sustainable development principles are adopted in practice. This omission is significant because economic development policies can have a notable impact on the sustainable development goals of environmental protection and social equity alongside economic growth. To capture the extent to which economic developers engage in sustainable development and the barriers that practitioners face, we study fifteen cities in the Dallas–Fort Worth region. We find that six key barriers – a conventional economic development mindset, incentive-based practice, a lack of resources, ad hoc planning, inter-regional competition, and a lack of coordinated regional planning – impede sustainable economic development in the region.

Development in fragile states and situations: theory and critique

This chapter examines the evolution of ‘fragile’ and ‘failed’ state terminology noting the background to the ideas and examining the theorisation around the concepts, before surveying the literature on development in ‘fragile’ and ‘failed’ states in some depth. The OECD Principles for Good International Engagement in Fragile States and Situations are examined in particular, together with the follow-up OECD fragile state evaluations and related literature, as the primary and often normative guidance on development in ‘fragile’ or ‘failed’ states. A range of alternatives and critiques are explored. This chapter, therefore, sets the literature and theory in place as a backdrop for the diversity of case studies presented in Part II of this volume.

Development in a fragile pariah state: Myanmar 1990-2010

Myanmar was not only a ‘fragile state’ by most definitions during the 1990s and 2000s, but was concurrently isolated as an international ‘pariah’. The complexity of this paradoxical combination of poverty, fragility, pro-economic growth polity and international isolation created an enigmatic context for international agencies, and one in which existing frameworks for development in ‘fragile states’ do not appear overly relevant. Nonetheless, Myanmar experienced a surprising level of development activity, with equally surprising signs of effectiveness. This paper explores this activity, identifying actors, roles, approaches, and modalities of interaction with structures and authorities found to be most effective. The paper is divided into four sections, offering an overview of the historical context, summarising field observations, considering the effectiveness of interventions, and discussing these observations in the light of fragile state policy.

Critiques and alternatives: development in contexts of fragility

The question of effective development in fragile contexts is increasingly significant, but as the literature and case studies throughout this volume have shown, the existing literature and principles for development effectiveness are built on a narrow conceptualisation of fragility. By exploring case studies that go well-beyond the ‘usual’ examples of ‘fragile states’, this volume has demonstrated that a much broader range of fragile contexts (set of causes and characteristics) exist, requiring a much more nuanced range of principles and approaches. This concluding chapter therefore summarises the key critiques of development theory and practice in fragile contexts found woven throughout the literature review and case studies, then offers tentative first steps towards more nuanced, context-specific recommendations for the roles of development actors, development approaches and modalities of interaction with structures and use of power in development, arranged according to thoughts around potential key drivers and characteristics of fragility, as illustrated by the case studies.

The Complacent Acceptance of Diversity: Human Resource Development in a Culturally Diverse Environment

This paper examines the inability of work organizations to achieve racial balance and use training and development, organization development, and multicultural organizational development principles to manage and enable diversity initiatives. The paper proposes a conceptual framework for a micro and macro model as an approach to diversity initiatives.

Maritime domain awareness : pillar for sustainable development of maritime transportation

Doutoramento em Estudos de Desenvolvimento

A multimedia mobile phone-based youth smoking cessation intervention: findings from content development and piloting studies

BACKGROUND: While most young people who smoke want to quit, few access cessation support services. Mobile phone-based cessation programs are ideal for young people: mobile phones are the most common means of peer communication, and messages can be delivered in an anonymous manner, anywhere, anytime. Following the success of our text messaging smoking cessation program, we developed an innovative multimedia mobile phone smoking cessation intervention.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to develop and pilot test a youth-oriented multimedia smoking cessation intervention delivered solely by mobile phone.

METHODS: Development included creating content and building the technology platform. Content development was overseen by an expert group who advised on youth development principles, observational learning (from social cognitive theory), effective smoking cessation interventions, and social marketing. Young people participated in three content development phases (consultation via focus groups and an online survey, content pre-testing, and selection of role models). Video and text messages were then developed, incorporating the findings from this research. Information technology systems were established to support the delivery of the multimedia messages by mobile phone. A pilot study using an abbreviated 4-week program of video and text content tested the reliability of the systems and the acceptability of the intervention.

RESULTS: Approximately 180 young people participated in the consultation phase. There was a high priority placed on music for relaxation (75%) and an interest in interacting with others in the program (40% would read messages, 36% would read a blog). Findings from the pre-testing phase (n = 41) included the importance of selecting "real" and "honest" role models with believable stories, and an interest in animations (37%). Of the 15 participants who took part in the pilot study, 13 (87%) were available for follow-up interviews at 4 weeks: 12 participants liked the program or liked it most of the time and found the role model to be believable; 7 liked the role model video messages (5 were unsure); 8 used the extra assistance for cravings; and 9 were happy with two messages per day. Nine participants (60%) stopped smoking during the program. Some technical challenges were encountered during the pilot study.

CONCLUSIONS: A multimedia mobile phone smoking cessation program is technically feasible, and the content developed is appropriate for this medium and is acceptable to our target population. These results have informed the design of a 6-month intervention currently being evaluated for its effectiveness in increasing smoking cessation rates in young people.

A comparative study – regulatory requirements on subdivisions for increasing passive cooling

This is the third in a series of reports planned for this project. The aim of this research is to conduct a comparative study of current legislation or guidelines at the federal, state and local government levels to confirm if any natural ventilation criteria are required at the subdivision development stage of planning. It also seeks to discover if there are any other incentives, statutory planning or development principles that encourage developers to orient subdivision lots to maximize natural ventilation for the dwellings. Findings from the research in this report are intended to contribute to the discussion on the development of an enhanced lot rating methodology for sustainable subdivisions as documented in other reports in this series.