Similarities Between School Lunch & Software Development | @CloudExpo #Cloud #Software

By John Basso

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July 14, 2016 07:00 AM EDT

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452

Shocking Similarities Between School Lunch & Software Development

The need to add more features on shorter release cycles is ubiquitous. At some point we will reach the threshold of gaining efficiencies and quality will begin to degrade. There is some evidence that we've reached and crossed that threshold already.

In the late 1960's the National School Lunch Program was struggling to keep up with the growing number of children needing assistance. To combat the issue The Child Nutrition Act was passed in 1966, but eventually privatization of school lunches was seen as the only affordable option for continuing the service. By the late 1970's, private companies were supplying schools with fast food to serve in their cafeterias. Source.

These actions decreased the cost of feeding children in need during the school day; however, the quality and nutritional value of the food decreased and system arguably became addicted to low cost and, subsequently, low quality food. So now we have to dig ourselves out of the nutritional hole by improving the food in school lunches, dealing with the backlash from kids, and keeping costs affordable.

Essentially, we need to employ smarter techniques in order to solve the problem and not more efficiency.  For example, some schools now measure how much of each food is consumed by each child, just as restaurants do. My child's school changed the portions to be much smaller (1st graders and 5th graders were getting the same portion sizes) and if children are still hungry they can still come back and get more salad bar for free and discounted main courses. Dollars were saved by thinking creatively vs. just reducing the quality of the product.

Similar Approaches for Software Development

Recently, there has been a force pushing all of us to build software faster. The need to add more features on shorter release cycles is ubiquitous. At some point we will reach the threshold of gaining efficiencies and quality will begin to degrade. There is some evidence that we've reached and crossed that threshold already:

Quality of many major software products has become sub-par. Even products such a Google Chrome, which is highly sought after, is a memory hog. Read 'Microsoft is the New Google' for more details.

Performance is average at best for most products. Not sure how many more years I have to wait for Netflix to get faster than my Tivo!

Security is well, pretty much non-existent - 'The 15 worst data security breaches of the 21st Century'

What Can Make it Better?

John Basso is an experienced technology executive with a unique ability to help businesses win through strategic roles both inside and across multiple organizations. He has been leading technical teams and implementing leading-edge business processes and custom technology solutions for over 20 years.

John's versatile skill-set across all major business functions has made him an integral part of the success for Amadeus Consulting - where he is the CIO. As a dynamic executive, John is inserted into critical phases of the business lifecycle for Amadeus Consulting and works closely with its business partners to ensure their success.

John's demonstrated ability to manage complex custom software development programs across US and international teams has led to senior executive positions, including Chief Strategy Officer, CTO, and VP of Marketing, with several Amadeus Consulting clients and partners. Additionally, he has extensive experience with venture capital funding and was a key contributor to equity investment deals for three different promising startup companies of over $20 million each. Boards: Left Hand Design Corporation, Business Information & Analytics Advisory Board, University of Denver's Daniels College of Business

Awards: "Forty Under 40 Business Leader" by the Denver Business Journal in 2005, Eco Hero by the Boulder County Business Report.

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