The $50 hammer

After reading one of my favorite bloggers Seth Godin’s post this morning titled: I need to build a house, what kind of hammer should I buy,  I was reminded of one of my favorite references in the movie Independence Day by Judd Hirsch. The sarcastic comment that the government pays $50 for a hammer to cover up a budgetary expense for something else. I’ve seen many budgets for software projects do the same manuveur to allow for the use of new exciting “resume building” tools.

One of the keys for a technologists survival in this global economy is to know the latest and greatest tools and techniques (methods, methodology and process). Geeks will look for opportunities to expand on their “worth” in the technology community by applying the latest and greatest technologies to the latest project. This adds risk, cost and delays to the project. Some times the new technology will enhance the business. Some times it does not. Some times it has little or no value to the business objective.

The tool and technique should NEVER be the primary focus on any software project. The primary focus should always be the value the project has for the business. Tools and techniques should be reviewed for costs, risks and the added “learning curve” it has on achieving the business objective.

If the new technologies has minimal impact on the business objective, a decision should be made by the business sponsor of the project. If the project has some wiggle room (cost, low risk, delivery padding), then by all means, pay $50 for the hammer. It will be a means to entice the geeks to work on the project. That would be an added benefit but should never be the first decision for the project. It is the business executive’s final decision after negotiating with the IT contact.