The fundamental problem with program maintenance is that fixing a defect has a substantial chance of introducing another.
Fred BrooksRead
Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later
Interpretation
What this quote means
Adding more people to a delayed project will typically result in further delays.
Fred Brooks' quote highlights the counterintuitive idea that increasing the workforce on a late software project can exacerbate the problem rather than resolve it. As new team members are onboarded, they require time to catch up, which can disrupt communication and coordination among existing members, ultimately leading to more delays.
Themes
SoftwareProject ManagementDelaysTeamworkEfficiency
In practice
Example use cases
In a project management meeting discussing a software delay, one might quote this to explain why simply hiring more developers won't solve the issue.
More from Fred Brooks
All quotes βThe programmer, like the poet, works only slightly removed from pure thought-stuff. He builds his castles in the air, from air, creating by exertion of the imagination. Few media of creation are so flexible, so easy to polish and rework, so readily capable of realizing grand conceptual structures.
Fred BrooksRead
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