LAB OF SOFTWARE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT

Nowadays, every company has to embrace new challenges to keep their competitive advantage on the market. Within this scenario, which is continuously evolving and changing, where uncertainties are jeopardising also those very balanced companies, the exponential technology pace forces businesses to adopt new strategies and leaner business models, together with an integration with advanced digital propositions.

This is the context where digitalisation becomes a "must have" in order to face the most challenging business dynamics, and in this context the Digital Manager becomes a key figure for planning and executing new digital strategies. For this reason Digital Managers have to master the art of strategising, the digital best practices and difficult and complex projects.

In order to do this, it is necessary to put your hands on, and live those typical business situations that Digital Managers have to face, adequately manage, and attentively plan with a solid basic problem solving competence.

The objective of this course is, indeed, to enable students to get all those necessary competencies for the most operative phase, meaning by learning how to plan, manage and coordinate project activities, by means of the software project managment best practices.

By practicing the main phases of a software project, at the end of this course the students has to be familiar with the introduced tools, and use them for developing the project work.
In the the course the student will earn the following knowledge and capabilities.

Student will earn:
- Competencies in managing a project according to the project management practices
- Some tool and processes for decision making
- Ways to structure a business process and workflows
- Knowledge in some common methodologies to develop software.

Student will learn:
- how to use the typical project management tools
- how to exploit Cynefin framework and other decision making methodologies
- the basic lexicon to design business processes and workflows
- how to familiarise with hosting and software development platforms

Basic knowledge of planning and business administration, also by means of Introductions to Digital Management (1 and 2) and Introduction to economics (1 and 2) courses.
Basic knowledge of tools like Microsoft Excel and Powerpoint
How to work in team

This course is consisting of 4 main topics. Every topic will be touched theoretically and practically (by means of lab sessions). This program is not unchangeable, but it might be flexible to meet students' needs and based on their received feedback.

1) Project Management:
- Project structure and plan
- Project documentation
- Tools (Gantt, WBS, charter, mapping)
- Project Management
- Critical to success situations and how to manage them

2) Introduction to decision making:
- Cynefin framework
- Complex systems and caos
- Decision Making process
- How to take fast and effective decisions

3) Introduction to business processes and workflows:
- Business Process Design
- Workflow design

4) Introduction to software projects:
- Waterfall, agile and scrum
- Licenses, open source and closed source
- Tools for versions control and team development: Git and GitHub

Applied Software Project Management – J. Greene e A. Stellman – 2005
Lessons slides decks
Available Tools during the practical lessons

Evaluation will consist of an in writing exam, along with a group project work to be briefly presented to the teacher.
In writing test will consist of multiple choices and open questions, which will anyway be relevant to what has been discussed in the classes.

Lessons will be alternating theoretical (1/3) and practical ones (2/3). During the practical lessons the main tools to be used in the project work will be explained.
Students will use some available tools and they are expected to practice with them, as well, in order to build, plan and manage their project work.

English

written and oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development