Tuesday, April 29, 2014

NY SPIN: May 20: You've Got Your Startup. You've Got the Money. Now What? (Does 'Process' Matter?)

We are ending our season with a panel discussion:

You've Got Your Startup. You've Got the Money. Now What?  (Does 'Process' Matter?) 

PLEASE NOTE MEETING STARTS AT 6:00PM THIS MONTH.

Scheduled panelists are:

Arthur Bierer of Vestorly

Jeffrey G. Bonar of JumpStart Wireless Corporation

Jesse  Erlbaum of The Erlbaum Group

Jim Menard of nRelate

Moderator: Jason M. Hill of Sound Advice Consulting Services 

Location: We thank The Farm SoHo for hosting our final event of the season.

Early Registration ends  May 19th at (or when all seats are filled).




********************************************************************** 
Date: (Tuesday) May 20, 2014
Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM <<== NOTE SPECIAL TIME
Topic: 
You've Got Your Startup. You've Got the Money. Now What?  (Does 'Process' Matter?) 
Presenter(s):  Arthur Bierer, Jeffrey G. Bonar, Jesse  Erlbaum, Jim Menard, Jason M. Hill (Moderator)
Location: The Farm Soho

6:00 - 6:30 Networking
6:30 - 6:40 Announcements
6:40 - 7:50 Panel Discussion
7:50 - 8:00 Door Prizes
8:00 - 8:30 Networking 

**********************************************************************



Click here to RSVP for the May Meeting 


(Need to cancel? Use our event contact form to let us know.)
(Sorry. No refunds for cancellation, but you'll be giving someone else a chance to register if registration is still open).


**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE** 
============================================================== 

 Synopsis:

You've Got Your Startup. You've Got the Money.
Now What?  (Does 'Process' Matter?)
 



New York metro area's startup scene now ranks second only to Silicon Valley by several key measures, according to a seminal article on TechCrunch.com published in February 2014. Startups are ubiquitous now in New York City and vicinity. They form a growing part of the hi-tech job market, thanks to several important developments, including: technology-friendly City government; the arrival of major technology companies setting up shop here; the proximity to investors; loosened regulations on crowdfunding; the growth of incubators; access to inexpensive Wi-Fi; and growing centers for hi-tech education at universities and private training institutes throughout the city. However, very few startups survive beyond a few years, and even fewer can scale up to become truly robust, sustainable businesses.


In scaling up a startup, does management of "process" really matter? Does careful attention to software process or business process make a real difference between the odds of success or failure, and if so, how? And is there a way to reconcile process-centric and opportunistic approaches? Our panelists will discuss their own experiences and others that demonstrate either a "yes," "no," or "it's complicated" answer to these key questions. 



Click here to RSVP for the May Meeting 

Biographies: 

Arthur Bierer is the CTO at Vestorly. Before working with early-stage startups through AB Dev Labs, he was a Software Developer and Product Manager with 18 years of software experience at Microsoft.  He was one of the founding members of the Internet Explorer 1.0 team and a member of the Windows 95 team.  He later worked with the .NET, Xbox, Windows Phone, Digital Advertising, and Dynamics Nav/CRM teams.  Among many interests, he has focused on diverse areas such as lean startup development, security, engineering best practices, APIs, mobile and web development frameworks.  Arthur also studied Computer Science at UC San Diego where here focused on fault-tolerant operating systems.

Jeffrey G. Bonar, Ph. D. is the founder and CEO of JumpStart Wireless, which delivers a mobile ENTERPRISE apps platform, leveraging patented artificial intelligence technology to automatically generate mobile apps based on very high level specifications. The JumpStart platform automatically implements and enforces declarative rules for security and disconnected synchronization for Global 1000 customers.  Jeff brings strong experience building a startup focused on enterprise customers. The need for a managed platform to enforce security and synchronization rules was not initially recognized, but there has been significant growth over the last 12 months. He can speak to what a start-up needs to focus on and the role of process in early product releases.  Delivering business oriented apps and products is different than delivering consumer apps. Being a lean startup focused on enterprise customers is very different than being a lean startup focused on consumers.

Jesse Erlbaum has been developing custom software professionally since 1994 and has worked in online community systems since 1989. He founded The Erlbaum Group in 2002 as a software development firm with the goal of developing high-quality custom web application software by utilizing open-source systems.  Jesse's love affair with the World Wide Web is sparked by two consummate interests — on-line communities and programming. As the state of the art embraced progressively more interactive capabilities, he focused on building the systems and standards from which his clients have increasingly benefited.

Two of his essential Perl modules, HTML::Template and CGI::Application, have been widely adopted by web developers around the world, and now rank among the most popular systems for creating web-based software applications."

Jim Menard has been hacking for over 30 years, and still loves it. He's an Emacs lover, a language maven, and a musician. Currently VP of Engineering at nRelate, his professional experience includes companies of all sizes (Kaplan Test Prep, ideeli, General Assembly, 10gen, Sotheby's) with an emphasis on startups and small companies. Though slowly slipping over to the dark side of tech management, Jim hopes not to become completely useless.
Jim has published technical articles and given talks on Ruby, Rails, Java, databases, and more. He has created and contributed to multiple open source projects. Jim is currently writing a book titled "Emacs Mastery: Attaining Coding Supremacy". 


Jason M. Hill is an accomplished entrepreneur with 15 years of success in the start-up, information technology, and consulting industries. Mr. Hill's clients include firms within these industries: Information Technology, Start-ups, Medical/Healthcare, Consulting, Green Initiatives/Renewable Energies, Banking/Financial Services, Transportation, Bio-Technology, Pharmaceutical, Legal, and Retail.

Jason holds a BA in Political Science from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and an MBA from the Zicklin School of Management at Baruch College (CUNY). He is a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and Certified Scrum Master (CSM), and is an active member of the national and New York chapters of the Project Management Institute and the Scrum Alliance.

Jason lives in Westchester County with his wife and two children. 






Click here to RSVP for the May Meeting 




============================================================== 

To become a NY SPIN general member, please use the "registration" option at the link below:

http://nyspinmembership.eventbrite.com

**Membership gets you special discounts and sometimes notices of extra events.**
 
Once you have joined in this manner, you can manage your membership by going to http://eventbrite.com/ and logging in and updating your information, should it change.

======================================================================
*** Follow us on: LinkedIn and  Twitter (@NY_SPIN) ***
        Get updates via SMS by texting follow NY_SPIN to 40404 
==============================================================

Donate to NY SPIN

   All donations are tax deductible.
==============================================================

Other Events:


 
==============================================================
Project Management Professionals (PMPs) earn 1 PDU credit for attending an NY SPIN event. (PMI considers NY SPIN to be a "Category B Continuing Education Provider".)

==============================================================



PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

 

==============================================================






============================================================== 
Directions


The Farm SoHo
95 Spring Street
2nd Floor
(NOTE: 2nd floor walk-up -- no elevator or handicapped access) 

By Train/Subway


Not all trains run at all times and subway schedules are subject to change. For current schedules, weekly service advisories and maps, contact the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) at (718) 330-1234 or visit the subway section of the MTA Web Site.

The following are nearby train and subway stops:


N, R to Prince Street
6 to Spring Street
B, D ,F, M Broadway-Lafayette Street
A, C, E to Spring Street

============================================================== 





Click here to RSVP for the May Meeting 


==============================================================
**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE**
To manage your registration and/or
membership, follow the instructions
at the top this message.
==============================================================


Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Take the Agile Challenge. Join the NY SPIN Agile Benchmark Study.

Take the Agile Challenge.
Join the NY SPIN Agile Benchmark Study.
 
Study Info Webinar
4/29 and 5/20 @ noon ET


Companies in the Greater New York area are invited to join an exciting research study examining Agile time-to-market, productivity, and defect rates.
Companies in the Greater New York area are invited to join an exciting research study examining Agile time-to-market, productivity, and defect rates.

This study will add New York companies to the QSM Associates growing body of research, and then compare them to more than 12,000 completed projects in the SLIM worldwide database.

This research has previously been conducted for Columbus, Ohio and Munich, Germany technology companies using Agile practices.
 
At the webinar you will be provided with:
  • An overview of the study 
  • Survey information that will be gathered
  • Timeline for the analysis
  • What results you can expect
Simply complete the enrollment form and you will receive a calendar invite.

Attending the webinar does not obligate you or your company to participate. Simply come and decide if you'd like to take advantage of this opportunity for companies in the Greater NY Metro area. 

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Press Release: NY SPIN Announces New York Area Agile Development Practices Study

 NY Metro vs. Industry: Benchmark Project
Contrasts Agile Software Development Practices

NEW YORK, April 16, 2014 -- A study contrasting the Agile development practices of the New York metropolitan development community against world-wide results has been announced by NY SPIN, the New York Software & Systems Process Improvement Network.

The study, to be conducted by software productivity researchers QSM Associates in tandem with NY SPIN, will answer several questions that challenge software development organizations, including:
  • How do Agile projects compare to waterfall or plan-based projects?
  • Are local Agile teams more productive than offshore teams, or those located across multiple locations?
  • If it is true, as suggested by Agile visionary Kent Beck, that Agile projects deliver more functionality with fewer defects, why is this the case?
  • Is the Agile development scene in the New York metro region any different from other metropolitan regions where this research is under way (Munich, Germany and Columbus, Ohio), or the world at large?

The industry study will answer these and other questions about the Agile development practices in the New York metro region, and then compare-and-contrast the results to the 12,000 completed projects -- both Agile and traditional -- contained in the global SLIM database.

“Metro New York is the center of North America’s business world, and one would expect this region to be leading the way in the use of advanced programming techniques,” said Michael C. Mah, managing director of QSM Associates. “Yet, nobody has compared the effectiveness and other artifacts of the metro NY development community against SLIM worldwide projects database, the largest repository of its kind. This will be a landmark study, for not only the NY software development community but for Agile followers worldwide.”

The study will allow participants to objectively benchmark their organization's performance to create an initial productivity baseline; to identify strategic directions and goals; and to focus their improvement efforts with optimal efficiency.

Richard L. Kuper, President and CEO of NY SPIN said, “Michael Mah, our most popular speaker, presented results from prior studies to NY SPIN earlier this season. The idea of having an in-depth analysis of Agile Software Development Practices in the New York metro region was of great interest to those in attendance. You could sense the excitement in the air. Anyone I’ve mentioned this to since then has expressed interest as well.”

QSM Associates has more than 20 years of experience in helping Fortune 500 companies. The company is an affiliate of QSM, Inc., and uses state-of-the-art measurement and estimation tools that are part of the QSM SLIM software lifecycle management suite.

Two free webcasts will be held on Apr. 29 and May 20 (noon EDT) to provide additional information for prospective participants. Information on the study and the webcast can be found at http://qsma.com/nyagile/.

About QSM Associates
QSM Associates, Inc. helps organizations measure, plan, estimate and control software projects. It offers the SLIM (Software Lifecycle Management) Suite of tools, so managers can benchmark and forecast Agile, waterfall, in-house, offshore/multi-shore or ERP/package implementation projects. SLIM contains statistics from a worldwide database of more than 12,000 completed projects, enabling productivity benchmarking on the desktop. Using SLIM to dynamically run "virtual project simulations,” companies can model and forecast waterfall and Agile releases to deliver on time, within budget, with 90% estimation accuracy. QSM Associates offers consulting, training, and coaching to help accelerate this capability. Information is available at www.QSMA.com or email info@qsma.com .

About NY SPIN
NY SPIN Inc. (www.nyspin.org) is a not-for-profit organization. It provides a forum where practitioners and thought leaders across all types of technology-related business areas can meet, exchange ideas, network, and learn about principles and best practices of software and systems process improvement. Participants in NY SPIN events include professionals from a cross-section of business sectors. Event participants are empowered to effect positive process improvement change in their organizations around software and systems development and management.

# # #

QSM and SLIM are registered trademarks of Quantitative Software Management, Inc..

Media contact: Edward Bride, 413-442-7718 (Ed@edbride-pr.com)


==============

  • The Press Release can also be found here.
  • Get a PDF version here.

Friday, April 11, 2014

Webinar: Learn how to maximize the return on your Agile investments

NY SPIN sponsor


BigVisible
BigVisible

   

 

has a webinar coming up that we thought you might be interested in: 

Tuesday April 29th, 2:00PM

Get the most out of your Agile investment, today and tomorrow!

Click here: bigv.is/1j0nEG

No matter where you are along the Agile path this webinar will help you get the most out of your Agile investment. Whether you are avoiding getting started or well down the road, you can maximize the return on your Agile investments by understanding the environmental factors that impact Agile and mapping out an adoption path that lets you incrementally bring value while you continually improve.

Key Learning Objectives:
- Understand that becoming Agile is not a black or white proposition
- Understand how a deep understanding of the Agile Values and - Principles is key to getting value out of Agile practices
- Know the factors that impact the path to Agility and how to address them or adapt your practices.
- Learn how to (and how not to) move to Agility in your environment

This webinar will be hosted by BigVisible coach David Hammerslag. 

Click here: bigv.is/1j0nEG

NY SPIN

Monday, April 7, 2014

Final Chance: NY SPIN April 8: How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data (Eric Owings)

NY SPIN is pleased to welcome Eric Owings from AirWatch. His topic: How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data.

NY SPIN is also pleased that Havas Worldwide will be hosting another one of our events.

Early Registration ends  April 7th at (or when all seats are filled).




********************************************************************** 
Date: (Tuesday) Apr 8, 2014
Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Topic:
How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data
Presenter(s):  Eric Owens
Location: TBD

**********************************************************************



Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 


(Need to cancel? Use our event contact form to let us know.)
(Sorry. No refunds for cancellation, but you'll be giving someone else a chance to register if registration is still open).


**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE** 
============================================================== 

 Synopsis:

How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data 

Mobile technologies are changing the way companies do business. The push towards mobility is especially prominent among organizations that are using mobile technologies to reshape business processes, increase mobile worker productivity, and deliver value to their customers. Increasing investments in mobility are forcing IT leaders to address several challenges, from supporting a large number of smartphones and tablets across multiple mobile platforms, to developing business applications, and an evolving set of complex security concerns.

Join Eric Owings, mobile solution consultant at AirWatch, who will share how mobile is changing dramatically, discuss industry trends, and provide best practices and strategies organizations should consider when managing their mobile fleet.





Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 


  Biography: Eric Owings

Eric Owings is a mobile solution consultant at AirWatch, a VMware company and the world’s leading Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) provider. Owings provides clients with a consultative approach to implementing their enterprise mobility deployment, supplying them with the right strategies and tools to meet their mobile management needs.

Prior to joining AirWatch, Eric worked as a consultant at Neusoft Technologies. Before Neusoft, he worked as a sales consultant serving the Midwest region for RouteMatch Software, where he produced marketing materials, conducted software demos and webinars, and directed research projects.

Eric Owings earned his bachelor’s degree in business management from North Georgia College & State University.





Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 



============================================================== 

To become a NY SPIN general member, please use the "registration" option at the link below:

http://nyspinmembership.eventbrite.com

**Membership gets you special discounts and sometimes notices of extra events.**
 
Once you have joined in this manner, you can manage your membership by going to http://eventbrite.com/ and logging in and updating your information, should it change.

======================================================================
*** Follow us on: LinkedIn and  Twitter (@NY_SPIN) ***
        Get updates via SMS by texting follow NY_SPIN to 40404 
==============================================================

Donate to NY SPIN

   All donations are tax deductible.
==============================================================

Other Events:


 
==============================================================
Project Management Professionals (PMPs) earn 1 PDU credit for attending an NY SPIN event. (PMI considers NY SPIN to be a "Category B Continuing Education Provider".)

==============================================================



PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

 

==============================================================






============================================================== 
Directions

Havas Worldwide New York
200 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10013


By Train/Subway


Not all trains run at all times and subway schedules are subject to change. For current schedules, weekly service advisories and maps, contact the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) at (718) 330-1234 or visit the subway section of the MTA Web Site.

The following are nearby train and subway stops:


1,2 to Canal Street
A,C,E to Canal Street
============================================================== 








Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 



==============================================================
**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE**
To manage your registration and/or
membership, follow the instructions
at the top this message.
==============================================================


Friday, April 4, 2014

NY SPIN April 8: How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data (Eric Owings)

NY SPIN is pleased to welcome Eric Owings from AirWatch. His topic: How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data.

NY SPIN is also pleased that Havas Worldwide will be hosting another one of our events.

Early Registration ends  April 7th at (or when all seats are filled).




********************************************************************** 
Date: (Tuesday) Apr 8, 2014
Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Topic:
How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data
Presenter(s):  Eric Owens
Location: TBD

**********************************************************************



Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 


(Need to cancel? Use our event contact form to let us know.)
(Sorry. No refunds for cancellation, but you'll be giving someone else a chance to register if registration is still open).


**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE** 
============================================================== 

 Synopsis:

How Organizations Leverage Mobile to Transform Business Operations and Protect Sensitive Data 

Mobile technologies are changing the way companies do business. The push towards mobility is especially prominent among organizations that are using mobile technologies to reshape business processes, increase mobile worker productivity, and deliver value to their customers. Increasing investments in mobility are forcing IT leaders to address several challenges, from supporting a large number of smartphones and tablets across multiple mobile platforms, to developing business applications, and an evolving set of complex security concerns.

Join Eric Owings, mobile solution consultant at AirWatch, who will share how mobile is changing dramatically, discuss industry trends, and provide best practices and strategies organizations should consider when managing their mobile fleet.





Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 


  Biography: Eric Owings

Eric Owings is a mobile solution consultant at AirWatch, a VMware company and the world’s leading Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) provider. Owings provides clients with a consultative approach to implementing their enterprise mobility deployment, supplying them with the right strategies and tools to meet their mobile management needs.

Prior to joining AirWatch, Eric worked as a consultant at Neusoft Technologies. Before Neusoft, he worked as a sales consultant serving the Midwest region for RouteMatch Software, where he produced marketing materials, conducted software demos and webinars, and directed research projects.

Eric Owings earned his bachelor’s degree in business management from North Georgia College & State University.





Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 



============================================================== 

To become a NY SPIN general member, please use the "registration" option at the link below:

http://nyspinmembership.eventbrite.com

**Membership gets you special discounts and sometimes notices of extra events.**
 
Once you have joined in this manner, you can manage your membership by going to http://eventbrite.com/ and logging in and updating your information, should it change.

======================================================================
*** Follow us on: LinkedIn and  Twitter (@NY_SPIN) ***
        Get updates via SMS by texting follow NY_SPIN to 40404 
==============================================================

Donate to NY SPIN

   All donations are tax deductible.
==============================================================

Other Events:


 
==============================================================
Project Management Professionals (PMPs) earn 1 PDU credit for attending an NY SPIN event. (PMI considers NY SPIN to be a "Category B Continuing Education Provider".)

==============================================================



PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

 

==============================================================






============================================================== 
Directions

Havas Worldwide New York
200 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10013


By Train/Subway


Not all trains run at all times and subway schedules are subject to change. For current schedules, weekly service advisories and maps, contact the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) at (718) 330-1234 or visit the subway section of the MTA Web Site.

The following are nearby train and subway stops:


1,2 to Canal Street
A,C,E to Canal Street
============================================================== 








Click here to RSVP for the April Meeting 



==============================================================
**PLEASE ONLY REGISTER ONCE**
To manage your registration and/or
membership, follow the instructions
at the top this message.
==============================================================