Maguire apparently likes to write what he calls “strategy” books. His 1993 volume, Writing solid code [1], was a largely successful attempt at relating what he has learned about eliminating bugs from products. Now he attacks the bugs in the development process.

I teach software development management using a variety of journal papers and examples from my previous work. I used to require the students to buy Fred Brooks’s classic The mythical man month [2] in order to flesh out in an entertaining way some of the concepts I am trying to get across. Maguire’s book is as good as Brooks’s, and it is more useful for leaders of small teams. Maguire has captured a large number of highly relevant truths in his time as Microsoft’s “fireman” who turns around failing projects. He transmits these truths to the reader in a clear and engaging way. I will be ordering this book for my students, and I urge every teacher of software engineering to read it. It should also be a requirement for keeping a job in the software industry in general.

Maguire’s biggest contribution in this book is his chapter that debunks all the stupid opinions about overtime being a sign of commitment and the red badge of courage of software engineers. He reveals it to be a symptom that something is terribly wrong with the project and shows that more overtime is not the cure.

His best advice is early in the book, when he shows the new team leader how to stay focused on the important things and avoid getting pulled into the trap of immediacy. Read this book in conjunction with Steve Covey’s work [3], and you have a strong blueprint for productivity and personal sanity.

Liberally illustrated with actual examples, well-organized and designed, this book is a milestone in the game of hitting milestones. I only wish I were an alien with more arms: I’d give it three thumbs up.