Computer Vision News - December 2019

Challenge-Driven Project Management 48 Task-driven project management is the standard method used to manage software programming projects. The customer provides specifications and requirements for the software component, and the project manager derives a well-defined set of tasks designed to meet the specifications. These tasks, and the inter-relations between them, form the basis for management of the project This approach works best when the there is a clear path leading from the customer specifications to the finished product, in other words, when the uncertainties are minimal, and the project mainly involves completing each of the well-defined tasks. On the other hand, when there are inherent challenges in the project, and the solution to these challenges are non-trivial , then the task-based approach breaks down. In such cases it is meaningless to try and derive specific tasks, since the path forward is not clear. Here, challenge-driven project management, which is used by RSIP Vision in many of our clients’ projects, is much more effective. Challenge-driven project management isall about identifyingthemainhurdles, or challenges, in the development path, and finding solutions to these challenges. Once the challenges are well understood, and the outlines of a solution for each challenge exists, then the project becomes a standard development project, and the task- driven management approach can be applied. Examples of challenges may include finding an algorithm to achieve the most consistent and accurate results or finding a modification to an existing algorithm, such that it runs in an allotted time on a given hardware platform. Challenge-driven project management usually includes a proof of concept (PoC) stage , where a solution to the challenge is devised, and preliminary tests are performed to verify that the solution is valid. In some cases, different solutions may be devised and tested in parallel by different Task-driven vs challenge- driven project management By Nissim Avitan