Software projects succeed or fail based on the quality of the teams behind them. Expert developers can be hard to find. So how do you get junior developers to level up? It’s not enough to teach how to use a framework or tech stack. Good developers can follow a pattern.

Software engineering is one of the most challenging endeavors we can engage in today. Successful software projects must address the vast scope of today’s applications while paying meticulous attention to the small details that can make the difference between a fast, efficient system and a slow, cumbersome burden.

Software development and usage of software-driven products are rapidly evolving subject areas. Healthy competition means crafting applications becomes quicker and cheaper over time.

Maybe it’s the spring air and the budding trees. Maybe it’s the longer daylight hours.

Want to get the most out of your dev management process?  This article covers some of the best practices and methodologies SitePen uses to accomplish enterprise-level development goals.    We’ll start with some basics on Agile methodology, then we’ll provide practical info about how our experience has culminated in a lean development process that turns ideas into milestones, and ultimately into product outcomes. We focus on instilling best practices throughout the software development lifecycle in all areas of the project to ensure that we not only leave behind a healthy codebase but also the healthy processes and teams to maintain and extend it for years to come.

This is part 1 of the Disciplined Engineering series.  It is for teams that want to establish a culture of engineering excellence for their organization. For teams that already have an established process, we recommend reading Part 2: Creating Code Confidence.