Tools | Software Excellence Alliance

The April 2024 tech talk was presented by David Tuma

Abstract

We’ve all been there: working long hours, late nights and weekends, under immense pressure to finish a release after missed deadlines and project overruns. Fortunately, there is a better way!

This presentation will describe a proven set of tools and techniques for planning and tracking that teams can use to make and keep commitments, increase agility, and delight their customers. Come learn how you can retake control, for yourself, and your team.

About the Presenter

David Tuma is a graduate of MIT, with a passion for exceptional software development. He has contributed to the success of numerous projects in roles ranging from architecture to coding, security assessment to causal analysis, and project management to coaching.

In his support for exceptional practices, he created (and continues to evolve) an open-source toolset called the Process Dashboard, which has been used by tens of thousands of developers worldwide.

David is an active member of the SEA Executive Team and the SEA Data Warehouse Working Group.

Embracing Generative AI: The Future Isn’t Written, It’s Generated!

The February 2024 Tech Talk was presented by Chandika Mendis

Abstract

The printing press birthed the Renaissance. The steam engine sparked the Industrial Age. Now, Generative AI stands poised to be the Gutenberg of our time. This revolutionary tech isn’t just tools – it’s a productivity paradigm shift, impacting the industries and use-cases we least expected to be impacted through Artificial Intelligence: those use-cases we thought epitomized human intelligence and creativity. This paradigm shift opens up amazing new opportunities while also exposing us to new kinds of risks.

This talk attempts to explore the impact of Generative AI on our future and how we can embrace it:

Introduction to generative AI and its impact across industries
Practical applications and real-world examples
Common challenges and approach to adoption
Understand the risks and new threats this technology opens up

Now is our chance to embrace this new technology or be swept away by its tide.

About the Presenter

Chandika Mendis is a senior technology leader who plays the roles of CTO, board advisor, and angel investor for a number of tech startups. Prior to his current roles, he was the EVP and Global Head of Engineering for Virtusa. He lead the innovation teams that created award-winning IP that were a key part of Virtusa’s strategic competitive advantage. Chandika’s technology contributions were instrumental in driving Virtusa’s growth, from 300 when he joined in 2003, to 45,000 when he left in 2023 to pursue his passion helping early-stage startups. The teams under his purview won the Stevie Award for the best IT Team, the Gold Stevie for the most Innovative Technology Company, as well as the Best Product award in multiple categories. Chandika was also responsible for setting up the processes and systems to scale engineering governance activities, as well as mentoring senior technologists at Virtusa. Since leaving Virtusa, Chandika has been involved with startups leveraging innovative technologies including Generative AI, Industrial Metaverse and Cybersecurity.

Quality in Front – From a Mainframe Mentality to Agile

The November 2023 tech talk was presented by Dave McKenna

Abstract

What do you think of when I say “mainframe”? Most think of a giant, lumbering dinosaur. If I ask you what animal you think of when I say “agile,” most folks respond with “cheetah.” My challenge at CA Technologies/Broadcom was to make that dinosaur more like a cheetah – or to at least make it dance a little.

The challenges were many. It’s no secret that most folks with mainframe knowledge and skills are getting close to retirement age. New mainframe developers want to use modern tools to work on the platform. This can be a challenge because historically, the mainframe has used very different tools and programming languages than what is used in non-mainframe development or even what is taught in colleges and universities. Testing and quality practices didn’t include much in the way of automated testing. Almost all testing was done manually. And DevOps was unheard of….

In this session, I will talk about what we have done to address these situations with agile and DevOps practices to substantially increase the quality of our products while increasing value to our customers. Today, we are the “Dancing Dinosaur.”

About the Presenter

David McKenna

Dave McKenna has been with CA Technologies/Broadcom for over 25 years. A U.S. Air Force veteran, Dave is a champion of Agile and Lean thinking within Broadcom and also does anti-bullying programs for youth in the Pittsburgh area, where he performs stunts such as ripping telephone books in half and folding frying pans. He published a book through CA Press titled The Art of Scrum and performed at the CA World™ 16 user conference as the World’s Strongest Mainframer.

Making Digital Engineering Transformation Happen: MBSE is Just the Beginning

The April 2023 tech talk was presented by Will Walker and Jeff Schwalb

Learning Materials, Past Presentation

Abstract

This presentation focuses on the current challenges and vision for the digital engineering (DE) transformation. The previous presentation provided an introduction to DE and its history, as well as the reasons for its development. In this follow-up presentation, we will discuss the current issues facing DE, such as data management, standards, and interoperability. We will also explore the grand vision for DE and potential paths for its future development over the next decade. This presentation aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of DE transformation and its potential to revolutionize the engineering industry.

About the Presenters

Will Walker is currently a Principal Systems Engineer at Raytheon Intelligence and Space (RI&S) who consults with many RI&S programs to help them implement a digital transformation strategy. At Raytheon, he also teaches classes including an “MBSE Bootcamp” class to Raytheon employees all over the globe. These classes focus on a mixture of architectural design principles, Cameo/MagicDraw software buttonology, SysML/UML language details, and Digital Engineering (DE) principles and objectives.

Will has worked on space, Air Force, Army, and Navy programs during his career on both the government side (NAVSEA) and the contractor side (Raytheon and L3Harris). He has worked on underwater unmanned vehicles, underwater mine warfare systems, drone boats, unmanned aerial vehicles, medium range missiles, radar, and other satellite subsystems. He has his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering and graduate degree in systems engineering. Will enjoys both teaching and consulting for DE and MBSE, and is excited to see how the digital transformation continues for years to come.

Will happily lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife and their dog. He goes kiteboarding in his free time and enjoys cooking something new.

Jeff Schwalb is a computer scientist and has been supporting Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) since 1984. He has over 20 years of experience developing and acquiring real-time embedded software systems for avionics, weapons, and range instrumentation systems. He also began collaborating with the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), learning and applying CMM key practices, becoming a certified Personal Software Process℠ (PSP℠) instructor and then a certified Team Software Process℠ (TSP℠) coach. Over the last 25 years, he has taught and consulted with hundreds of scientists and engineers in various forms of personal engineering processes and has coached dozens of projects in the launch and operations of team project planning and tracking.

In 2017, Jeff connected with the SEI on the establishment of the organization we know today as the Software Excellence Alliance (SEA). Today, Jeff continues to work within the SEA to identify and establish pragmatic, value-added solutions to problems currently affecting the software community. He is currently serving as a member of the SEA Executive Team and as a supporting member of SEA working groups in areas such as Membership, Agile Community Networking, and Knowledge Transfer.

NAVAIR Process Dashboard Introduction Workshop

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