A Software Engineering Cock-up
- When?
- Wednesday 25 May 2011, 15:00 to 16:00
- Where?
- 39BB02
- Open to:
- Staff, Students
- Speaker:
- Dr Ian Nussey, OBE FREng
This cautionary tale is about an apparently trivial software project which didn't go too well. After posing some questions, it explains what happened, mentions some useful survival tools and techniques that would certainly have made things go better and ends with a couple of stories with enduring relevance. Relevant are 'luck' and quality – corner stones of personal success which are hard to define and even harder to achieve.
After reading engineering at Cambridge, Ian Nussey joined Lucas as graduate apprentice. The company subsequently sponsored him to do a pressure diecasting PhD, which had unexpected and interesting consequences.
Following brief spells teaching A-level maths and statistics and doing research at Aachen Technische Hochschule, in 1963 he became an IBM trainee systems engineer, initially specialising on manufacturing applications. He managed the joint Molins IBM team creating software for the world’s first totally automated Flexible Manufacturing System, Molins System/24. He created and for many years led IBM's elite student programme ( Professor Schneider was one of them) and a software skunk-works which turned good ideas into marketable products. Later in his career he chaired IBM UK's Technical Consultancy Group and became European vice-president of IBM Corporate Academy of Technology. He has also been a non-executive director at several SMEs, member or chair of numerous national advisory boards and a visiting professor at four universities.
Though formally retiring 14 years ago, he still works part-time for IBM, mostly on University matters. He is a member of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Council and the Academy's Ingenia editorial board, a trustee of Young Engineers and Imagineering, an honorary professor at Cardiff, an independent director of the University of Warwick Science Park and a long-standing member of Surrey's Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences Advisory Board. Appointed OBE for services to engineering in 1988, other recognition includes honorary fellowships from the IET and University of Cardiff, Warwick University's Chancellor's Medal and a Glasgow honorary DEng.