The people, process,

technology framework – how

to implement and measure it
in software development to
create an efficient working
environment
At Waydev, we know there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach for

successful software development projects. However, we agree that

there are three key elements to which every engineering manager

keeps coming back when creating and implementing programs.

As the PPT framework’s name suggests, engineering managers must

harmonize the three pillars – people, processes, and technology -to

complement and foster a productive work environment.

This article will explain what people, process, technology is, walk you

through its three elements, and offer you best practices, advice, and

directions to implement the strategy in your projects. Moreover, we

will also provide you guidance on using the Waydev platform to

optimally implement the people, process, and technology strategy.

The importance of people,

processes, and technology in
software engineering

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The People, Process, and Technology (PPT) methodology focuses on

the relationship between its three key elements and how they drive

towards and contribute to organizational change.

The people, process, technology framework is popular because it

considers the direct relationship between people, processes, and

technology. To perform a specific job, people use processes that they

streamline and improve by applying technical expertise to

technology.

By balancing these three pillars, engineering managers monitor,

plan, and coordinate their team’s activities and decide to purchase

and implement new technologies. Understanding this need, Waydev

enables leaders to monitor their team’s performance in real-time,

analyze its evolution and analyze comprehensive benchmarking

reports. This way, engineering managers have the necessary

resources to harmonize people, processes, technology and make the

best of the PPT framework.

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Where do the People fit in the
PPT Strategy?
Many professionals consider the “people” part of the framework the

most important since people are the ones who make things happen,

who leverage technology to optimize processes and complete tasks.

This is why choosing and onboarding the right human resources is a

priority for engineering managers. When starting a new project,

engineering managers need to identify professionals with the right

skill sets, expertise, and attitudes.

Most often, the right people might be busy with other work, so

engineering managers have four options: to wait for them, to hire

new talent, outsource or redirect resources, or reassign them from

one project to another. These are all crucial decisions that need to be

made to implement the people, process, technology framework

successfully. They very much depend on how the business prioritizes

work, deadlines, and expectations. Given that each choice impacts

the project, engineering managers and executives need always to

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know how busy team members are, what they are working on, and

how much business value they deliver. An excellent way of having

constant access to this information is by accessing Waydev’s

Executive Reports.

After creating the project team, the next step is setting every

professional’s roles and responsibilities and ensuring that

stakeholders are on board with the plan. Good leaders understand

that successful deliveries require people (engineers and

stakeholders) to buy in, internalize the mission and objectives.

It is also necessary to ensure that professionals understand their part

in the bigger picture, fostering collaboration among members.

Understand and increase your

People’s performance and direct your
efforts where they are needed to
accomplish your goals

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Your job setting up the people, process, technology methodology

doesn’t end with forming the team. It’s an ongoing effort for

engineering managers. During the software development lifecycle,

you will need to pay attention to the team’s performance, see how

professionals use their time, evaluate KPIs, and identify bottlenecks. A

person-oriented approach will ensure the project advances

smoothly, and resources are optimized.

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Waydev enables you to have a clear view of your team’s output, focusing on

performance metrics, commits stats, and pull requests stats that you may

assess for each individual in real-time and across a given period to identify

trends and patterns.

Moreover, our solution enables you to track and analyze DORA

metrics to know your team’s software delivery velocity and

throughput, gain insights and identify improvement opportunities.

Also, starting March 2022, you can connect your Slack, Microsoft

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Teams, or Google Chat to Waydev and get real-time alerts about

your teams’ performance.

As an engineering manager with a technical background, you may

find it challenging to manage people. However, access to actionable

metrics enables you to assess your team’s performance and

dynamics accurately. Once you set up the basis correctly, you will

understand your team’s weak points and may, thus, develop

targeted training and mentoring programs. Moreover, you may also

make strategic recommendations for each person according to their

skills, expertise, and desired career path.

Train people on how to use new

technologies
When using new technologies, people need to know more than just

their roles in the flow when using new technologies for maximum

efficiency. They need to understand how each step works, DOs and

DON’Ts, and procedures in place in case of failure or risk mitigation.

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Our recommendation is to consider team training an integral part of

each project and return to it whenever you deem it necessary.

The role of Processes in the

PPT framework
The PPT framework defines the process as the series of steps and

actions that come together and that are required to happen to

produce a specific result or goal. Unlike the people component,

which focuses on the “who,” processes respond to the question, “How

will we make things happen?”.

Since they involve iterative actions that ensure (in theory) the same

result, no matter who is responsible, processes are vital for efficiency.

Without them, people’s work cannot be optimized and scaled.

For best results, there are some aspects you should take into account

when designing and deploying processes.

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Identify and list the critical steps in
your processes.
Engineering managers need to identify and list the critical steps of

each process so that everyone knows the actual flow and benefits

from the structure. The objective is to create a frame, a skeleton, on

which they may add information, like additional information and

descriptions, exceptions.

An essential step in the development process is gathering resources

and information from clients and stakeholders to improve the

following stages and the overall result. By approaching things this

way, from an IT Governance perspective, managers ensure that their

IT objectives align with the corporate and business vision, thus

providing value to the organization’s activity.

Measure, measure, measure

To assess a process and improve it, you need to set metrics.

Identifying the proper KPIs might not be so complicated, but

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constantly monitoring them is – unless you benefit from automated

tools that help you.

Work volume and focus modify constantly, so it is imperative to keep

track of them. Waydev’s Project Timeline report showcases how work

trends evolve and uses visualization to spot irregularities and skips.

You can also use it to assess team members individually on metrics

like New Work, Legacy Refactor, Help Others, and Churn.

Moreover, Waydev’s Code Review Workflow supports successful

processes with its features. The solution maps pull request activity

per timeframe, reviews how team members collaborate, and identify

bottlenecks in PR cycles. By knowing what is going on in the code

review process, you may optimize processes.

Offer feedback and real-time input.

A successful people, process, technology approach requires

constant feedback and improvement. The development process is

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complicated by rigid processes that also frustrate team members.

Flexibility is mandatory for success.

This is why the engineering manager’s work doesn’t finish with

measuring. Constant assessment is necessary, as well as feedback

and real-time input from the team. It is only by integrating these that

you may ensure your processes are relevant, efficient and that they

bring value to the business.

How critical is Technology in

PPT?
Technology is the set of solutions people use to implement

processes. Because of the constant innovation and breakthrough

solutions, engineers often prioritize technology. The “shiny new

object” syndrome applies in software development since it is pretty

tempting to make considerable investments in tech and build teams

and processes around it.

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Best practices examples prove that things are different. Technology

is not a solution in itself but an enabler. It starts with identifying the

right team, process development, and description. Finally,

accomplished managers identify technologies that help their teams

use their expertise and skills.

An important aspect when choosing technology is keeping things

simple. A good recommendation is to start with the most crucial

tech, what you need for basic operations, and expand, depending on

your team’s feedback, needs and observations. This approach

ensures that adoption is easily achieved and optimized investments.

Best practices in the people,

process, technology
framework
When it comes to the PPT framework, none of its elements – people,

process, technology – can be treated individually. Harmonizing the

three and ensuring balance is of utmost importance, which means

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that people must understand the processes and technologies to use

them to their advantage.

We’ve compiled a set of DOs and DON’Ts that engineering managers

should consider for PPT best practices.

Do focus on people, as well as on the team’s

dynamic

To make the most of the PPT framework, engineering managers

should pay attention to each individual they attract to the project

and the final mix of expertise and personalities. Creating and

fostering a good team dynamic is crucial for success.

Do ensure stakeholders are on board.

Before adopting the framework and making changes, you need to

ensure stakeholders buy in with your strategy. By validating ideas

with them, you benefit from the best premises for your project.

Do define and detail processes.

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As an integral part of the PPT framework, processes must be carefully

defined and documented. Leaving things uncovered complicates the

development and increases the chances of risks.

Do adapt processes continuously.

Everything evolves, and a project’s needs are no exception. This is

why it is crucial to continuously adapt processes to the team, the

landscape, the objectives.

DON’Ts

Don’t focus only on what you need from team

members

It is important that people know what is expected of them. It is

essential to understand what they can expect from their leader (you)

and the project. Keeping track of your team’s needs and ensuring

they are met will create a more productive environment that

acknowledges and encourages talent and expertise.

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Don’t force technology on the people.

Don’t forget that, in software development, technology is there to

support people in making processes work, not the other way around

-so don’t force technology onto your team. Treat it as a tool, but start

from the team’s needs and skills, analyzing what would help bring

out the best in professionals and simplify their tasks. This approach

enables you to get the most out of tech.

Don’t treat people, processes, and technology

separately

When we talk about people, process, technology, we talk about a mix.

Successful engineering managers focus on each element but look at

how they interact together. ‍

People, Process, Technology +

Data in the DevOps age

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Since the PPT framework has been around since the mid-1960s, a

discussion we often hear is whether it is still viable in the digital age

of DevOps, a period that revolves around transformation. According

to industry professionals, the answer is yes, considering that

adjustments and interpretations are always necessary to keep up

with the ever-changing environments.

While the three elements – people, process, and technology – are

critical components of any project, there is an addition that must be

integrated into the mix – data. Data enables engineering managers

and executives to assess their projects, identify the required steps,

and make constant improvements. Without it, it would be impossible

to define success or failure.

How to implement a
data-driven PPT framework in
your organization

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To balance the three components of your people, process, and

technology strategy, you have to start by assessing all of them.

When it comes to people, you need to identify the ones with top

expertise, as they are the basis of the team. By analyzing

performance indicators, Waydev enables you to see who your best

performers are and what improvements the team needs.

Waydev’s Work Log report lets you see PR, commit, and ticket activity for
each team member.

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Next, you need to understand the resources that are allocated to

your processes. With resource planning reports from Waydev you

can determine the scope of your projects and decide which work has

high priority and can be finalized within a given time. Identifying

bottlenecks and issues in due time is extremely important because it

ensures that your team addresses risk-triggering situations before

they escalate.

Last but not least, it is crucial to look into the technological layer and

ensure that your tools add value to people and processes.

Request for a free demo to see how Waydev can help you make the

most of your people, process, technology strategy.

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About Us

Our mission is to provide engineering leaders with a way of

measuring the performance of their engineering teams. We strive to

help the technology industry move towards a data-driven agile

development methodology and make decisions supported by data.

We are trusted by Fortune 500 companies, such as Blue Cross Blue

Shield, TATA, and Carrier, and we are also loved by startups (#1

Product on Product Hunt).

Waydev is the G2 Market Leader in Winter and Spring 2022

Visit waydev.co to learn more

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