Engineers don't build [software development]
T. Maginnis · IEEE Software · 2000
Most of us never approach a construction project with a software development methodology. However, construction projects exhibit much higher success rates than software development projects. The author identifies the "master-builder" approach taken by most software development projects where the developers assume the role of architect, engineer, builder, and inspector. Most large-scale construction projects abandoned the approach nearly 100 years ago. Why do we do it for large-scale software projects? Engineers design systems or buildings, and programmers or builders implement them. That approach yields greater success rates in terms of quality, time, and budget.