June 18, 2009:
Working group of junior technologists.
Within a weak management culture they've been made autonomous, that is, placed in charge of the company's key multi-year initiative to move to a different business. The project is a disaster, for predictable reasons:
Lack of architecture: "Just do it."
Lack of technology coherence: "I found a new gem that looks really cool."
Over-engineering: "These features haven't been requested, but are implied."
Lack of responsibility: "It's the business' fault, not ours."
Arrogance: "The world has changed; you're too old to understand these new methods."