Agile/Scrum Training Classes in Plano, Texas
Learn Agile/Scrum in Plano, Texas and surrounding areas via our hands-on, expert led courses. All of our classes either are offered on an onsite, online or public instructor led basis. Here is a list of our current Agile/Scrum related training offerings in Plano, Texas: Agile/Scrum Training
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9 December, 2024 - 13 December, 2024 - Fast Track to Java 17 and OO Development
9 December, 2024 - 13 December, 2024 - Ruby Programming
2 December, 2024 - 4 December, 2024 - Ruby on Rails
5 December, 2024 - 6 December, 2024 - Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals (AI-900T00)
25 November, 2024 - 25 November, 2024 - See our complete public course listing
Blog Entries publications that: entertain, make you think, offer insight
No industry is as global as software development. Pervasive networking means that software developers can, and do, work from anywhere. This has led many businesses to hiring development subcontractors in other countries, aiming to find good development talent at lower prices, or with fewer hassles on entry into the US.
While this is an ongoing and dynamic equilibrium, there are compelling reasons for doing software development in the United States, or using a hybrid model where some parts of the task are parceled out to foreign contractors and some are handled locally.
Development Methodologies
The primary reason for developing software overseas is cost reduction. The primary argument against overseas software development is slower development cycles. When software still used the "waterfall" industrial process for project management (where everything is budgeted in terms of time at the beginning of the project), offshoring was quite compelling. As more companies emulate Google and Facebook's process of "release early, update often, and refine from user feedback," an increasing premium has been put on software teams that are small enough to be agile (indeed, the development process is called Agile Development), and centralized enough, in terms of time zones, that collaborators can work together. This has made both Google and Facebook leaders in US-based software development, though they both still maintain teams of developers in other countries tasked with specific projects.
Localization For Americans
The United States is still one of the major markets for software development, and projects aimed at American customers needs to meet cultural norms. This applies to any country, not just the U.S. This puts a premium on software developers who aren't just fluent in English, but native speakers, and who understand American culture. While it's possible (and even likely) to make server-side software, and management utilities that can get by with terse, fractured English, anything that's enterprise-facing or consumer-facing requires more work on polish and presentation than is practical using outsourced developers. There is a reason why the leaders in software User Interface development are all US-based companies, and that's because consumer-focused design is still an overwhelming US advantage.
Ongoing Concerns
The primary concern for American software development is talent production. The US secondary education system produces a much smaller percentage of students with a solid math and engineering background, and while US universities lead the world in their computer science and engineering curricula, slightly under half of all of those graduates are from foreign countries, because American students don't take the course loads needed to succeed in them. Software development companies in the United States are deeply concerned about getting enough engineers and programmers out of the US university system. Some, such as Google, are trying to get programmers hooked on logical problem solving at a young age, with the Summer of Code programs. Others, like Microsoft, offer scholarships for computer science degrees.
Overall, the changes in project management methodologies mean that the US is the current leader in software development, and so long as the primary market for software remains English and American-centric, that's going to remain true. That trend is far from guaranteed, and in the world of software, things can change quickly.
I’ve been a technical recruiter for several years, let’s just say a long time. I’ll never forget how my first deal went bad and the lesson I learned from that experience. I was new to recruiting but had been a very good sales person in my previous position. I was about to place my first contractor on an assignment. I thought everything was fine. I nurtured and guided my candidate through the interview process with constant communication throughout. The candidate was very responsive throughout the process. From my initial contact with him, to the phone interview all went well and now he was completing his onsite interview with the hiring manager.
Shortly thereafter, I received the call from the hiring manager that my candidate was the chosen one for the contract position, I was thrilled. All my hard work had paid off. I was going to be a success at this new game! The entire office was thrilled for me, including my co-workers and my bosses. I made a good win-win deal. It was good pay for my candidate and a good margin for my recruiting firm. Everyone was happy.
I left a voicemail message for my candidate so I could deliver the good news. He had agreed to call me immediately after the interview so I could get his assessment of how well it went. Although, I heard from the hiring manager, there was no word from him. While waiting for his call back, I received a call from a Mercedes dealership to verify his employment for a car he was trying to lease. Technically he wasn’t working for us as he had not signed the contract yet…. nor, had he discussed this topic with me. I told the Mercedes office that I would get back to them. Still not having heard back from the candidate, I left him another message and mentioned the call I just received. Eventually he called back. He wanted more money.
I told him that would be impossible as he and I had previously agreed on his hourly rate and it was fine with him. I asked him what had changed since that agreement. He said he made had made much more money in doing the same thing when he lived in California. I reminded him this is a less costly marketplace than where he was living in California. I told him if he signed the deal I would be able to call the car dealership back and confirm that he was employed with us. He agreed to sign the deal.
It’s befuddling when you think about how many ways there are to communicate in 2013. I’d say there are too many new ways to communicate – social media, phone, Skype, instant message, text message, email, it goes on and on. But do any of them outweigh the power of a good old-fashioned face-to-face meeting? Most business executives would argue no. Nothing can replace a face-to-face meeting, at least yet.
That said, face-to-face meetings are without question the most expensive kind, given the travel costs required to make them a reality, and companies around the globe have been trying to make them more financially manageable ever since the recession set in. But recession or no, face-to-face meetings are rarely in the budget cards for small businesses. So how can entrepreneurs around the globe get more out of their virtual meetings while ensuring any physical meeting is worth the cost?
Controversy was recently courted as Southern California Edison (SCE) prepares to cut their own staff while looking to meet their staffing needs with offshore employees skilled in the field of “IT” or Informational Technology. This has been the second major utility company in the United States to take this path towards providing services to its consumers while holding current rates at consistent levels. SCE does not disclose the exact numbers of expected lay-offs, but the LA Times reports that it is in the hundreds. Utility companies tell their consumers that these moves are necessary as a hedge against inflation and to keep their services at rates that their customers can easily afford. Critics claim that the use of foreign workers is the first step to using an entirely foreign workforce and promoting large scale unemployment amongst American citizens. Often this has been seen as a conflict between national and international workers for the same jobs, salaries and careers.
It has been noted that this State of California utility company, much like other corporations that hire foreign workers does so primarily when there is a shortage of national citizens that can perform these jobs well. IT workers that are brought in with H-1B Visa work permits usually are college educated and hold expertise in technical areas and studies that local employees may not be especially trained in. Once again, critics decry the fact that these employees are not hired directly. On shore contracting companies operating in the continental United States are directly hired by the utility companies. These contracted companies then serve as “middle-men” and hire a wide range of foreign workers with H-1B paperwork so that they can move to the United States. The workers then perform a variety of jobs instead of American workers who were either born in the country or have achieved American citizenship on their own.
Needless to say, the amount of visas issued in a given year is a concern for U.S workers in various fields but particularly in Information Technology. As large corporations stack the employment deck with foreign workers who put in the hours for a fraction of the pay-rate for local employees, local IT professionals are finding it more difficult to find work nationally. They encounter rejections, endless interview processes or low –ball offers from companies and recruiting agencies looking to fill positions at a bare minimum cost for coveted skill-sets.
Meanwhile, an H-1B worker is a worker brought in on a temporary basis with a visa allowing them to work freely in the United States. Much like a student or travel visa, it is issued for on a calendar oriented basis. Applicants who successfully renew the visa for an extended period of time can expect to work in the United States for up to ten years. Although U.S companies hiring these employees may pay them less than their local employees, the salaries earned by H-1B Visa workers are almost always higher than these workers would earn in their own country of origin.
Both sides can agree on several issues. When it comes to these H-1B Visa workers, their assignments are generally of a contractual nature and require them to reside in this country for a period of months to years. However it is also an accepted fact that while they are in this country, they are responsible for paying rent, utilities and all other living expenses. As residents of the United States on a permanent basis, they are also liable for taxes on any salary they have earned while living here.
Dr. Norman Matloff, a professor at the University of California, Davis and writer on political matters believes the shortage to be fiction. In his writing for the University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, he claims that “there has been no shortage of qualified American citizens to fill American computer-related jobs, and that the data offered as evidence of American corporations needing H-1B visas to address labor shortages was erroneous. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) agrees with him and describes the situation as a crisis. Likewise, other studies from Duke, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Georgetown University have disputed that in some years, the number of foreign programmers and engineers imported outnumbered the number of jobs created by the industry
Tech Life in Texas
| Company Name | City | Industry | Secondary Industry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Pepper Snapple Group | Plano | Manufacturing | Nonalcoholic Beverages |
| Western Refining, Inc. | El Paso | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Frontier Oil Corporation | Dallas | Manufacturing | Chemicals and Petrochemicals |
| ConocoPhillips | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Dell Inc | Round Rock | Computers and Electronics | Computers, Parts and Repair |
| Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. | Houston | Transportation and Storage | Transportation & Storage Other |
| GameStop Corp. | Grapevine | Retail | Retail Other |
| Fluor Corporation | Irving | Business Services | Management Consulting |
| Kimberly-Clark Corporation | Irving | Manufacturing | Paper and Paper Products |
| Exxon Mobil Corporation | Irving | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Cameron International Corporation | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Energy and Utilities Other |
| Celanese Corporation | Irving | Manufacturing | Chemicals and Petrochemicals |
| HollyFrontier Corporation | Dallas | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Kinder Morgan, Inc. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gas and Electric Utilities |
| Marathon Oil Corporation | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| United Services Automobile Association | San Antonio | Financial Services | Personal Financial Planning and Private Banking |
| J. C. Penney Company, Inc. | Plano | Retail | Department Stores |
| Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. | Dallas | Energy and Utilities | Energy and Utilities Other |
| Atmos Energy Corporation | Dallas | Energy and Utilities | Alternative Energy Sources |
| National Oilwell Varco Inc. | Houston | Manufacturing | Manufacturing Other |
| Tesoro Corporation | San Antonio | Manufacturing | Chemicals and Petrochemicals |
| Halliburton Company | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Energy and Utilities Other |
| Flowserve Corporation | Irving | Manufacturing | Tools, Hardware and Light Machinery |
| Commercial Metals Company | Irving | Manufacturing | Metals Manufacturing |
| EOG Resources, Inc. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Whole Foods Market, Inc. | Austin | Retail | Grocery and Specialty Food Stores |
| Waste Management, Inc. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Waste Management and Recycling |
| CenterPoint Energy, Inc. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gas and Electric Utilities |
| Valero Energy Corporation | San Antonio | Manufacturing | Chemicals and Petrochemicals |
| FMC Technologies, Inc. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Alternative Energy Sources |
| Calpine Corporation | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gas and Electric Utilities |
| Texas Instruments Incorporated | Dallas | Computers and Electronics | Semiconductor and Microchip Manufacturing |
| SYSCO Corporation | Houston | Wholesale and Distribution | Grocery and Food Wholesalers |
| BNSF Railway Company | Fort Worth | Transportation and Storage | Freight Hauling (Rail and Truck) |
| Affiliated Computer Services, Incorporated (ACS), a Xerox Company | Dallas | Software and Internet | E-commerce and Internet Businesses |
| Tenet Healthcare Corporation | Dallas | Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals and Biotech | Hospitals |
| XTO Energy Inc. | Fort Worth | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Group 1 Automotive | Houston | Retail | Automobile Dealers |
| ATandT | Dallas | Telecommunications | Telephone Service Providers and Carriers |
| Anadarko Petroleum Corporation | Spring | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Apache Corporation | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Dean Foods Company | Dallas | Manufacturing | Food and Dairy Product Manufacturing and Packaging |
| American Airlines | Fort Worth | Travel, Recreation and Leisure | Passenger Airlines |
| Baker Hughes Incorporated | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gasoline and Oil Refineries |
| Continental Airlines, Inc. | Houston | Travel, Recreation and Leisure | Passenger Airlines |
| RadioShack Corporation | Fort Worth | Computers and Electronics | Consumer Electronics, Parts and Repair |
| KBR, Inc. | Houston | Government | International Bodies and Organizations |
| Spectra Energy Partners, L.P. | Houston | Energy and Utilities | Gas and Electric Utilities |
| Energy Future Holdings | Dallas | Energy and Utilities | Energy and Utilities Other |
| Southwest Airlines Corporation | Dallas | Transportation and Storage | Air Couriers and Cargo Services |
training details locations, tags and why hsg
The Hartmann Software Group understands these issues and addresses them and others during any training engagement. Although no IT educational institution can guarantee career or application development success, HSG can get you closer to your goals at a far faster rate than self paced learning and, arguably, than the competition. Here are the reasons why we are so successful at teaching:
- Learn from the experts.
- We have provided software development and other IT related training to many major corporations in Texas since 2002.
- Our educators have years of consulting and training experience; moreover, we require each trainer to have cross-discipline expertise i.e. be Java and .NET experts so that you get a broad understanding of how industry wide experts work and think.
- Discover tips and tricks about Agile/Scrum programming
- Get your questions answered by easy to follow, organized Agile/Scrum experts
- Get up to speed with vital Agile/Scrum programming tools
- Save on travel expenses by learning right from your desk or home office. Enroll in an online instructor led class. Nearly all of our classes are offered in this way.
- Prepare to hit the ground running for a new job or a new position
- See the big picture and have the instructor fill in the gaps
- We teach with sophisticated learning tools and provide excellent supporting course material
- Books and course material are provided in advance
- Get a book of your choice from the HSG Store as a gift from us when you register for a class
- Gain a lot of practical skills in a short amount of time
- We teach what we know…software
- We care…
Interesting Reads Take a class with us and receive a book of your choosing for 50% off MSRP.
