Fridays With Bob
When I started at Spectrum 25 years ago, a senior editor suggested that I find a “rabbi,” by which he meant someone who could mentor me in how EEs approach problems and evaluate potential solutions. I didn’t find one right away. Then in 2005 we decided to do a special report, focusing on the challenges of enterprise software development. I suggested we invite IEEE Life Senior Member Robert N.…
When Robert N. Charette began his tenure at Spectrum 25 years ago, a senior editor recommended he find a mentor to guide him in approaching engineering challenges. Charette, a self-proclaimed "risk ecologist" and leading authority on risk management and software engineering, was chosen to explore the reasons behind software project failures in a special report.
Charette's article "Why Software Fails" remains widely read in university engineering classes. Over the years, Charette became one of IEEE Spectrum's most prolific authors, collaborating with the reporter on a range of topics, including the growing ubiquity of software in our lives. In 2007, when the reporter became Spectrum's website editor, Charette was the first contributor to start a regular blog, "The Risk Factor," which ran for over 10 years and included 1,750 posts chronicling numerous software debacles.
Charette also wrote insightful articles for Spectrum, such as "The Doctor Will See Your Electronic Health Record Now" and "Automated to Death," which examined the consequences of automation and cyberphysical systems. Charette's main goal has been to make software visible and help people understand complex software systems. He made a career out of questioning assumptions and emphasized the importance of not making assumptions in order to mitigate risks.
As his time at Spectrum drew to a close, Charette focused on nature photography and writing fictional trilogies, including "The STEM Murders."
Written by urgent.news from IEEE Spectrum's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
