I think the Black Team's longevity had more to do with the corporate reality of its time. Corporations in the 60s and 70s still valued investment that provided benefits over the long term. So shipping quality was still important.
Corporations today are worried only about the next quarter, or what things will look like maybe twelve to eighteen months down the line. But certainly no further than when the options vest and management exits.
And that's why divisions don't help. Because defeating the process to ship crap today has a better effect on this and next quarter's P&L, versus increased spending testing/refining the project for no real increase in revenue in the short term.
Down the line, when product quality would become known and helping the product sell better than it would otherwise, those responsible for making the decisions will likely be gone.
(They'll definitely have planned on being gone by then.)
it would be in the best interest of any project manager to steer their project away from the Black Team
So shipping quality was still important.
I'm largely in agreement. This line from the start of the article stood out:
Customers do not pay for defective products.
Now, you really don't want to be the manager who has customers refusing to pay due to bugs. If the Black Team can spot any problems well in advance of the deadline, all the better.
However, if customers are happy to pay for stuff that doesn't work (eg, where the people who make buying decisions don't talk to the people who will be made to use the software - quite common is my impression) then sure, stay a hundred miles away from the Black Team.
Corporations today are worried only about the next quarter, or what things will look like maybe twelve to eighteen months down the line. But certainly no further than when the options vest and management exits.
And that's why divisions don't help. Because defeating the process to ship crap today has a better effect on this and next quarter's P&L, versus increased spending testing/refining the project for no real increase in revenue in the short term.
Down the line, when product quality would become known and helping the product sell better than it would otherwise, those responsible for making the decisions will likely be gone. (They'll definitely have planned on being gone by then.)