Brooks' Law
Summary
Section titled “Summary”Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later, due to increased communication paths n(n–1)/2.
Origin
Section titled “Origin”Introduced by Fred Brooks in The Mythical Man-Month (1975).
Still Applicable?
Section titled “Still Applicable?”Yes, especially in projects with high coordination overhead.
Context Notes:
Section titled “Context Notes:”Brooks’s Law highlights the nonlinear cost of communication and onboarding. As more people are added to a late-stage project, the coordination overhead increases, which often slows progress even further. This is a critical reminder to plan resourcing early and to avoid knee-jerk headcount increases late in a timeline.