Whether you're a low-level developer or a CIO/CTO, here is a fantastic article from CIO Insight of a behind-the-scenes view into JetBlue's Valentine's Day nightmare and the weeks thereafter. 

Some highlights I've extracted from the article that I found interesting:

· A technology team went over to JFK, loaded up all most of the bags in the lost luggage area to an off-site location and stood up an application using a SQL Server database and a handheld scanner to identify the bag so that the owners could be notified on the location of their luggage.

· Another technology team created an application in 24 hours to serve as a centralized database that tracks contact information and location for JetBlue's off-duty crews- it is still being used until some higher priorities are met.

There are many lessons to be learned from their experiences.  Some that I see are:

· Have your Service Level Agreements (SLAs) mandate emergency situations

· Integration, System and Load testing are critical in all applications.  Not just testing your own applications, but from 3rd parties as well.  Ask them how they performed their testing as well as for their test metrics.  Don't be afraid to get detailed.  It's your business/reputation on the line.  Or better yet, have them ship their test before the product is purchased.

· Have a Risk Management plan in place

· It's important to understand the users of the system.  Anyone involved in development should be required to spend time with the end users to understand how the system is used