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Category Archives: Articles
Who Decides What Done Means for a Program?
2012 Johanna Rothman When I start working with new-to-agile teams, one of the first things we do is to discuss what done means. Chances are good they have not discussed what done means before. The developers dont agree with each … Continue reading
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Tagged Agile, collaboration, Communication, program management, project management, Risk
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Decisions, Decisions, Decisions: Should you Commit, Kill, or Transform?
2012 Johanna Rothman If youre working on more than one project at a time, or if your managers are asking you to do so, its time to make some decisions. You shouldnt start every project. You shouldnt even finish every … Continue reading
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Tagged decision, management, multitasking, Organization, project portfolio
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Always Ask the Zeroth Question About Your Projects
2012 Johanna Rothman Sometimes, you wonder why you are doing this project. You spend all this time on it, you’re sure there isn’t much value from the project, and still, the project is on the top of your manager’s list. … Continue reading
Why Not Ask Why?
2011 Don Gray It all started with a tweet I posted: “Why” questions trigger feelings bypassing data input and thinking. #dontdothat As this got retweeted, interesting questions started coming my way: What about the Five Whys? Do you have data? … Continue reading
Stop That Mole Now
2010 Steven M. Smith Do you have a mole undermining the work of your team? Someone who constantly complains privately to any teammate who will listen but refuses to bring that same complaint publicly to the team? Someone whose actions … Continue reading
Self-Facilitation Skills for Teams
(c) 2004-2010 Esther Derby Self-organizing teams don’t just organize the technical work. They make technical (and non-technical) decisions. Not every situation requires facilitation, but when a team faces an important decision, applying facilitation skills to the problem saves time and … Continue reading
Skills for Software Smoke Jumpers
©2007 Don Gray Do you know about smokejumpers? They’re brave, self-sufficient firefighters who parachute into remote areas wearing eighty pounds of gear and ready to fight a forest fire. If the jump goes well, they land safely. After extinguishing the … Continue reading
When Your Projects Are a Program
I was supposed to start coaching with a project manager, Trish. She postponed our weekly coaching call–for the third time. I said, “Trish, are you postponing again because you have too much work to do?†“Yes!†“Then I suggest we … Continue reading
Framing Your Thoughts for Management
©2009 Steven M. Smith, www.stevenMsmith.com You have what you believe is an important thought to share with management. You’re concerned though that management may dislike what they hear. How do you assess how safe it is to share your thought … Continue reading
Coaching Whiners
Ban whining. It’s destructive communication inside organizations. Read this story about how a manager coached an employee to transform a whine into a complaint with recommendation. Continue reading
Temperature Reading
©2009 Steven M. Smith, www.stevenMsmith.com Virginia Satir developed this method for discovering a group’s temperature — what we in technology often call the system’s state. A facilitator leads the discovery. He or she keeps the group focused on each agenda … Continue reading
The Virtual Cyber Cudgel
by Gerald M. Weinberg In 1977, Tom Gilb and I published a book called Humanized Input: Techniques for Reliable Keyed Input. We hoped to improve the pitiful state of input design for computer systems, and ten years later, we imagined … Continue reading
Make Your Mission Possible
Copyright 2008 Johanna Rothman, originally published in Better Software Janice strode down the hall and made a sharp right at a cubicle decorated with dragons. “Hey, Steve, got a minute? I need your help with a problem.” “Janice, the last … Continue reading
The Blame Game
©2007, 2009 Don Gray and Jerry Weinberg Engelbert watched Pam nervously chew on her knuckle as she stood in the door of his office, answering his call. “Come in and close the door.” He motioned her to a seat, then … Continue reading
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Tagged career, collaboration, Dealing effectively with conflict, Individual, leadership, management, Organization, Systems Thinking
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Drawing Out the Facts: The Art of the Discovery Interview
(c)2007 Steven M. Smith “What?” raced through Janet’s head as she read the email. “Now that’s a surprise.” The message was from Jack Johnson, vice president of development. It said she would receive a meeting request from Rajan Alak, an … Continue reading
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Tagged Communication, Feedback, management, Organization, Problem Solving, team
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No Exit
Always have an exit strategy. ©2005 – 2009 Don Gray, Gerald M. Weinberg “The thought that disaster is impossible often leads to an unthinkable disaster.” – The Titanic Effect, The Secrets of Consulting, pg 95 Engelbert, the Software Engineering VP, … Continue reading
Is Collaboration the Right Way to Work?
©2008-2009, Esther Derby As a manager, your job is to organize people and work for success. That includes work design–figuring out whether you have a group or a team, and creating an environment where people can do their best work. … Continue reading
Catch Them Doing It Right
(c)2008 Steven M. Smith A smile formed on Eleanor’s face as she saw me approach her doorway. She and I were meeting to discuss her views on recognizing and rewarding employees. She had been my manager for three years when … Continue reading
Transitioning to Agile in the Middle of a Project
This article was previously published on stickyminds.com “My company has decided to transition to agile after the team and I started this project,†Gina complained. “I know what agile is, but I still don’t understand how I’m supposed to transition … Continue reading
The Technology of Cooperation
2009 Gerald M. Weinberg, www.geraldmweinberg.com IT professionals must be good team players, but what does that mean? For one thing, it means they must know how to come into a situation and quickly cooperate and gain cooperation, but cooperation takes … Continue reading
Becoming a Better Estimator
(c)2007, Dave W. Smith As software developers, and managers of software developers, we have a reputation for making pretty lousy estimates. Part of that rap is unfair; many times the requirements that we’re asked to provide estimates for are vague, … Continue reading
Approaching a Conflict in Style
©2006-2007 Esther Derby This column originally appeared on Stickyminds.com. Conflict is inevitable at work. Sooner or later, you will disagree about what to test, when to test or how long to test software. How you.and the person you disagree with.approach … Continue reading
Building a Requirements Foundation Through Customer Interviews
© 2004 Esther Derby “Our customer doesn’t know what he wants,” complained Sandy. “I try to get him to talk about the product and tell me what he wants, but it’s like pulling teeth.” Whether you are building a brand … Continue reading
An Appreciative Retrospective
©2007, Diana Larsen, FutureWorks Consulting “Our retrospectives have become so repetitive,” Fran told me over lunch one day. “We seem to cover the same ground no matter what problem-solving approach I try.” “Have you tried AI yet?” I inquired. He … Continue reading
Communicating Up
© 2004 Esther Derby This column originally appeared on Stickyminds.com Imagine this scene – you’ve just gotten back from lunch and you’re checking your email. The first email you open is from the VP: Effective immediately, starting with the release … Continue reading
Communicate Early and Often
©2002 Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com Have you ever had an experience where you gave your all for your customers and still they were unhappy? One possible reason for their reaction is that you implemented a major change without preparing them for … Continue reading
Collaborating With Other Consultants
©2004, Johanna Rothman This article was originally published in Diamond Harvard Business Review, May 2003. – I’m so busy, I barely have time to think. I don’t have enough money to hire on someone full time, but I’d like to … Continue reading
Climbing Out of Technical Debt
© 2002 Johanna Rothman, www.jrothman.com Have you ever had a conversation like this one? Vice President: In the last release, you were able to bring the release date by over a month by cutting the testing. Do that again, ok? … Continue reading
Client 101
© 2001 Sherry Heinze I work as a test analyst for a consulting company. Every 6 to 12 months, I start on a new project for a new client. I love the variety and the opportunity to learn about a … Continue reading
Choosing Facilitation
© 2003 Johanna Rothman, www.jrothman.com Meetings are a fact of our lives. Most of the time we don’t need a facilitator to help move our meeting along; we can manage to accomplish the goals of the meeting without a formal … Continue reading
Chinese Contracts
© 2003 Jim Bullock Several cultures contain a fable about a horse, a Farmer, and a wolf. After a time both plagued by the wolf the Farmer and horse agree to work together to defeat their common foe. The horse’s … Continue reading
Charting a Course for Requirements
© 2002 Becky Winant This article originally was originally published on www.StickyMinds.com Projects are like voyages; they both start with a launch. Ever wonder what happens before we get into the boat and it pushes off from shore? I might … Continue reading
Change That Fits
© 2003 Esther Derby, www.estherderby.com Cedric moved through his office packing up his personal belongings. His boss, Sheila, stood in the doorway, looking uncomfortable. As he started the last box, Cedric sat down in his chair. “How did it come … Continue reading
Change is a Disease
© 2000 James Bach, www.satisfice.com “That idea won’t work here, because we’re different.” is a refrain familiar to the ears of consultants everywhere. Some people respond to this defense by using evidence and argument to persuade their clients that they … Continue reading
The Black Hole
© 2003 Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com A black hole is a place in the cosmos where things get swallowed up, never again to emerge. Although I love to travel, it’s not the sort of destination I’m eager to visit. This is … Continue reading
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Bi-Quinary Search
© Gerald M. Weinberg, 2004 www.geraldmweinberg.com “1,073,741,823 lines of correct code, but one unknown bug is going to send us into that Sun.” “Do not panic.” Peri said, using Calming Voice. “We have adequate time to find it.” “Peri is … Continue reading
Beyond Blaming
© 1996 Jean McLendon and Gerald M. Weinberg, www.satir.org and www.geraldmweinberg.com “England, though at present enjoying a very high state of prosperity, still shows some symptoms of a decaying nation. Propose to an Englishman any principle, or any instrument, however … Continue reading
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Tagged Communication, Dealing effectively with conflict, Feedback, Organization
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Beyond Belief
(c) 2001 Esther Derby, www.estherderby.com This article originally appeared in STQE, March/April 2001. Let me tell you a little story, a true story, about how our beliefs influence what we see in the world and affect our ability to solve … Continue reading
Beware of the Quick Fix
© 2003 Gerald M. Weinberg, www.geraldmweinberg.com P.T. BARNUM said there’s a sucker born every minute, but Barnum was a conservative estimator — or else he didn’t know any IT managers. For more than 45 years now, I’ve watched an endless … Continue reading
At What Cost?
© 2002 Esther Derby, www.estherderby.com This column originally appeared in STQE magazine, July/August 2001 Not long ago, I reread a discussion about Internet Time on Jerry Weinberg’s SHAPE Forum (www.geraldmweinberg.com), and it got me wondering: Now that many dot-coms have … Continue reading
Are We Solving the Real Problems
© 2001 Nynke Fokma, www.moebius.nl The meeting had been underway for about half an hour. Our departmental and quality assurance managers were debating what specifications should we measure against and what database would we need to keep the data in. … Continue reading
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The Appreciation Gap
©2004 Esther Derby In a recent workshop, I described an exercise for expressing appreciation. “That won’t go over here,” stated Patty, one of the managers in the workshop. “These are engineers; they don’t want that mushy stuff. Besides, they know … Continue reading
Always Be Second
© 2002 Gerald M. Weinberg, www.geraldmweinberg.com These days, with all the talk about “internet time,” professional workers are always trying to be the first with new ideas. But is that really the only path to success? Is it, indeed, a … Continue reading
Communication Disconnects
©2007 Don Gray “Why doesn’t my manager listen when I explain the details?” “Why doesn’t the developer just give me what I ask for?” If you’ve ever heard these complaints-or made them-you’re not alone. Questions like these are a symptom … Continue reading
Communication Gaps
©2003 Don Gray, www.donaldegray.com I just got off the phone with Joel. We worked a project 12 years ago where he was the client’s technical rep, and I supplied some specialty software to his company. As we renewed acquaintances, he … Continue reading
Confessions of a Confused User
© 2000 Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com I was doing something dumb in using one of my software packages. Modesty prevents me from boring you with the details. Suffice it to say that although it didn’t keep me doing my work, it … Continue reading Continue reading
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Consulting Lessons From My Shiatsu Therapist
© 2000 Becky Winant Shiatsu is a type of bodywork that involves stretching and applying pressure at points to release or contain energy. Before he practiced Shiatsu, Ron had a career as an audio engineer — he understands technology and … Continue reading
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Convincing Management That Context Switching Is a Bad Idea
© 2005 Johanna Rothman (This article previously published in Better Software.) The last few times I’ve taught project management, I’ve explained that multi-project context switching wastes time. The project managers agree with me. But then they ask the question, “How … Continue reading
The Dismal Theorems of Contract Negotiation
©1999 Gerald M. Weinberg My friend Brad, a Los Angeles cop, mentioned that he regularly sold traffic tickets. “But it’s not what you think,” Brad smiled. “I work at night and go to school during the day. If I have … Continue reading
Creativity in Accounts Receivable
©2003 Gerald M. Weinberg, www.geraldmweinberg.com The introduction of the new $20 bill has me thinking about the Bureau of Printing and Engraving today. They’re one client I ever had who couldnt use the slow-payment excuse that they’re short of cash, … Continue reading
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Tagged consulting, Dealing effectively with conflict, Problem Solving
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Danger: Couple at Work
I swore I wouldn’t write about consulting done by married couples. It’s a trite discussion, as far as I’m concerned. But then I read Dilbert on December 12, 1999. The Pointy-Haired Boss hired two new engineers — a couple. The … Continue reading
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Decide As a Team
©2007 Steven M Smith Do some members of your team make agreements during meetings but fail to support them afterwards?If this behavior is happening, I suspect your team is using an obscure process to make decisions. Identifying Obscure Process An … Continue reading
Decisions, Decisions
© 2000 Sue Peterson, www.cowgirlcoder.com My husband bought his father’s business last month. It was not an easy decision. Like most modern managers, I’ve been taught that the best decisions are the product of logical, deductive thinking. But we didn’t … Continue reading
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Delivering Effective Feedback
©2003, Esther Derby, www.estherderby.com Josh was dumbfounded when his boss, Brad, fired him. As far as he knew, his work was just fine. But Brad believed hed given Josh ample warning that his work and work habits werent up to … Continue reading
Designing Useful Metrics: Using Observation, Modeling, and Measurement to Make Decisions
©2000 Esther Derby www.estherderby.com Originally published in STQE magazine, May/June 2000 As a manager, you want to increase effectiveness and improve the quality of software. Using measurement as a tool for accomplishing this, however, may be something you’re skeptical about. … Continue reading
A Different Kind of Conference
© 2003 Sherry Heinze Many of us at some point in our careers attend conferences or workshops. Sometimes we are sent by the companies we work for. Sometimes, as independent consultants or contractors, we send ourselves on before tax dollars … Continue reading Continue reading
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A Different Kind of Family: Reconstruction Lessons for the Participants and the Guide
© 2000 Eileen Strider, www.striderandcline.com I first experienced a family reconstruction in the 1989 Congruent Leadership Change Workshop. I was stunned by its power. It was as if a special key had been oh-so-gently inserted into this man’s lock box … Continue reading
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Disposable Programs
©2005 Gerald M. Weinberg We hear a lot these days about “reusable programs,” but we seldom hear about programs that shouldn’t be reused. Most programmers know what it’s like to be forced to reuse code that was supposed to be … Continue reading
Don’t Tell Doreen
©2005 Steven M Smith Jarrett, Doreen and I were on the verge of a closing a big sale. We had crafted the Statement of Work (SOW) for two weeks and had finally reached the point where it satisfied both the … Continue reading
Don’t Just Do Something, Stand There!
©2003 Don Gray, www.donaldegray.com I remember when I first started solving problems for a living. I would leap down the stairs three at a time, race to the computer room, and stare at the line printer (yes, it was that … Continue reading
Don’t Let The Bedbugs Bite
©2006 Fiona Charles Reprinted with permission from Software Quality Engineering and Fiona Charles. “Don’t Let the Bedbugs Bite,†written for StickyMinds.com, is available in its entirety at stickyminds.com. My partner and I recently stayed at a wonderful little coastal hotel … Continue reading
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How to Improve Meetings When You’re Not in Charge
©2004, Esther Derby This column originally appeared on Stickyminds.com Are you tired of attending endless meetings where the conversation goes in circles and nothing gets done? Even if you can’t stand up and take control, you can nudge the meeting … Continue reading
Driving from the Back Seat
© 2001 Sharon Marsh Roberts, www.roberts-1.com This article is for anyone who would be a leader…short of the title. So, if you’re a project manager who’s truly and fully in control of every aspect of your project, you can exit … Continue reading Continue reading
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Emerging
© 2001 David Irvine, www.davidirvine.com I recently had a conversation with one of my clients, a funeral director, who founded and owns a family business here in Canada. “It’s a strange thing,” he said to me. “Whether prostitutes or CEO’s, … Continue reading
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Entomology
© 2003 Laurent Bossavit, www.bossavit.com Some words set alarm bells ringing in our heads whenever we hear them, because in the past we’ve repeatedly found them at the core of some problem or troubled situation. One of my alarm bell … Continue reading
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Estimates: Precision vs. Accuracy
©2003 Johanna Rothman www.jrothman.com Jim, a new project manager, struggled to define the projects parameters: schedule estimate, people estimate, requirements outline, and necessary capital equipment. Jim proudly walked into his managers office, and proceeded to walk through his project plan … Continue reading
The Exception is the Rule
©2005 Gerald M. Weinberg The other day, I was trying to help a client (let me call them “StartupCompany”) mired in conflicts, exceptions, errors, anomalies, lapses, modifications and other deviations from the norm. These annoying exceptions were playing tricks with … Continue reading
An Exercise in Ambiguity
© 2000 Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com Do you ever mystify your customers with vague or ambiguous information? Do you ever provide explanations that seem to leave them befuddled? I experienced the feeling of ambiguity-induced befuddlement recently in using one of those … Continue reading Continue reading
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Extreme Testing
© 2000 Todd Berbert Kent Beck is the author of Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change, and his book is causing programmers and managers to rethink the way programming is done. After listening to a group of developers here at Intel … Continue reading
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Facing Up to the Truth
©2002 Esther Derby www.estherderby.com This column originally appeared in STQE magazine November/December 2001 “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” William Shakespeares Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, Act II, Scene 2 The other day I was … Continue reading
A Guide to Fine Whines
© 2001 Mark Manduke In teaching software process improvement and discipline, I sometimes encounter a phenomenon I describe as “The Tsunami of Whining.” (Tsunami is a Japanese word for “Tidal Wave.”) Some students complain about certain issues and often do … Continue reading
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Five Frequent Feedback Flaws
© Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com If organizations really want customer feedback, why do they make it so difficult for customers to provide that feedback? Here are some examples of common flaws and how to avoid them: 1. Requesting feedback about the … Continue reading Continue reading
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Focus Your Project
©2003 Johanna Rothman www.jrothman.com Do you ever wonder what you’re really supposed to focus on for your project? Companies create a variety of products, and different releases of those products, for many reasons. Some product releases can tolerate glaring defects; … Continue reading
Getting To Know You: Using A Roundtable To Start An Event
©2005 – 2006 Adrian Segar
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Getting Ahead
©2005 Johanna Rothman. This article was previously published in Computerworld, April, 2005. I was talking to a relatively young developer the other day. I asked him about his career plans. “Oh, I don’t do career planning myself. I wait until … Continue reading
Going the Distance: Five Tactics to Compensate for Distance on Distributed Teams
2006 Esther Derby When people communicate face-to-face, they not only hear words and inflections, but also see facial expressions. This helps each communicator understand what the other is saying and gives clues to assess when people are mad, sad, or … Continue reading
Getting Some Good Out Of Bad Interviewing
©2007 Jerry Weinberg Contract professionals, on the average, change jobs more often than employees, so they are involved in lots of interviews. One of our SHAPE forum threads was started by Pat Ferdinandi, an independent consultant, who complained: “I am … Continue reading
Hang Loose
© 2005 Stuart Scott I believe a man should change his underwear at least three times a year. If you wear briefs, switch to boxers. If you wear white, try colors. Mix it up. Take a walk on the wild … Continue reading
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Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
©2001 Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com It was a gray and gloomy day when we pulled into the ski area parking lot, and decided to sit a spell to see if the sun would shine. A carload of skiers pulled in next … Continue reading
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Hiring Testers
©2002 Johanna Rothman, www.jrothman.com This article originally appeared on stickyminds.com Summary: Whats the best way to wade through those thousands of resumes youve received for the new testing position? To start, you could ruthlessly weed out those who dont show … Continue reading
How 2 Buddy
©2004 Johanna Rothman www.jrothman.com Introduction If you’ve hired new people or transferred people into your group, you know that they’re not immediately productive when they start. If you’re lucky, they start to be useful in a month, but you most … Continue reading
How did This Happen
©2005 Don Gray It was Saturday afternoon when the house phone rang. “Don, this is John. I know we haven’t talked in 10 years, but I have a client who has a problem.” In 20 years I’ve never had a … Continue reading
How Much Work Can You Do?
Developing and Managing Your Project Portfolio (c) 2005 Johanna Rothman This article appeared previously on stickyminds.com. I meet many managers in the course of my work, and they all share a common complaint: They have too much work to do. … Continue reading
How to Kill a Software Company
©2002 Don Gray A Software Project By Any Other Name Most software practitioners and managers are aware of a project’s three legs. These legs are features, schedule and quality. (1) While all of these are important for a successful project, … Continue reading
Humor and General Systems
© Michael Bolton Jonathan Miller is one of the great Renaissance men of popular culture. He has been a medical doctor, an opera director, a television documentary writer and producer, but he first gained prominence as a performer in the … Continue reading
Move Past Distractions: Give Yourself an Ice Cream Cone
©2006 Dwayne Phillips The following conversation between a requirements person and a user occurred in my office recently. Requirements person, "What is your number one requirement?" User, "I need a new digital camera." The Requirements person thinks to himself that … Continue reading Continue reading
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The Identified Patient Pattern
©2006 Don Gray and Jerry Weinberg Engelbert frowned, trying to understand why Pamela had been acting strangely. Her programming skills were among the best in the company. She had a way of getting things completed. That’s why he made her … Continue reading
Implement by Feature
©2007 Johanna Rothman This article was previously published in Better Software, May 2005. Brent and Deidre, both technical leads, poked their heads in Myrtle’s door. “Myrtle, we have a problem.” “OK, come on in. What’s up?” Deidre started. “Remember on … Continue reading
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Tagged continuous integration, implement by feature, project management, team
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Improving Productivity
by Dwayne Phillips May 2006 I am working on a large project with a group of people on the opposite coast. I visit them once or twice a month for face-to-face discussions. On a recent visit I learned a lot … Continue reading Continue reading
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I Want It, I Have It, I Hate It
© Naomi Karten, www.nkarten.com (This article originally appeared in Perceptions & Realities newsletter, www.nkarten.com/newslet.html). The weather seems to have gotten colder as I’ve gotten older. As a result, the ski jacket that once kept me warm became too skimpy. Sensible … Continue reading
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Keep Your Eye on the Prize
© 2000 Pat O’Toole Pat O’Toole is a Principal Consultant at Process Assessment, Consulting & Training (P.A.C.T.) where he provides a variety of services to his process improvement clients. Pat is on the SEI’s list of most active lead assessors, … Continue reading Continue reading
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Learning What You Don’t Know
©2005, Don Gray “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” — Mark Twain Working on hardware projects requires incredible attention to detail. Design time can take … Continue reading
The Liar’s Contest
In this game, the only way to win is to stop playing. (c)2004, 2005 Don Gray and Gerald M. Weinberg It may look like a crisis, but it’s only the end of an illusion. – Rhonda’s First Revelation The Setup … Continue reading
Lullaby Language
©2004, Gerald M. Weinberg, www.geraldmweinberg.com Late one summer, I was called in to help an IT client learn to work better with their customers. I don’t ordinarily travel in the summer, but this sounded like a real emergency, one where … Continue reading
Lunches, Looks, and Loops
©2004, Don Gray Michelle works as a software engineer. Recently we discussed the utility concept (Measuring and Managing Performance in Organizations, Austin)1 and she asked, Cant we just measure for the sake of learning? Measuring for learning is a wonderful … Continue reading
Do We Have to Choose Between Management and Leadership?
©2006-2007 Esther Derby This column originally appeared on stickyminds.com In a recent discussion on the state of a software company, a programmer declared, “We don’t need managers around here, we need leaders!” I’m always puzzled by statements like this. “How … Continue reading
Our Management Process Can’t Tell us How to Get From "Repeatable" to "Defined"
© 2000 Nynke Fokma and Erwin van der Bij, www.moebius.nl The CMM model likely contains useful organizational design guidelines in the form of Key Practices, and some extremely useful checklists. And it is very important to be aware of the … Continue reading Continue reading
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Planning for Technical Management Time
©2005 Johanna Rothman I recently spoke with a manager who’d just incorporated another group of four people to his original three. “I was doing fine with my three people before I took over this group. I had time to manage, … Continue reading