If you look up dogma on wikipedia today, you’ll see this phrase as part of the definition: “It is not to be questioned.” Software developers are at their core scientists, however, and scientists are defined by the fact that they ask questions. So it should be obvious that there’s no room for dogma in your software group. And yet, go down the hall to a few of your more senior developers and ask them about coding standards, development practices, or even IDE preference. Good luck.
Keep your dogma leashed
December 8th, 2009 — Software Development
It’s that time of year
November 24th, 2009 — Corporate, Life
As we enter the week of Thanksgiving, and head into the core US holiday season, we’re supposed to be thinking about giving thanks and being generous. Of course, we’re also entering the final stretch of the quarter and the year, so we’re over-committed at work and trying to balance our obligations at home as well. It’s a tricky time to be an effective employee.
It’s worth noting, however, that managers are also soon going to be working on annual performance reviews. And while we all know reviews should cover the entire year’s work, often times a high-impact event at the close of the year gets some extra mental attention during this busy time. So what can you do at work to bring a little bit of what the holidays are supposed to be about into your routine?
Be thankful
A simple “thank you” goes a long way. A more complex “thank you” goes a little further. “Thanks, Bill, I wouldn’t have thought of looking there, you made my day a lot easier.” It takes 15 seconds to type that, and whoever you are thanking probably saved you more than 15 seconds. So send the email. Better yet, drop by their cubicle, or say something when you spot them in the hallway.
Be generous
Sitting in your inbox is that simple request. It’ll take you a couple minutes to process it, and you have so much else going on, but it’ll really make a difference in that person’s day. So ttop putting it off. Set aside 5 minutes this morning to be helpful, and then go on to your “real” work.
You can also be generous with your praise. Saying “thank you” is great, but copying the boss is generous as well. It wins on so many levels it’s hard to even list them. I’m not suggesting every single “thanks” needs a cc: line, but once in a while it’s a powerful tool.
It doesn’t need to be a “thanks” either. Sometimes you can just directly tell someone about great performance by a team member. I recently sent an email to a senior director letting him know about a great moment with someone in his organization. His response was that he rarely receives that kind of direct feedback. Flood your management with emails and you’ll get ignored. Target a couple moments of high performance, though, and you’re playing with powerful tools.
Balance your life
It’s crucial now to remember your work-life balance, and that of your teammates. Tensions may be high, and small things leap into significance. Don’t forget that for some people, the holidays are a time of joy and pleasure … while others are on an emotional rollercoaster.
As for yourself, be present at your family dinner; put down the Blackberry and enjoy the blackberry pie instead. That email will still be there after the kids are in bed.
The great thing about gestures like this is that they multiply. You are essentially increasing the positive climate, and as a colleague of mine recently put it, when the tide rises all ships rise with it.
Discard your crutches and run!
November 17th, 2009 — Corporate
If you’re in the corporate workforce, you’re familiar with Powerpoint, and probably familiar with various controversies around it. People spend a lot of time debating how much or how little to put on slides, they design cool systems for maximizing impact, and they worry endlessly about how to word something on a slide in case it somehow bites them later.
There’s a radical solution here which I like to apply once in a while. Don’t show any slides. Just call your meeting and meet.
Nothing is so constant as change
November 9th, 2009 — Meta
You’ve probably noticed over time that “talks shop” takes on a variety of meanings on this blog. I might talk about EMC, corporate life in general, high tech trends, or management. I occasionally mention software development, but it’s not a big focus here, even though that’s what my team does. Finally, I almost never talk about the products my team works on.
There might be some changes coming on some of those lines.
Continue reading →
Meandering thoughts on social search
November 3rd, 2009 — Social Media
On my drive into work on Monday, my mind was filled not with thoughts of Storage Resource Management but rather Social Search. Google recently made some inroads into this area, but I feel like we’re on the cusp of something revolutionary and nobody is seizing the opportunity to change the game.
Everything I am about to describe is achievable with today’s technology. And yet it sounds like science fiction. Here’s the world I want to live in.
Continue reading →
Working in the moment
October 27th, 2009 — Corporate, Software Development
I’ve been thinking a bit more about the topic of my previous post (deadlines forcing decisions and focus), and comparing it to some other moments of high-energy, high-engagement, high-satisfaction productivity over the years. I realized there was a factor I hadn’t really considered before, and that was the capacity of the task to force all participants to remain in the moment.
In praise of deadlines
October 20th, 2009 — Management, Software Development
A pressing deadline is a powerful thing. Without a deadline, ideas can drown each other competing for supremacy in a sea of data. People use and abuse their own value functions to find fault with any possible approach. But faced with a deadline, thinkers break out of analysis paralysis and become doers. Of course, an unrealistic deadline just causes panic and sloppy work as people scramble to meet impossible goals and push themselves deep into technical debt.
Continue reading →
Hanging out with the braintrust
October 14th, 2009 — EMC
Today was EMC’s third annual innovation conference, and as one of over 700 employees who submitted an idea I was invited to attend the proceedings at our local regional leg of the global event.
Peer to peer development
October 6th, 2009 — Software Development
Sorry Napster fans, I’m talking about a different kind of P2P here … career development in a peer-driven context.
In nearly every group I’ve joined, some bright developers eventually banded together and decided they were frustrated at feeling out of touch with the industry. The answer has always been some sort of peer-driven career development effort. For example, back in the late 90s, I remember we set up a regular meeting which the entire Navisphere development organization was invited to. Each week (or was it month?) a speaker would present on something new they had learned. Occasionally, a guest speaker from another organization would present on something they were doing. The speaking responsibility rotated among volunteers until we realized it was basically the same 3 people over and over again, and it fizzled out.
Why I almost love Mixero
September 29th, 2009 — Social Media
I’ve been tinkering with twitter for almost two years now, on multiple accounts, trying to find the perfect way to integrate it into my daily life. And while my activity level on twitter has never been consistent, one thing has — the growth in the number of people I’m following. I realized early on that there comes a time when you have to decide whether to be lean in who you follow, or whether you have to start counting on tools to help you organize the data flow.
Never one to turn down a chance to play with tools, I’ve taken the latter approach (though in moderation; I still follow less than a thousand people). My latest twitter client is the Mixero beta, and after talking about it with a friend I decided it was time to do a little writeup. See, Mixero is almost great, but it’s the almost that is nagging at me week after week. I’m hoping that when it goes GA, we’ll see the client I know it can be….
