Sharing IT Problems with Executives? 562
dicey asks: "Later this week all of the IT department at my company (50-80 people) is having a dinner with the company President and VP/CIO. One major reason for this is so that they can get a better understanding of what is going on in IT and how it impacts the company overall. Ideally, with the ideas and sharing, these guys will have a better appreciation for us, adjust our budgets appropriately, and help us in our business.
However, many of us are wary to speak about what is going on because it will inevitably reveal problems with the company. We are worried about what we discuss coming back to our directors ultimately to bite us. I am curious what my fellow Slashdot readers have done in similar circumstances, where there is a great chance to let someone high up in your company know of problems so that they can be rectified, but whereby revealing them you may get hurt in the process."
Tried that. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Tried that. (Score:5, Funny)
We gave management the earful they wanted, and the next day we all got an email saying "R2D2 is sooo fired!" but they never figured out who it was.
Either your managers are unusually stupid or you got a lot of midgets working there.
Joke was (Score:5, Funny)
you've got to be kidding!? (Score:5, Insightful)
is a damn plague where I live. PLEASE IT GUYS do not enlighten your exec's to your job. it works SOO much better when they only know enough to quote laptop prices and say "hey, can I use XP?"
I speak from YEARS of experience here. please no -1 troll mod. I really am serious (although a bit jaded due to my loosing 2 jobs on this subject, but bailing from another 2 because of the patternistic behavior).
you're better off backing your IT manager in a corner and trully explaining to him/her how things are and letting them talk to the exec's than hearing it from the geeks. if you do it I swear unless you hold a Ph.D in bullshit you will only end up making things worse. as the poster said it shows the minor problems with a company that can seem massive to an exec but are a daily routine for an IT professional. it's just not wise to report such things to mangement.
On the real, your IT director/manager is there for you. if you look bad he does. and in most situations your manager is newer than you so image is a big thing. make him look good by explaining to him the problems and time lines for repair/completion and use his purported skills to improve your image. thats why there is a layer between IT and management (although we all know we are like -1 link behind the CEO as we _ALL_ do massive favors for them).
trust me guys/gals, been there done that. I hope someone can back me up on this.
I know all situations will not be like this but trust me on this one, experience is a mutha. . . seen it soo many times I wanted to puke when reading this article just from bad memories. Remember PHB's will always be PHB's. You can teach them untill your blue in the face and they'll still ask 'why did my computer lock up after opening that attachment from that person that said "ILOVEYOU"?'
Re:you've got to be kidding!? (Score:4, Insightful)
still, i agree with you. to be more precise, i fFine tune your point. i had a boss explain to me that he in fFact did not want to know what was wrong. he wanted to know everything was okay. he, as a manager, had a lot of responisibility, and wanted some reassurance that all things were going okay. this had very little to do with things going actually okay, and related more to things being under control, well in hand, and all systems go. in effect, the boss wanted to ask me "how's everything?" and he wanted me to say "damn skippy sharp as a tack!" he didnt give a fFig about how things were going.
and really, should he *care* about how things are going? does the boss have any real capacity to change anything? course not. that's your job. so if you say "the wisgets are giving me a hard time and the wingnuts are a little rusty", you think he cares? course not. he cant do a thing about it. that's your job. that's what you are being paid fFor.
the boss really only has the ability to change staffing lineups. if the problem is with staff, do bring it up. elsewise, don't bother.
Re:Tried that. (Score:2)
Ya think?
Hold on to (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Hold on to (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Hold on to (Score:3, Insightful)
It all depends on the company, or at least your boss. I have had cases where if you try taking the initiative or short-circuiting the bureaucracy then your boss complains. Unfortunately I have also been in cases where the boss makes an excuse that the corporate bureaucracy won't let him, and then it stops there. Now every time any problems need sorting I try doing it under the radar and then ask my boss when I need the resources or need something else that I
Get your resume together (Score:5, Insightful)
This is probably the best thing to do (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Get your resume together (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Get your resume together (Score:5, Insightful)
Theoretically, you're all working toward the same goal - increased efficiency / productivity / profitability. IN THE REAL WORLD, knowledge is power and your fiercest competitors aren't rival companies IT depts, they're your own own colleagues and - particularly - your own management.
My advice? Keep everything business critical you know secret and use your knowledge to leverage your position to your own maximum advantage at ANY opportunity.
Re:Get your resume together (Score:4, Insightful)
1. Make sure all suggestions are positioned from the perspective of how they will help the company achieve increased revenue, reduced costs, or a strategic advantage IN YOUR CORE BUSINESS. Management could give a shit about technology - until you translate it into dollars that they can count.
2. Be ready to back up your suggestions with FACT. Best to get your middle managers to help you with this, as they will know better than you what upper management will view as factual information.
3. DO NOT discuss technical details, even if they ask. Simply state that you'd be happy to put together a timeline, staffing plan, and budget regarding the necessary effort to implement your suggestion if they'd like to see it.
4. Be SURE to tie your suggestions to other business initiatives. It's unlikely that they'd move to implement something unless it can be tied to the company's current direction in spending.
Lastly, be sure to point out something positive about your team/group/department and it's leadership. You'll come across as a team player who is NOT just looking for personal glory, which will give them more reason to believe your suggestion has merit and has been thought out.
Re:Get your resume together (Score:5, Insightful)
sPh
Here's A URL To Start With (Score:3, Informative)
IT vs. Management: What is the point spread? (Score:5, Interesting)
"IT provides a service. We know that the service must be worth something, but we understand nothing about it. If we cannot understand it, then it cannot be important, but everybody has an IT department so we better have one. But it is filled with inexperienced children who have not spent their life climbing the corporate ladder, so they cannot understand the "complexity" of the business and how it needs to improve. But we have to have them, and they make almost as much as we do so we better smile when they are around. Please, please don't let them say anything because I will feel stupid because they know all this jargon that I do not. But they do not understand business as well as management and we set the rules so we are on top and my life is worthwhile. Just do not let them speak."
The big issue is that all computer technology is just magic to management. Computers seem to help the business, but the effects usually cannot be quantified until after they are deployed. So why do it? Because all the management magazines tell them that some other company used software for something and is now saving tons of money.
We save them when they have lost that important file, but they know they would not have lost it if it was on paper. Almost everything with computers means they have to learn something new, and they hate that.
The other side is that we are often closely involved with many parts of the business. We hear the complaints from the whole company. We may not know the big picture, but most working IT people could quickly pick 5 tasks that could be cheaply improved by technology in completely non-IT departments, because they know what is frustrating the employees.
I posted a story about trying to sell a business process improvement. [slashdot.org] I believe I did it on their terms. I reminded them how many people were required to fix the bad data. I demonstrated how this system was better. I talked about how the related processes would be integrated to improve accuracy and reduce the cost across the enterprise. I did not talk about technology other than to say the current hardware could easily handle it. I got some excitement from them, but lost because THEY CANNOT JUDGE GOOD SOFTWARE FROM BAD SOFTWARE even after they use it.
I am in a special position here. They are not my only client, but I worked almost 1000 hours last year FOR THEM, and they spent more for my services than for the 60-hours-every-week IT manager (including all compensation.) I probably cost them as much as his boss, the decision-maker. I am the high-priced outside expert who has an unbroken record of delivering better than they require before any deadlines and always staying under the budget. I do business strategy consulting at other companies. They should greatly respect my opinions, but I am still "just an IT guy."
And it does not help that I look young. The white hair keeps going away when I do not work. I almost wish it would all turn white so I would look older. The "decision-maker" is only 10 years older, but has a full head of white hair. Maybe I should dye (bleach?) mine.
If you really want to get a suggestion to management, have a salesperson from another company contact them and tell them that this idea is incredible and all the other companies are doing it and they need it too. He will get much more respect than any employee, and has much more credibility than any nerd.
They are right... and you are a crybaby. (Score:3, Interesting)
Your response proved just how correct "they" are in their assessment. IT folks have RARELY "climbed the corporate ladder" but since they've conquered minor technological feats noboby else knows about they act as if they themselves put the man on the moon.
I work with/in/around IT, design websites for advanced funct
Just the stereotype (Score:3, Insightful)
This article is about a group of techies mingling with a group of executives. The executives MAY really want the advice of the techies. But I was reminding the techies of what is going through the brains of non-I
Re:Get your resume together (Score:3, Interesting)
I was caught in such a situation... and the end result was that my boss tried to fire me for a failed upgrade project that in reality, he was the one that was making impossible. (Before my hiring, he was hired to bring in SAP, and then the project was canceled. He was offered the chance to leave, but instead stayed hoping he
Re:Get your resume together (Score:4, Insightful)
If this is meant to imply to the original poster that the upper brass are meeting with the plebians because they they're suspicious of the people in the middle, you may be right. You may also be wrong.
Reasons to meet with the great unwashed:
The bottom line is, every situation is different. Too different for any of the advice presented on a forum full of strangers to be relevant, except by accident. (Except this advice, of course. :)
My advice to you in this important meeting: enjoy the meal. Oh, and listen. I won't presume to know anything else.
philRe:In THIS economy? (Score:5, Interesting)
It seems to me right now if you cut the IT labor force in half, half being the people who were truly qualified for the job they had in the dot com era, and half that wasn't. (Its probably more like 2/3 in that bucket, but whatever), 10% of the former group is finding jobs with no problem, and 10% of the latter group isn't.
The really good developers I know who have gotten laid off in the last couple months haven't been having and problems finding new work. I have a couple friends who have commented lately about how they expected it to be hard and in the process of looking started being a lot more picky, because things weren't as bad as they'd heard.
Maybe some parts of the country are different... this is the metro Boston area...
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:5, Insightful)
1. management can recognize the truely qualified, and keep them, while ditching the "bad" ones
2. truely qualified IT people, are also really good at selling themselves
Both are commonly false.
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:3, Interesting)
In case you haven't heard: the IT economy ain't doing so hot. Getting a new job isn't quite as easy as you are implying.
That's why he said "you need to start looking for a new job", not "you need to tell your manager to take this job and shove it, and walk out the door".
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:3, Insightful)
You've pretty much got the company I work for pegged. They spend money on the right stuff because they buy what I tell them to. The right stuff is linux because I say so. Me reading slashdot and playing quake all day is, I've convinced them, proof that what I say is right.
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:4, Interesting)
As I always say - if a month goes by and nothing goes wrong with my systems, I get little recognition. If one day the servers die, and everyone is panic stricken, and I sprint down the hall, have to make 500 changes to get things working again, and then restore service in a couple of hours then:
1. Everyone realizes from the downtime how critical the system actually is - and consequently how critical I am.
2. Everyone realizes that I'm a miracle worker.
3. Everyone is thankful and it looks good at my review.
Yes - it is dumb. It is better for systems not to go down at all. But then you're not needed, and funds are hard to obtain, etc...
Re:In THIS economy? (Score:3, Insightful)
The companies we deploy linux for usually don't have in house IT. They usually don't have problems that justify the expense.
Re:Get your resume together (Score:4, Insightful)
I was fired three weeks later, for some dumb bullshit that you wouldn't get fired for unless you pissed off your boss.
"Corporate America"? (Score:4, Informative)
In both the UK and Japan, if it weren't for the practice of going out as a work team and drinking together several nights a week, you'd have no idea what some people were thinking.
And I've never seen the kind of silent hatred for bosses in the US that I've seen overseas. I'm not saying it doesn't exist in some industries, but in my experience, if you hate your boss that much in the US, you either leave or get thrown out. Overseas, it's a lot riskier to leave and a lot harder for them to throw you out, so you stay and smolder silently while your boss, who can't throw you out, works on ruining your life, which he can do as long as you don't leave.
You've never seen office politics unless you've worked somewhere where the people are virtually trapped together for a lifetime. Corporate America, where the jerks come and go relatively quickly, is a picnic in comparison. (Think of a US university faculty and you'll get more of the feeling.)
Re:"Corporate America"? (Score:3, Funny)
It's replaced by a silent hatred of Human Resources. The bosses hate HR too, which brings them closer to the workers.
I'm half joking there - but half serious.
at least... (Score:4, Funny)
Simple Advice (Score:5, Insightful)
--
In London? Need a Physics Tutor? [colingregorypalmer.net]
American Weblog in London [colingregorypalmer.net]
Re:Simple Advice (Score:5, Insightful)
There's no point in making yourself out to be a whiner. Make constructive and reasonable suggestions. There's no point in asking for 50 new staff and 23" flat panels for everyone since it's very unlikely to happen, but if your suggestion will return on its investment then management might be interested.
Also, make sure you've got a few positive suggestions up your sleeve, so when someone asks "Bob, what could we have done better last quarter?" you've got something constructive to say.
Jeez, this is biz 101 (Score:5, Funny)
2) Talk about how much more you could do with "just a few more dollars".
3) Talk about how other departments suck.
4) Despite other departments sucking, you improvised, adapted, and overcame.
5) In conclusion, we're awesome, and should beg for the chance to spend money on us.
Re:Jeez, this is biz 101 (Score:5, Interesting)
The upper management should routinely meet with all the various departments for the reasons you gave.
A lot of the problem has been that upper management has treated the IT department more like a service department than a productive part of the company.
At least where I work the trend is changing. The "top-floor" guys often meet with us over drinks or dinner. This is after we stepped up and saved them an assload of money by building a project in-house instead of buying a similiar service.
The upper level "shirts and ties" guys are learning that IT has to be part of the system now. IT requires too much financial support not to listen to the experts.
AC
Socialize. (Score:3, Insightful)
It is very important to socialize with the people above you and help them understand how much you're actually saving the company by the things you're doing.
Remember, there are other people who will be happy to smooze the higher ups if it means they can replace you. Out-sourcing is an example of this. And those people will have no problem telling big lies about how much mo
Etch A Sketh (Score:3, Funny)
be careful... (Score:5, Insightful)
And for Dessert.... (Score:2)
Managers? (Score:3, Interesting)
Never (Score:5, Insightful)
A better way that I've seen happen at my place is an anonymous ballot kind of thing. If the executives are interested, they will read the ballot. If not, well, then you live and learn.
My 0.02$
Reminds me about open source. (Score:2, Insightful)
It bit me... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:It bit me... (Score:5, Insightful)
What is the real objective? Specifically... are they trying to cut back staff or unsuccessful projects? Or, is it an "enlightened" approach of trying to make best use of the company's resources?
How many layers up in the command structure are you talking to? Technical people are often better at discussing technical problems, rather than people problems.
What is your biggest issue, or what do you see as being the biggest opportunity that you can help the company with? If it is a negative issue, be careful in how you phrase it. NEVER make personal attacks.
...and when you have to say something bad, make sure there is enough backup for why THIS is the thing that must change.
Whenever possible, you should speak with the person you are going to attack beforehand about the issue. Then, you have an opportunity to spin the issue in both your favor: _ and I had a discussion last week about how we could work better together...
One of my favorite lines is that I work with a fantastic team, and I really value the different skills and capabilities that everybody brings to the table. I am thankful that (that bastard middle manager) is around so that I am able to offload some of the politics (or whatever), but [insert organizational issue here].
You reap what you sow... (Score:5, Interesting)
use the process (Score:3, Informative)
In your managers aren't letting their managers know what's important, and why, then they aren't doing their job.
You shouldn't have to end run to directors to get the information up there
Skipping a level up in Management... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's good that your president/CIO are having these discussions with you, as it shows they are concerned and want to know how to drive profit in their industry. They are concerned with the bottom line, so be honest and try to address the problems with the bottom line in mind. Will adding 1 million to the IT budget save 10 million? If you have concerns, or better, if you have ideas, share them, but only if you think they will help. Don't say you need 2million in new computers without explaining why that would drive profit up.
Re:Skipping a level up in Management... (Score:3, Insightful)
Any issue you raise with senior management is going to come right back down the chain of command to onto your boss' head. Most likely your boss is then going to be pissed that you fucked with his political strategy and went over his head.
Quite frankly, if you don't have a good relationship with your immediate management, you have already lost. Going over their head isn't going help anything unless you mean it as a parting shot.
Re:Skipping a level up in Management... (Score:5, Informative)
If front-line IT people see problems, or better yet room for improvement in their daily work, have they communicated these problems and improvement plans to their management? Has IT management communicated problems up the chain of command? In other words, does upper management know about the problems that the front-line IT employees face in their day to day work? Does upper management know about the ideas that front-line employees have to improve the IT infrastructure.
Ideally, the IT team should meet with their immediate managers and the CIO before meeting with the president. Ideally there should be no surprises at the dinner meeting. It's best to avoid embarasssing or suprising management in this type of meeting.
Perhaps the dinner meeting as it is currently structured is premature. There has to be a process in place to make sure that the president is aware of IT's strengths and weaknesses before the dinner meeting. There has to be a process in place where IT staff and management can agree upon the areas that need improvement. There has to be a process in place where the front-line IT staff is fully aware of how the president and the CIO see the role of IT in the company.
If the homework has not been done, and the groundwork has not been laid, then the dinner meeting should be the start of a process, not the end of a process.
Your job security depends on CYA? (Score:3, Insightful)
Management does not want to know what your problems are. They want to know what your solutions are. Prepare to give them solutions to your problems.
I hate to say it.. (Score:5, Insightful)
Be *extremely* careful. Even valid and obvious complaints can get you in a lot of trouble.
My advice? Keep your mouth shut.
Are you man or a mouse? (Score:5, Interesting)
Of course be careful. But there are many ways to play this. A conservative strategy is of course the safest, but it isn't necessarily the best. You have to decide what you want out of the encounter. Do you really want to spend life pussyfooting around because you might offend somebody powerful? That's no way to win respect, certainly not of senior management.
This is a chance to get noticed, and it could also be a chance to kick your career up a notch, if you are interested in that. If you just want to get through with this, then don't get noticed. If you want to change things then do get noticed.
The key in any kind of encounter like this is to understand what the other person would like to get out the encounter. Management has two functions: providing direction and removing obstacles. Basically, management ideally should be 90% shitwork and 10% leadership. Most managers know this but being human would rather spend 90% of their time doing leadership and 10% the other stuff. In other words most managers are lousy. It follows that any shitwork you can take off the boss's plate automatically makes your life easier. I'm preaching the gospen of win-win here: You should not be thinking how management can make IT's life easier, how to you each help each other get what you want?
So, what to do if you are sitting next the CEO and he starts chatting you up? It's not about what the CEO can do for you, it's what you can do for the CEO. That means knowing him probably better than you do and, harder yet, taking him (or her) more seriously than you probably do now. What are his pet issues? Conversely, what tare the things that he's spending his time dealing with he'd rather not be?
On the other hand, you can't ignore the leadership side of the equation either. What are easy ways this guy can become a hero to IT? How can he kick himself up a notch against his peers when it comes to bragging rights? What is is vision for the company and how to you fit in? That means, study the business plan, yes, even take the mission statement for a few minutes if you can manage it. If there have been press releases or if he's been quoted in the trade press know what he's about. Study the company wide internal memos. If the boss is fixated on stuff that seems superficial, remember he has to sell the company to the world, and the world is fixated on superficial stuff too. Reorient your perspective for a moment and put yourself on his side.
Of course, you may not get the chance, given the numbers, but it pays to be prepared, and have a plan. This really is too much advice to put into effect in a brief encounter. It's a lot like a job interview -- you might get lucky and get everything you need out the first encounter, but what you want to ensure is that you get asked back. That means studying the opportunity, having a rough plan of where you want to go, but being flexible to follow the boss's lead.
Or you could run like hell, which is perfectly legitimate if you'd rather keep the status quo.
Business only understands business (Score:2, Informative)
over the head (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:over the head (Score:2)
Incredibly top heavy, and few know what they're doing. I keep hoping the economy will pick up, so that I might find another job. Isn't going to happen though, I'm pretty much the loser...
Just.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Seriously, you, and a large portion of the staff should discuss the idea of all suggestions being given to the exec anoymously. Try to find someway to disassociate the idea from the person. Granted this isn't perfect, but it might help some.
Keep your fucking mouth shut (Score:5, Insightful)
Anything you say to the higher-ups will eventually trickle down to your immediate supervisor(s). If it makes them look bad, you'll eat shit until you quit or are otherwise drummed out of the company.
Take it from someone who's been there... if you're an IT geek, when it comes to corporate politics, your kung fu is weak. Period. Accept it.
Keep your head down, do only what you're supposed to, and keep your resume polished anyway, because you never know when your job will move overseas no matter how good you are at doing it.
Color me pessimistic (Score:5, Insightful)
I advise you chat up the bartender, and try to get a six-pack or two into your laptop bag.
Depends (Score:2, Funny)
Depends on what stage of ossification your company is in: early, middle, or late.
From the tone of IT concerns, you are in late stages, so shut up. When there are vested interests, the messenger always get shot.
Gauge the situation (Score:5, Insightful)
If the answers are that he genuinely wants to improve things, is a no-BS type of person, and seems to be able to take criticism, then by all means take this gift and use it! Be specific, but try to not assign blame. Approach every issue from the perspective that it isn't a huge problem but rather an opportunity for improvement.
Good luck!
Hmmm (Score:5, Interesting)
Be open and honest with the PHBs. Don't sugar-coat anything that much, and if your honest assesment of a problem doesn't please them, then you may want to start looking for another job.
The normal thing to do:
Suck up to them and blame the problems on others. That way you'll get a pay raise and your co-workers will not be held in as high regard.
I would like to think I'd do the right thing in a situation similar to yours, but I honestly don't know if I could risk my job because of an execs stupidity.
Re:Hmmm (Score:3, Insightful)
No. Talk to any parent- the thing that impresses them the least is blaming problems on other people. Do you really think they're that stupid that they can't see through how scummy you are, that you're willing to rat out your coworkers/boss/whomever? That's a sure fire way to get...well...fired.
Not only does it look like you're ratting out someone, there's the ling
Speak your peace (Score:2)
This is where the rubber hits the road. If the boss honestly wants to hear what's going on so that he/she can help, not telling him/her means a missed opportunity to make everyone's life (including yours) better. If the boss is looking for ways to trick you or is not competant enough to help once given all of the info, chances are that you're screwed anyway.
Most bosses never ask. They just wait unti
Re:Speak your peace (Score:2)
Always speak of the problems that need to be solved -- not the people you believe caused the problems. Problems, when made personal, are much harder to deal with.
Problems, present solutions! (Score:5, Insightful)
think different (Score:2, Insightful)
Guess what? There are other jobs out there. Better ones than you have now, probably. No sense cowering in a hole somewhere because of what *might* occur.
Best to use this opportunity to differentiate yourself from the rest of the smelly IT bozos in your division. Jed, your cubemate, is not going to further your career. The execs you have an oppor
it's the lesser of the two evils (Score:2, Insightful)
There's the usual "ill news is an ill guest" concern, but I believe for a company to properly progress problems should be put on display for executive analysis. Isn't it their jobs to be fixing the kinds of issues that crop up when IT can't quite do its job?
Having worked at a family compa
What I do (Score:2)
Did I mention short?
How to not be fired while telling your boss off. (Score:5, Interesting)
Encourage folks to not only write down the bad stuff, but write up good things as well. And always give examples and suggestions with the bad. But make sure that the examples focus on the issues, not specific people.
Deliver the box to the VP/manager/PHB and tell him it was done this way to prevent personal bias influencing the issues.
Above all, be respectful (Score:5, Informative)
You will do no good by ranting and raving when you get the chance to talk to the higher-ups.
You also should refrain from bad-mouthing any particular individuals (unless absolutely and obviously necessary), or you will appear to have an axe to grind.
Phrase concerns in terms of the organization or department.
I went through this several years ago. Over the course of 90 minutes I laid out my concerns and [what I saw as] impediments to the organization and its future. The chief exec at the end of the table listened carefully and seemed to appreciate the candor (e.g. we have ~22 people on staff and 8 of them are designated as the 'managemenet team'; 7 people on staff were actually billable most of the time (supporting the rest), etc.).
Nutshel version: be concise, be respectful, and don't point fingers.
Be careful (Score:2, Insightful)
Don't say anything negative. Never. NOT ever. This is twice as true in regards to other dept or managers. This is thrice as true, if someone starts talking about how it's ok to open up and talk as equals.
Everything should be phrased in the manner of how things could be better if "Thing A" was able to happen.
If the whole thing turns sour, be sure to have your resume up-to-date, since the effects will be targeted along the lines of: "W
Delicate Diplomacy (Score:2, Insightful)
That said, if you feel you must forge ahead and divulge all of your departments glaring drawbacks to the higherups, remember to have your facts straight and well-documented. What avenues have been tried previously to rectify the problems? Does
Step One (Score:4, Insightful)
Reality Check for those who are wondering (Score:2)
An event like this is recognition that Management is fundamentally failing to do their job, and than Senior Management doesn't have the skills/enthusiasm/determination to do anything constructive about it (ie fire/re-educate Management).
If you *ever* find yourself in this situation, basically you're screwed.
Functionally identical to your gir
Never send unsolicited email to execs (Score:2, Insightful)
It depends on your corporate culture. (Score:2)
Our VP just got through soliciting a round of employee questions (many quite critical and stinging) via a collaborate intranet site. But this is highly dependant on the corporate culture.
Unfortunately, I'm not all the convinced my VP is buying into it. The a
Strategy for Such a Meeting... (Score:3, Interesting)
My advice would be to place the ball firmly in the CXXs' courts. If the corporate-level people are committed to change, digging out the worst problems and solving them, they shouldn't balk at the suggestion that this be an ongoing arrangement.
In other words, if someone were to stand up at this meeting and say, "Hey, I think this is a great opportunity to solve some issues that impede our progress. Will there be some way for us to get you suggestions beyond this meeting?"
If the Cxx answers, "No, this is pretty much how we want to handle it - one meeting," I'd say their motives aren't what they want you to believe they are. If they like the suggestion, however, and suggest that there could be some informal gathering or way of identifying such issues, I'd be more trusting of their motives.
Just don't allow them to leave it at a "planned" stage without followthrough. Ask for specific dates, times, etc., to identify responsible parties, and ask how these sessions will be structured.
When the second or the third such meeting rolls around, and it looks like things are getting attention and respect, *then* I'd feel better about speaking up.
Separate ends of the table (Score:5, Informative)
So I guess I'd question whether or not the whole event will turn out exactly as you're thinking it might in the first place.
This is a PR move (Score:2, Insightful)
Do you think that the President and CIO really want detailed feedback from an intimate dinner of 50 - 80 people?
No.
Ideally, with the ideas and sharing, these guys will have a better appreciation for us, adjust our budgets appropriately, an
Speak!!! (Score:5, Insightful)
Do the following:
1)List all of the issues you would like to raise.
2)Go back through the list and pick the few that you think are most important.
3)For each issue script a clear description, and most importantly, script a solution to the problem. If you don't have a workable solution, then never escalate the problem. Without a proposed solution, the manager will feel that s/he needs to find a solution, which is not always ideal.
4)Bring up only the 1 or 2 most important issues at the dinner. In that environment, any more than that stuff will be forgotten.
Bring up issues that will matter to upper management. Don't bring up crap like "The IT Director wants all of us to partition our drives a certain way, but that is not always optimal". Bring up stuff that effect finances and/or employee morale.
Finally, don't single out people for criticism ("My boss is an idiot!!"), but don't always hold back because you are afraid of the consequences. If your choose your actions based on fear of being trampled upon, then be prepared to always be trampled upon.
Keep in mind that upper management sometimes does care about the company. If they don't know about problems, they can't fix them.
Beware even making positive suggestions (Score:2)
The hard part is making constructive suggestions. You have to be very careful you're not stepping on someone else's toes. You may have a great idea for improving the company - with a completely positive presentation. However, if that particular idea, or type of idea, is the within the domain of someone else or some department ot
Why are they doing this? (Score:2)
Lots of people will think they're all out to get you, but really don't you think the company president wants to develop a pruned team of yes men. Most of them have better things to do with their evenings.
I think they probaly want to understand what people are thinking, and where the group sees itself going.
That being said, be open, honest, explain what you see as being valuable and importan
Been there, done that, seen nothing (Score:3)
Ding ding ding. How about telling the execs the above?
Sample, off the top of my head: "Well, to be honest, we do have some problems, but we don't really feel comfortable going over our bosses heads, and we think that it would strain relations, interfere with teamwork, and hurt productivity. If you assure us you'll work with our bosses in a positive way, instead of coming down on them for the problems we name, we'll be happy to give you some of our views."
Anyway, I've done this, sorta. At my last job, I asked our president and CEO(Cathi Raffaeli) at an employee meeting(after nearly a minute of silence after she asked for feedback) the following: "It's been over a year since we merged and brought in these other companies. We've still got two completely seperate networks, and people can't print to printers sitting next to them, or share files with employees from the other company, because the networks are still seperate. It's causing a lot of aggrivation for us on the support side, and a lot of frustration and lost productivity for end-users. When will this be solved?" Yes, it was a loaded question- but it was intended to be a loaded question for someone else.
She deferred to my bosses's boss(Jerry Lepore- the someone else)- who was supposed to be on the speakerphone, as he worked out of the other office down in Georgia. Well, good ol' Jerry wasn't there anymore- he had hung up on the MANDATORY meeting quite a while ago. She was left standing going "Uhhhh...". It was like those commercials where they play tape recordings of conversations with CEOs and ask them a general question about their IT and they just stammer. She had no clue. Probably because she was a banking exec in charge of a software company.
Even though she's a wicked nasty little bitch- I've never met such a stuck up, I-want-my-latte-and-I-want-it-an-hour-ago executive(she once called US and had US running around to figure out why she was stuck on Route 95 in lower CT- which gridlocks every morning without fail...and she went through THREE executive assistants in under a year) I felt bad, and stopped by her office after the meeting an apologized for putting her into the situation. That probably smoothed things over a little, but I did hear later that Jerry was absolutely ripshit- but couldn't do anything, because it would have been recognized immediately as revenge. The guy may have only been a high school science teacher(I shit you not- VP of technology, whose only work experience was high school science), but at least he wasn't THAT stupid.
I tell you- it was, however, entirely worth it when a fellow employee bumped into me in the lunchroom while my boss was having lunch, and said "Gee, you really stuck it to Cathi with that question!" He nearly choked... :-)
Bad management team (Score:5, Insightful)
As head of an IT department, it's my job to communicate the problems/concerns my staff bring to my attention that I can not address at my level. It is equally important for the staff to understand that, unless they are working for a charity, the object of the game is profit and they are there to make the company money (or at least not cost it as much). The value of a good management team is that this type of communication is natural and automatic.
Don't make a fist around a lit firecracker... (Score:5, Insightful)
If a firecracker explodes on your open palm, you'll get burned, but you'll probably recover. If you close your hand around it, the explosion will more than likely mangle your hand.
It's similar when it comes to dealing with situations where you're dealing with senior managers. I don't know if your company is 50-80 people or your IT department is 50-80 people, but I assume you are anticipating some "face time" at this event. You're correct in assuming that the issues you bring up are going to be communicated back to your bosses. You'd be stupid to think otherwise. But a little tact goes a long way when it comes to speaking to your boss's boss. (or your boss's boss's boss)
First, don't turn the conversation into a bitch session. The last thing you want is for the higher-ups in your company to think that all you can do is mope and complain. They'll remember it when the next round of downsizing comes along, and you'll be doing your moping and complaining on the unemployment line. Instead, maintain a generally positive attitude. If you can't do that, you work for the wrong company and need to move on, anyway.
Second, frame the issues you wish to bring up in terms of opportunity instead of attacking individuals. Suppose your boss is a terrible communicator, and sends out project requests in short emails instead of discussing them with you and detailing specifications and requirements. Instead of:
That's making a fist around a firecracker. Frank, regardless of how poor his communication skills might be, is going to be rightfully upset when that gem gets back to him through the grapevine. Instead, say:
I hope you see the difference. The issue is framed as one of communication, as opposed to a defect in Frank's personality. Similarly, instead of:
Try:
You might undergo some pain, especially if you are assigned the project of upgrading, replacing the email server, but nothing compared to what you'd experience if Bob felt like you were badmouthing him to his boss.
Finally, speak about things you know. If you're the network admin, bring up issues related to the network. If you're a web monkey, bring up the web site. Don't just blast things you really have no business commenting on. You might feel like your company's sales team is a bunch of lying, egg-sucking weasels. Most sales teams are. But it's not related to your sphere of expertise, therefore it's not appropriate to address. Starting a war with another department is DEFINITELY grabbing a lit firecracker. And it may be more akin to lighting the firecracker and popping it in your mouth. Only, instead of a firecracker, you swallow a lit stick of dynamite. (Now, THAT is taking an analogy too far!)
All too often, geeks take business issues personally, when there are often simple, business-related explanations. Bob isn't tormenting you with the crappy mailserver because he doesn't like you, he can't replace it until next year because the company spent $1 million bucks on yet another ERP/CRM upgrade. When you take things down a notch, and address the issues instead of the personalities, then it almost inevitably breeds a more positive tone. Frank may be a dickhead, or he may just be a techie who hasn't learned much about managing people.
Third, don't try to solve all the world's problems in one night. You won't have the time. Pick some important issues, frame them as opportunities for improvem
End-around (Score:3)
Making the whole discussing into a "bitch" session will only turn the upper-management off. No one wants to be bitched at and the negative feelins will make any real issues harder to deal with.
I hate to be a dick... (Score:5, Interesting)
Another poster wrote "get your resume ready". I agree. Hiding things won't make them any less of an issue later. In fact, I think these things have a way of getting bigger and worse.
preexisting relationship (Score:3, Insightful)
What I've learned as a manager (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't come to me with problems; come to me with solutions.
Provide the proper context. Move the conversation forward. Focus on the positives Network first When it comes down to it though, you know your company and coworkers better that we do, and must act accordingly. Some tactics may work at one company, but would be totaly inapproprate at another.Re:What I've learned as a manager (Score:4, Insightful)
"Don't come to me with problems; come to me with solutions."
You know what? Then what is _your_ job? Sounds to me like just another lame filter to avoid work.
If, just as an example, I say that the mail server is unreliable and slow, we simply have a problem. Maybe, not being said server's admin, I do not know what should be done to it. But I do know that emails are lost, or arrive hours too late.
Would you prefer that instead of talking to you, I leave my work and go personally track down the email server admin (in the other end of town!) and work out a solution? Worse yet, would you prefer that 100 people independently go talk to said e-mail admin, because they have to have a solution before they can talk to you? How many lost hour for them _and_ for that admin does that tally up to?
Here's an idea for you: the whole reason to have a chain of command and well defined responsibilities is precisely to avoid screw-ups like that. Your job as a manager is precisely to solve problems, or forward or delegate them to the apropriate people. Not just to sit there and wait for other people to figure out the solutions for you.
Briefly: if we're to come up with our own solutions to everything, we don't need _you_ at all.
"Provide the proper context."
Yet another lame work-avoiding filter.
Again, it's _your_ job to know the whole context, not mine. _That_ is why you're the boss, and I'm a coding monkey. _That_ is why I'd rather stay a coding monkey. Because being a proper boss really means hard work.
Work which obviously you're not willing to do.
For me to learn the proper context, including long term corporate goals, politics, and business relations, means already taking a break from my real work and researching all that. More than 90% of that stuff is totally useless to me.
Already requiring _one_ person to do _your_ work for free and research that context, is plain waste of man-hours. Requiring _everyone_ to keep track of all that before they can even talk to you, is downright surrealistic.
Again, that's why we have managers: so only _one_ person needs to know the bigger picture, while the rest of the team can work on their own slice. If we all need to stay up to date on everything up to corporate goals and strategies, and be able to come up with coherent strategies that fit those, then we don't need _you_.
"Move the conversation forward."
To some extent good advice. However, often there just is a problem. A big real problem. Just because you don't want to hear it, doesn't mean it'll go away.
So maybe, to use a real example, if the whole bloody team comes to you repeatedly to say "this application server is CRAP. Please, please, please, can we use something else?"... you could actually do your job, and investigate. See if there really is a problem and how big.
Locking yourself up in an ivory tower and chalking it up as "everyone's a whiner, and they don't know when to move the conversation forward" is just plain incompetence in that context.
"Focus on the positives"
In other words: "only say what I want to hear." Then you can stay cozily in your office and think everything is just fine and dandy, while the project is heading head first to a disaster.
Everyone only told you the shiny happy positive fantasy that you wanted to hear. Too bad the reality wasn't even remotely like that, eh?
"Network first"
In other words: instead of doing your job and seeing if you do have a problem to solve, you'll focus on if you like someone enough to bother listening to them. Lame.
The biggest problem with that kind of approach, is that most people learn what's expected from them. If being the boss's personal brown-noser (a.k.a., thorougly "networking" and "focusing on the positives") is what pays more than being a good competent professional, that's the kind of people you end up with.
So you end up with a team of total incompetents. Programmers who can't program, Unix admins with no Unix experience, and web designers who don't know HTML. But, by Jove, they're _good_ at networking with the boss and telling him shiny happy positive lies.
My Experiences (Score:5, Insightful)
In my experience Management believe that throwing money at hardware or software will fix their problems. Or better yet we will outsource. The basic things they seem to forget or have not learned are:
Most management decisions are made out of ignorance and head burying so the existing problems are not known in the hope all symptoms will remain hidden.
my advice (Score:5, Insightful)
If you're going to say anything at all, don't waste your breath being petty or mentioning minor instances of complaints. Cut right to the thick of the matter, and give him your assessment and the logic behind your assessment. Preferably, have a writeup/short report (one or two pages) to hand him for later peruseal with well-outlined points. Don't mention names, but point him in the right direction so that he doesn't feel like he's bringing the axe down on your recommendations, but on his 'own' decision - which he somehow reached after your carefully worded suggestion.
If there is a sizeable group of people, break the concerns up amongst you. Get together at a bar or somewhere a couple days prior to the dinner, get a list, and then distribute the list amongst willing contributors, so that no one person gets the heat. It would be incredibly stupid for anyone short of the president to try and pull down heat on a group of that size.
If you catch heat from middle management afterwards, guess what? That just means that they're pissed tha the president is making changes based on your apt suggestions. If he revokes priviledges/perks or fires you, write off a little letter to the president letting hiim know what happened. that middle management will likely be looking for a job soon, too. Then see if you can't get the president to be a job reference.
The ability to see and try to solve real (as opposed to created)problems is a valueable ability to have, and a very valueable asset for any company; if they ignore that asset, you're best off looking for a job, because truely, your position there isn't secure in the least - the company isn't likely terribly secure, if they punish real problem solving.
Best policy is to speak clearly (Score:3, Interesting)
If you are peopled by weasels (is that possible?) then the best advice is always to watch your back.
If your company is hugely political then politics is valued and it's best to approach it like that.
On the other hand, the fact that your management is meeting you at all suggests that you are working in a well-balanced company. If that's the case you should speak the truth when asked, without dumping anyone in the muck; that's a good way to make enemies. You should be polite and only discuss major points.
Your management has a different view on the company from you. They have to take the whole company into account, and you are naturally most interested in your corner. Having a bitch about the cubicles in the IT area won't win bonus points, but if you talk about how the sales people don't have good enough kit for their jobs you will. So - focus on what are problems for other people, and how to solve them.
Don't expect your management to do everything you suggest - and don't get despondent if they don't do the things that you think are most important. They have to prioritise across the whole company and should be giving weight to those areas that will bring the biggest benefit to the whole company. This doesn't mean that they didn't hear what you said, and didn't want to do anything. It may simply mean that there are higher priorities at the moment.
Do talk to your management as if they are people and not uber-gods. Try to avoid geek-speak. Do dress smartly - even if you wouldn't normally - it will reinforce your point of view. Don't drink much - you don't think as well - even though you are convinced that you do.
Hope that's some help.
Jeff
Terms of MONEY (Score:5, Insightful)
Keep it simple. Don't overwhelm them with technical details. If you see their eyes glaze over, you're providing them too much detail. Keep the answers short and concise. Give the suits the summary of the summary of the Cliff Notes for Dummies of the summary on the back of the paperback edition #2. I mean you have to eliminate almost all detail. Make them ask you for more detail BUT don't abuse it with too much detail when you do give them more. This is like the first date. Scratch that. This is you making the phone call that arranges the date. Scratch that. This is the wink that gets you the number to call. You can't give them too much detail or 1) you're scare them away, and 2) they'll already know everything about you (the project) and won't need you anymore. KISS-FSP. Keep It Simple Stupid, For Stupid People.
Don't be afraid to share problems. If you're in a job that you feel you can't share a problem with management then you're in the wrong job. Pack up and move out. Believe me, it's not worth the grief. You shouldn't have to watch your back for the next inbound sharpened object. Grow a set and lay it on the line.
Anyhow, that's my $.02 before taxes. Best of luck.
Quick Tutorial (Score:3, Insightful)
This isn't really IT-specific, but when dealing with management, always remember two words: Risk and Cost.
These people are most likely not technical--they've been trained by generations of PWC and McKinsey consultants to expect to be able to boil the most complex problems down to several binary points on a powerpoint slide. Don't be afraid to explain, but be prepared to wade into dangerous water the moment you start with "yes, but..."
Speak clearly, succinctly, never hem and haw, never be afraid to say "I don't know but I'll find out", never bullshit. For right or wrong, you're most likely on their turf (when they're on mine and yours, they tend to get googley-eyed--try taking your boss' boss into a big server room sometime for some fun) and they make the rules.
Don't waste time, don't beat around the bush, be open, make eye contact, don't fidget, don't talk to the whiteboard, don't read off your points, yada yada. Nothing goes over preparation. Use positive words (can, will, etc.)
For non-technical management, technical problems are just another business task. There's nothing special about it--they may even be slightly intimidated by the topic, and thus pay closer attention to individual words of yours (so be prepared to carefully formulate your sentences to not leave any openings.) Ask if there are questions from time to time.
Likewise, there is nothing wrong with being friendly. Think about it this way--who would you rather have describe an accounting problem to you, your boss' boss' boss or your beer-drinking gamer buddy Bert with a finance degree? Same thing applies. Make friends--it's amazing how few technical people understand the importance of getting to know people, socializing, whatnot.
I know these are all general things, but they've helped me tremendously.
Re:The time-tested solution for such situations (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:-1 offtopic First Post spamtrap (Score:3, Funny)
Maybe it's experiment time. Wait for an article on a subject you know fairly well. Prepare a long, we'll articulated post. Include quotes from industry experts, and a few useful links. Even double check your grammar and spelling. Choose your best +5 material. When your post is ready, set the subject to something like: "Taco sucks asian boy wanker".
Re:What would be next? (Score:3, Insightful)
Upper management is always interested in improving things from a business perspective. It its very helpful if your suggestions have easily measurable value. Obvious cost savings, reduced development time, fewer support calls, additional services, etc... The improvements should be easily quantifiable and verifiable. Figure out how to say this in a few minutes. If
Re:Hmm (Score:3, Funny)
He's right. Once I farted in a meeting, but didn't say "Smell that?" Everybody suspected the guy next to me.