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Home > Topics > Test & Evaluation > Detail: Go, Team!
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Go, Team!
By Patrick Bailey
  
Summary: Fed up with good-ol'-boy salesmen, a manufacturing mindset, and just-get-it-out-the-door directions? A little assertiveness, a few ounces of patience, a dash of charm, a lot of leadership, and some attitude adjustment by everyone might help. Read how one manager made the world a better place to work one small victory at a time. | | |
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Robin finally sensed progress as she clicked OK to check in code. This was the last major defect on the list for the real-time inventory management system sold with the conveyor systems manufactured by Rolling Warehouses.
"Hey, champ!" Robin looked at the rear-view mirror clamped to her desk.
Buck Brinkmeyer was framed in the mirror with its prescient message: "Warning! Objects in mirror are closer than they appear!"
Buck was a 1962 all-American football player, Rolling Warehouses's top salesman, perpetual coach-cheerleader, and grand critter of some animal lodge. His high cheeks lifted a smile that lit up like a thousand-watt light bulb. His square frame filled her cubicle's entrance; Robin was trapped, no escape. Taking a deep breath, she swiveled around.
"Hi, Bucky!" Robin said, trying to sound welcoming, but the tension from previous confrontations was obvious.
Several months prior, Buck was out of control with upper management's blessing. Sales were everything, and if Buck made a promise, everyone had to deliver on that promise. If a customer wanted a new software feature, it didn’t matter that Robin and her colleagues weren't consulted first. They had to deliver, because a "promise from Buck is as good as delivered. Without sales, there is no company."
"Just get it out the door" was heard too often. Robin had a passion for what software should be, but the company seemed to prefer self-inflicted disasters, and Buck's sound bites exacerbated this. As working hours got longer and less productive, Buck cheered for the "All Stars on the dream team." When shoddy work was accepted to meet a deadline, Buck would tell the company president, "A field goal still gets points on the board! We can get touchdowns only if we're still on the field."
The madness escalated when the IT department was reassigned to the chief operating officer, well known for squeezing all that could be squeezed out of a factory. The COO's regular exercises for efficiency gains even included smaller cubicles to save office space. When things were not getting completed on schedule, there were status meetings, which became more frequent with each promise Buck made to a customer. Just as Robin and two other developers submitted their resignations, the COO begged them to reconsider. He realized something wasn't working and had just recruited Carolyn Hodges, a seasoned software development manager.
When Carolyn arrived, she knew results were "king" in this world. However, she immediately leveraged what the COO observed—there was absolutely no control in how software was developed, and it showed in the customer complaints. That much at least gave her the license to establish a forty-hour work week and iteration cycles. Carolyn ensured each cycle started with a level playing field for the business people and the developers to compare notes on what was most crucial and could actually be done. Once it became observable that each iteration was ending as planned (with expected "results"), Carolyn carefully facilitated adding more agile practices with each new success. Eight months after Carolyn's arrival, Robin and the two other developers were still with Rolling Warehouses.
But now, here was Buck standing in Robin's cubicle for the first time in months. "I'm not sure if I can visit right now," Robin said.
"No problem. I'm going to huddle with Carolyn. Just wanted to say hi." Buck gave his typical double thumbs up while mimicking a touchdown gesture.
Huddling with Carolyn? Now he'll find out the opposing team has a coach, too!
Robin was concerned because she thought Buck had that look in his eyes. Is he testing the waters for another emergency?! Given Carolyn's assertiveness and relationship with senior managers, Robin was hoping this time he might feel the cleats running over his back!
Buck's image returned to the mirror; this time Carolyn was standing with him. Robin spun around.
"Hey, champ! Thanks again for all your great work!" Buck said before he left for the factory production area.
Carolyn sat in the chair next to Robin's desk.
"He seems so transparent," Robin said.
"That's just his personality. He really is a good salesman." Carolyn said.
Robin rolled her eyes. "I could sell heaven, too, if someone else had to go through the hell of making it."
Carolyn smiled sympathetically. "I guess there's no easy way to tell you. Buck wants to make a promise to a customer." Carolyn tossed Buck's written proposal on Robin's desk.
"You stopped him, right?"
"Not for now."
"What! Are we back to jumping through hoops?"
"No, but follow me and bring that proposal. I'll explain after a quick detour." Carolyn led Robin to the factory's production area. It was Robin’s first visit there since her initial orientation. There was Buck walking around—clearly in his element—giving high fives to line workers. To the workers, this recognition never got old. It was the highlight of their days.
"Does he have an off switch?" Robin quipped.
"Robin, take a good look at these people. Do you see that woman Buck is hugging? Her son just graduated from college. Showing up at 4:00 a.m. for the past twenty-four years and working any overtime possible made that happen. These people give to this place because they have to, and they are thankful that Buck continues to make sales."
"Look, if you're guilting me into working overtime ..."
"I'm not. I'll get to the point. We have a customer who will commit to a sale if we provide some new features, including software changes. Look at that proposal and determine what is doable and decide by tomorrow how much time you need to work through a few stories."
"By tomorrow? So we're back to ..."
"A big part of when is your decision. For now, let the others in our morning stand-up meeting know about this so they can give you input. We will appropriately work this into our planning cycle. Buck presented a good business case, but he has learned not to make promises without talking to us first."
Robin remained incredulous.
"Robin, agile is not about picking and choosing what we want to do. It's about creating relationships, doing the right thing the right way, and delivering. Buck and the senior managers now understand the type of work we do is different. They also trust us because the regular releases are visible proof we know what we're talking about. They're even willing to concede that pair programming is not two people doing the work of one and that we don't need cubicles."
Robin's mouth dropped open. "No way."
"Yes, way. It was Buck who said it seemed to make sense. He feels better now about what he sells, too."
Buck noticed Robin and Carolyn across the factory floor and gave a broad wave of his hand. Robin glanced down at the proposal, looked back at Buck, and looked at the smiles on the faces of the people he was greeting. Robin held the proposal up and with her other hand gave Buck a thumbs up.
Touchdown. {end}
What was the defining moment that triggered a shift in your organization?
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About the Author
Patrick Bailey has more than twenty years of experience in software development. He now teaches full time at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Contact Patrick at pmb4@calvin.edu.
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