Better Software - May 2008 - (Page 42)

Virginia Satir was a family therapist. As she became involved with other larger systems— organizations, communities, and countries—she realized that, in many cases, these systems were like big dysfunctional families, so she started to apply family therapy to them. Virginia Satir also created the “Change Process Model” to help families process change. This model has been applied to organizations to help them deal with change, such as a traditional development group switching to agile development. The change model specifies a series of stages in how people respond to a change. In initial status quo stage, people are in the current familiar situation. When a foreign element (the change) occurs, such as the introduction of agility, then a state of chaos ensues. Chaos reigns until a transforming idea or ideas emerge, such as those coming from retrospectives. Then the integration stage begins as the ideas become embedded into the process. When the ideas are assimilated, the group is in the new status quo stage. See the StickyNotes for more information on the Satir Change Process Model. haven’t finished capturing a statement, the speaker can see that, pause, and wait for you to catch up. The speaker also gets immediate feedback that you have captured his ideas correctly. Often we do our best to communicate with each other, and yet misunderstanding remains. Virginia Satir’s Interaction Model helps to explain why misunderstandings occur. The Satir Interaction Model has four phases. The first is observation—what you see and hear. For example, my wife sees a pile of dirty clothes next to the laundry basket. The second phase is interpretation—the meaning you apply to your observation. She interprets the pile of clothes as my being inconsiderate, as the family rule is to put clothes to be washed in the basket. The third phase is significance—the “weight” you assign to the interpretation. She assigns a rather heavy weight to my apparently inconsiderate action. The final stage is the response—what you do about the significance of the interpretation. She directs a well-deserved (in her mind) remark to me about my inconsiderate action. Now, reflect on an alternative sequence. She observes the pile of clothes. Her interpretation is that she is curious why I have violated a family rule that is so important to her. She assigns it a high significance and asks me for an explanation. I explain that I had been working in the woods and that the clothes have poison ivy on them. I did not put them in the laundry basket because I was going to wash them separately. With that information, the significance and her response change considerably. When you observe a team member doing something that has a negative impact on you, start your conversation with him by stating in neutral terms your observation. Often the person may not even be aware of the action you observed. Then, ask for his interpretation. The person may have been aware of his action and done it for reasons that seemed reasonable to him. You can then describe your own interpretation and the significance you place on your observation. For example, you may observe your www.StickyMinds.com Satir Interaction Model colleague not checking his code into the repository at the end of the day. You could interpret that inaction as your colleague does not care for the team, attach significance to that interpretation, and make a heated response to him. Instead start by simply stating your observation—code not checked in. Then ask for his explanation. You may find that he got an emergency call to pick up his kids from school or some other crisis. Exchange of Tokens Communication is an exchange of tokens. The tokens or words we use in either written or oral communication have subtle differences in meanings. For example, how often is the ball kicked in football? It depends on your frame of reference. People with a background in American football might respond the ball is kicked only a few times per game. Others might say, all the time, because that’s how one moves the ball in the sport that Americans call soccer. There also are greater differences in meaning. For example, the connotations of “done” and “I’ll have that for you tomorrow” vary widely. When you hear a developer say a feature is “done,” do you interpret that as a) the code compiles, b) the feature passes the programmer’s tests, c) the feature passes the tester’s test, or d) the customer has accepted the feature? Ask this question of your development team and see if all members respond with the same answer. If someone says “I’ll have that for you tomorrow,” does that mean a) first thing in the morning, b) sometime during the 42 BETTER SOFTWARE MAY 2008 http://www.StickyMinds.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Better Software - May 2008

Better Software - May 2008 Contents Mark Your Calendar Contributors eLightenment Technically Speaking Code Craft Test Connection Management Chronicles Cover Story: It's A Bug! The Chivalrous Team Member Let's Talk Agile Product Announcements 10 Things You Might Not Know About... The Last Word Ad Index

Better Software - May 2008

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