Better Software - December 2007 - (Page 47)

The Last Word Pine Needles and Better Communication by Payson Hall Fat, Gloved Fingers growled, “Two things I don’t ever want to have to tell you again: If you aren’t sure where you are, say so, and use a pine needle and expect your troops to do the same—it helps identify people who are confused or not on the same page.” Using the pine needle, he pointed to where we were on the map—I had missed by more than a mile. He then pointed out how subtle changes in nearby vegetation corresponded to very slight expect from others on your team. If I worked for you and had doubts about the project’s status, would you rather I smoothed over my uncertainty with false confidence or told you the truth? It was my first training patrol since joining the 1st Ranger Battalion in Georgia. I was nervous. I was leading a movement through the swamp, avoiding deep water and the thickest brush while keeping my team together. With few visible landmarks and no tools other than a map and compass, it was easy to become “disoriented” (according to legend, Rangers are never “lost”—only “temporarily disoriented”). Fearing I might be disori“I believe that most imprecision is due ented, I kept the team moving on the right heading either to sloppy thinking or to and hoped for the best. conformance to local cultural norms. ” A senior sergeant who had been quietly observing took me aside elevation changes on the map. Before we during a break, pulled out a map and a resumed the patrol, he gave me other tips red filter flashlight, and whispered, to improve my swamp navigation skills, but the two communication lessons he “Ranger Hall, where are we right now?” A lump formed in my throat. In the had growled that night still serve me. flashlight’s muted red glow, the detailed military map showed a vast expanse of If You Aren’t Sure Where swamp with few significant terrain fea- You Are, Say So tures. Knowing where we had started Our culture values decisive behavior, two hours before and factoring in our so pride sometimes motivates us to apapproximate pace and heading, I swal- pear decisive even when we don’t feel lowed hard and pointed to where I hoped that way. At a minimum, this results in we were. “Right about here,” I an- misleading our teams and our sponsors. swered, aiming for a tone between casual At its worst, this can lead to disaster. If and decisive. As I pointed, the tip of my you have questions or doubts, it is ultigloved finger covered an area the size of mately in everyone’s best interest to share a nickel on the map—which translated your uncertainty—even if this means adinto a half-mile diameter circle on the mitting you aren’t perfect. ground. Owning uncertainty is important for Handing me a needle from a nearby several reasons: Georgia pine, the grizzled sergeant said • It demonstrates that you are wise calmly, “Ranger, I asked you where we enough to admit your assumptions are. I want to know exactly where we might be wrong. are.” • It shows you are open to other perFeeling like a fraud, I admitted that I spectives and invites discussion. wasn’t sure where we were and explained • It elicits information from people how I had roughly estimated our locawho otherwise might not volunteer tion. it. The sergeant leaned in close and • It models the behavior you should www.StickyMinds.com Use a Pine Needle People are often imprecise about schedule information. Sometimes folks give vague answers when they don’t want to admit they are not sure. Sometimes people are imprecise to build in “wiggle room” to defend against later change. I believe that most imprecision is due either to sloppy thinking or to conformance to local cultural norms. Whatever the reason, the poor communication that results from imprecision is mostly harmful. I once was asked to identify potential schedule issues for a hardware development project. I arrived in March and the product was expected to ship in June. I asked the hardware team when it planned to release to manufacturing and was told June. I asked the software team when it would have the “golden disk” of drivers for duplication and distribution, answer: June. I asked the documentation team when final documentation would be ready for reproduction: June. I asked the manufacturing team when manufacturing would begin: June. June was also when the test team said it would be finished with testing and when the distribution team assured me that the first product would be on the shelves. Everyone believed the project was on track. When I tried to get more precise answers—when I asked the team to point the pine needle at the calendar—it became clear that the project was not on track. The “pine needle” in this case was 47 DECEMBER 2007 BETTER SOFTWARE http://www.StickyMinds.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Better Software - December 2007

Better Software - December 2007 Contents Mark Your Calendar What's Happening @ StickyMinds.com Technically Speaking Code Craft Test Connection Management Chronicles Man and Machine Let Your Values be Your Guide A Story About User Stories and Test-driven Development Product Announcements The Last Word Ad Index

Better Software - December 2007

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