That's not how it usually goes. It's more like: How many of you know that the team is working on something that will never be released?
How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
31–40 of 428 posts
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#32“Agile teams that truly iterate with the customer can often avoid these problems because the customer is there the whole way through and the team continuously pivots to close gaps discovered by the customer throughout the project, thereby building something the customer actually needs and wants.” I‘m 2 years into my first role as a product owner (made the switch from design) and working at a fortune 100. The thing th…
Off topic, but would you mind sharing how you made the transition from design to product management? I'm considering making the jump myself and am curious about what the experience has been like.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#33Everybody should go read Bullshit Jobs.
Amazing book. The funny thing is I never expected to see it applied to software engineering - but in this context it's very appropriate.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#34I work as a product owner in a company described almost exactly by this article. We shipped our important feature last month and nobody's used it yet. We have a product team totally separate from the engineering department and they come up with the ideas that we build. My input on the product is valued only at fairly low levels, around detailed implementation (how buttons should work, whether users will likely figure something out). I really don't like it, but at my level, I don't know what I can do.
My primary approach to address this is to push for improved data analytics, starting with our tracking and pipelines. I do think a data-driven culture can help lead the team/company in the right direction, and that it can spread from my level. Progress is being made, albeit slowly.
Execs have some lofty goals of changing the paradigm, but I don't see that happening in the next 2-3 years. Any advice on how I can help effect meaningful change from my position? Or perhaps could I be better served working somewhere else, building better habits.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#35“Agile teams that truly iterate with the customer can often avoid these problems because the customer is there the whole way through and the team continuously pivots to close gaps discovered by the customer throughout the project, thereby building something the customer actually needs and wants.” I‘m 2 years into my first role as a product owner (made the switch from design) and working at a fortune 100. The thing th…
I dogfood my product. I write what I need.
Works for me. Some folks like what I do, as well.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#36Obviously using a throwaway here. Our board members got it into their heads that successful companies must have an AI "play", so they instructed the CEO to invest about 10% of our development budget on AI. We are doing absolutely inane projects that have no hope of succeeding. We serve a niche industry where certified professionals have to do certain tasks personally, instead of being able to delegate to secretaries.…
> we all know the project will fail unless someone develops well-perfoming, human-level AGI before Q4/2020
This is hilarious, and makes me wonder how many similar corporate AI initiatives are under way in the world right now.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
And of course you're being facetious, because if everyone is 33% better, the company can fire 25% of its staff (right?).
That's hilarious - I can't help but think of this dilbert cartoon on making change: https://dilbert.com/strip/1993-03-20 (I am not putting you down)
I would have thought of this one:
https://dilbert.com/strip/1998-03-17
My dad always disliked the strip you cite, because the change Dilbert expects is $5.25, but there's no way to provide $7.14 in a way that couldn't be trivially reduced to $2.14. If the goal is to make things easy for the cashier, he should obviously provide $2.14 and just keep the $5 he already has anyway.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#38“Agile teams that truly iterate with the customer can often avoid these problems because the customer is there the whole way through and the team continuously pivots to close gaps discovered by the customer throughout the project, thereby building something the customer actually needs and wants.” I‘m 2 years into my first role as a product owner (made the switch from design) and working at a fortune 100. The thing th…
Customers can be a nightmare simply because they don't want to be closely involved and on their end, they usually are not engineers so the requirements can easily not make sense. I don't blame people for avoiding such tasks, especially in a Fortune 100. The bigger the company, the more diffuse responsibility and the harder it is to steer the ship anyway.
Another issue I found while writing software that customer service agents used was we did not get feedback from CS agents without being deliberate, only from the managers of the users (CS agents). The managers were interested in other features like, time tracking, conversion/sales reports, while CS agents were interested (when we finally talked to them) about things that would improve their sales (ex: show available manufacturer rebates for skus to help make a sale)
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#39I was cheering a little inside while reading this and agreeing mightily until I realized it was an ad. Boo.
True, but I think we can separate the idea from the person/company. The problem statement is very well written. The Director of Engineering rotating because they can’t deliver, and the battle between Product and Engineering. Conclusion is rushed, but it boils down to what agile advocates at the core: product manager and QA need to be in the room along with engineering. It is until they hear daily about the challenges…
I suppose I'm tainted because I've seen one too many methodology consultants. "What you're doing now is bad...but this new way will solve all your problems.." Enter "Value Scrum" your new savior.
After almost 3 decades in software, I've come to perceive a few things about the industry and the people in it, especially the new entrants:
1) All problems begin with "how can we solve this with new software/feature/etc?" because after all, we're software people and we make software so clearly software is the answer.
2) Society believes #1. They expect that all problems are solved with software. Not only does society believe this, VCs believe this also. There is incentive to behave as #1 in the hopes that it leads to $$$.
3) Anyone not believing #1 is a detractor, or worse, a Luddite. Technology as solution is the prevailing axiom. It is Maslow's hammer. All non-believers must be purged or cancelled.
So when I read what I'll admit is an enticing article that demonstrates experience and analytical thinking by the author I'm intrigued and mostly supportive. Just like software frameworks (yes, you Javascript community) the answer to problems is always a new present solution which one day will be a future problem whether it be tech or tech inspired methodology. Tech first problem solving usually always leads here.
I was reminded of this book when reading the article. Many patterns of org behavior are well described here: https://www.amazon.com/Organizational-Patterns-Agile-Softwar...
I was also struck by an adaption of a statement I read once about XML. The adaptation follows: "Agile is like violence, if it isn't working you're not using enough of it."
So what does this mean, abandon all tech? No. It means, apply critical thinking. Let dissent be ok. Do the things the article suggests. You don't need training, or a seminar or a consultant. And if the leadership wants to do something you can't fully engage in, find something else to do. Don't waste your life.
Re: How many of you know that the team is working on something that no-one wants?
#40“Agile teams that truly iterate with the customer can often avoid these problems because the customer is there the whole way through and the team continuously pivots to close gaps discovered by the customer throughout the project, thereby building something the customer actually needs and wants.” I‘m 2 years into my first role as a product owner (made the switch from design) and working at a fortune 100. The thing th…
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