Recapturing our Youth!

This has been an interesting period in my life. My wife and I recently moved our youngest son out of the house into his dorm, so that he could begin his college experience. It was a really incredible day, seeing his excitement and watching him and all the other kids in the dorm move in. Yes, we were busy setting up the room and getting all of his stuff tucked away. Yet, while all this was occurring kids were wandering the halls beginning to meet each other. The excitement was visible, everywhere!

Over the last couple of weeks, he has made it a mission to visit each of the floors in his dorm, using a Frisbee to start up conversations and get to know the people he now lives with. He has wandered into other dorms in an effort to get introduced to more people and build his social network. He and his friends have introduced themselves to people tailgating the football games and expanded their social circles. He seems to be on a mission to get to know as many people as he possibly can – yes, he thrives on social experiences.

Looking back at my own experience as I made the transition from home to college, I remember the fear, the excitement and the fun of leaving home, meeting new people and having new experiences. It got me thinking about how change is viewed in the office, let’s just say it is not necessarily a positive within our teams.

Let me walk thru a recent experience – over the last year we have been introducing the use of Kanbans as a tool to visualize enterprise project activity across the organization and within my teams using team stand-ups to talk thru the tactical daily promises. Our daily stand-up meetings are focused on simple communication – what did you promise yesterday/did you deliver, what roadblocks are you encountering and who needs to jump in to help remove the roadblocks and what are you promising for tomorrow. Can we move the card on the Kanban? Yes, we are crawling before we walk, walking before we run and running before we try and leap. These are things that many folks within the organization and within my teams have advocated over the last several years.

We are not fully Agile, not sure if we will ever get there, but we are trying to use some of the tactics within projects where it makes sense for us.

What I find interesting is the pushback we have received along the way. I was expecting some of this, but was surprised when some of the very people promoting Agile techniques began to resist the actual implementation of some of these techniques. Some of it came down to – well if you aren’t going to implement and adhere to the entire Agile principles, than how do you expect me to get onboard. Other times it came down to, well I’m not really comfortable trying this in-front of other people.

I get it, we hate change. But when did that shift occur? Again, I look back to my sons as they grew up. They constantly were experiencing change, each year asking to take on new responsibilities. Tackling new topics at school, meeting new teachers, being a part of school sports, taking on roles within the student council. Outside of school, trying various sports when they were younger and then adjusting to changes as they progressed with their athletic talents. Sometimes taking on leadership roles, other times acting in support roles. They grasped for these opportunities, not expecting failure and looking for the next challenge.

Yet, somewhere in our path to adulthood, we start to resist change. We like the stability of knowing what it is we are doing, what comes next and who does what. The funny thing is we talk about change, until it happens to us.

Ultimately, we need to be agents of change for the companies we work for today. In the past, there were periods where businesses did not need to worry about rapid change. That dynamic is no longer true, businesses must continually evaluate the products and services that they are providing, the competitive pressure of local and international competitors. If you’re not constantly ensuring that you are serving your customers, your customers will walk away.

I encourage you to recapture that spirit of youth where you wanted change. Where you weren’t afraid to accept change. If our businesses are going to succeed, we need to continually change to adjust to the needs of our customers.

If you'd like more information on my background: LinkedIn Profile

Picking your own Path!

I’ve been around the block for a while now.  Later this month I’ll turn 51 – which means I’ve seen all sorts of things during my career.  I’m lucky – I love what I do and I knew I wanted to be in software development very early in my life.  I touched my first keyboard when I was 12 and began programming in Basic on a DEC PDP 11/70.  And if that alone doesn’t date me, my first programs were created on punch cards and teletype terminals – yep a keyboard with green bar paper running through it that would physically type out the commands entered and responses would come back and print on the green bar paper.  The smartphone I have in my pocket has significantly more power than that first computer I used.  My Nana always used to joke that I was going to fry my brain working on those ‘computers’!

I also knew at a young age that I eventually wanted to be in management.  I had grown up watching my dad run various companies – some failed, others were successful.  While I was in high school, my dad started the final company that he would run – it became very successful and provided him with years of enjoyment until he retired several years back.  Exposure to these companies and the environment in which my brothers, sisters and I grew up in made me realize that at some point in my life I wanted to be in a leadership position – I wanted to run the world!  If I had only known then the growth I would need to be in the position that I hold today!

So why am I rambling on about my early career?  Well, at one point, I had several people attempt to convince me not to move from development into a management role.  I was reminded of this recently because someone that I’m acting as mentor to, is having the same experience.

Moving into management is tough for someone who is in a technical role.  I’m not saying it isn’t tough for other professions – it probably is.  That said, I’m speaking from the personal transition I went through.  I was used to being the one in control – at the end of the day, I could look back at the success I’d had that day pounding out the code.  I was good at what I did – I liked the tough technical problems and my managers relied on me to solve problems.  I absolutely enjoyed being a developer – it was fun, I got to solve problems, I got to play with new stuff that nobody had ever seen, I was recognized for being a person that could just get stuff done.

Eventually, I got to the point where I decided I wanted to transition into a management role.  As I began to tell people that management was something that I wanted to try.  I got feedback from all over the place that I should just stay where I was at, to eventually become a lead or an architect.  Many folks had an opinion to share and staying technical seemed to be the theme behind most of the comments.

Well, for me, it came down to what I wanted not what other people wanted for me!  This is important; you can’t let someone else determine your path forward.  If you know what you want to do with your career, then you have to make it happen.  You can blindly sit there and wait for someone to notice you and maybe give you the opportunity, or you can take proactive steps that will get you into the position you want to be in.

I recently sat down with someone who is contemplating making a similar move in their career.  We had previously discussed this “change” in their career and I know that the individual has communicated with their boss about finding a path between their current role and into a management role.  This individual than began to tell me of all the feedback they were getting from all over the place on why they should stay in the role that they are in.

I let this individual pour it all out on the table.  Then I asked them, "who cares what everyone else wants, when you look at yourself, what is it that you ultimately want to do with yourself?"  Now, I fully recognize that this individual is really good in their current role – and I mean really good.  That said, how happy are they going to be in the future if they at least didn't try?  This individual didn't hesitate, looked across the table and said, “I know I’m meant to be a manager!”  My reply, “Then why are you letting other people create doubts about what you can become?”

I have no doubt that this individual will experience some challenges moving out of the role they currently play and into a management role.  I also have no doubt that this individual will be successful in either role.  I also know the people this individual works for will provide the support needed to transition into the new role – they've done it with other folks on the team!

Sometimes you can’t listen to those around you and you need to chart your own course.  Don't be afraid to make a change and when you make the decision - proactively take steps to make it happen!

See more about my life in technology via: http://anidea4today.blogspot.com/