Being a good husband, I sought to treat my spouse to a special meal at our local restaurant. We had been there on another occasion, and although they were not that familiar with us , they would recognise us by sight.
I called up for an twilight booking (because we like to fill our evening elsewhere) and was greeted by a charming lady who, by her voice, may have been of Italian origin. I asked for 7:00 p.m. on the next Friday, and she said 'No problem', but didn't ask my name.
I asked her if she wanted my name and a ‘phone number to reserve the booking, but she declined, telling me that at they don't take reservations that early in the evening because it wouldn't be busy.
In the event, when we turned up, you guessed it, they had a large booking and while the evening wasn't spoilt it definitely took a downturn. It was sad to have to be politely adamant, and after an interval and a drink at the bar we did make that evening date, although it wasn't what the two of us expected.
What went wrong? Well I was too easy going when I didn't make sure that I had the booking before I ended the call. I didn't get commitment.
Chatting to a customer, the other day, it became clear to me that he was suffering the same outcome. He had grown used to asking his development team 'How's it going' in a relaxed way, because he felt that it suggested unity and trust.
In fact he generally heard 'fine, its going o.k.', which he intimated to be just that. Of course it wasn't really fine, and in fact he suffered from interruptions and development problems that he hadn't expected, giving him sleepless nights and funding pressure as the development finances were consumed.
If developers and their managers aren't asked directly unambiguously what the situation is, then human nature dictates an answer that matches the question (read unclear).
So instead of stopping at the phrase 'how's it going', why not push on until you get a firm commitment.
‘how's it going?'
'When will it be tested?'
'That's the 3rd July?'
'And you will have completed development and testing?'
'All the bugs will be dealt with?'
'You are committed to deliver to schedule?'
Even if part of the answers you get are not ideal, you will be in a much better position to deal with the situation than if you just accepted their fuzzy answers.
To get commitment prepare to request it. Be clear that that you don't agree to an ambiguous reply and keep asking until you get total confirmation.
If you fail to get commitment at every stage of your effort you leave everything to fortune. By asking politely but persistently for a clear and unambiguous reply to your request you will avoid the disaster that compresses into a concertina at the end of the plan.
For the last 20 years Rob Wendes has been providing stress free business technology solutions to Business owners and professionals. http://www.tactips.com
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