Agent of Change
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Transcript of Agent of Change
Agent of ChangeMatt Frost
@mfrost503http://shortwhitebaldguy.com
Overarching Goal
drive change by mastering tools
drive change by excellent communication
Topics
preparation
presentation
dealing with success
dealing with failure
Why Drive Change?
no organization does everything well
will grow your skills
it’s better than complaining!
What this talk is NOT
not a quick fix
not a one-size fits all solution
Identifying the Problem
A Real Problem...
costs time and money
is a detriment to quality and efficiency
can create friction between team members
Finding a real problem
are there processes that are painful for the team (deployment, bug tracking...)
is subpar code regularly introduced to live environments
do you even know what’s going on?
Find one to solve
pick a problem that will solve an organizational problem (not just yours) - talk to your teammates
research options for solving this problem
decide on a solution and start mastering it
don’t bring it up to your boss yet...we’re being strategic remember
This is hard...
you’re doing this because no one else will
you HAVE to know what you’re talking about
use the time available to you
prove the problem exists and your solution fixes it
“Hey boss, we suck at this”
pointing out problems is scary
do research, back up your findings
Value facts over opinions
If you can’t prove it, you shouldn’t try to change it until you can
“This is a lot of extra work”
change implemented haphazardly is more disastrous
you want to make things better, right?
it’s less work if you’re already an expert (so start there if you can)
becoming in expert beneficial for everyone
“Houston we have our problem”
Good job!
now you have to sell it to your boss
don’t waste your effort with poor presentation
invest the time to present well
The Elevator Pitch
a short pitch on what the problem is and how you intend to fix it
don’t ramble
be professional, show tact
“2nd floor please”
the elevator pitch probably won’t get you permission
a good one shows that you care
the goal is get a “tell me more”
have a training and implementation plan ready to go!
“Tell me more...”
develop a strong visual presentation
you’ll be giving this to technical and non-technical people
use the data you found in research
take feedback and use it to make your plan better
Keep it perspective
you are responsible for bringing value to the company
good ideas are shot down all the time, it’s probably not you
it’s ok to get frustrated, it means you care
:dance:
“Great plan Johnson!”
this is a tough place to get to
having backing will help deal with uncooperative team members
you got permission, don’t be timid
use it as an opportunity to mentor
Don’t let it languish
technology changes quickly
all eyes are on you
encourage your team to go deeper
value has been added, work to keep it there
You Stay Classy San Diego
stay professional
organizational win!
:sadpanda:
Don’t give up yet
feels awful
if you can, find out why
don’t be discouraged
continue learning to make a stronger case
Feels awful
you didn’t waste your time
you proved you care, they’ll remember that
be bummed (just don’t do anything stupid)
stay grounded in reality
What did I do wrong?
Talk to the appropriate person
Build a stronger case if you need to
Get as much info as you can
“chin up kid”
don’t assume the worst
if you can use the process yourself, you should
adversity is a great motivator
Common areas for change
automated testing
test driven development
version control (sadly enough)
continuous integration
continuous deployment
coding standards
It’s your career
some places won’t change
being stuck hurts your skills
you should be able to grow at work
Know your organization
know the chain of command
understand the culture
“you went over my helmet!”