tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60769452651028244232024-02-19T08:25:07.288-08:00Madden Musingsrex maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18389912644232256236noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-81616749403831243682014-03-18T10:44:00.004-07:002014-03-18T15:07:15.862-07:00INTRAPRENEUR PLAYBOOK: 3 STAGES TO ACHIEVING TRUE BUY-IN<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4q9a3mhx4QfzJA0_V_AbUbA5AQQmfSqtjdLc-WenQcT7N2vDkaHr1hoc6k8d-dL3UIPKYYAfexftu-EUlqNSQlJOIq95W3FyOPRtTYFKQvWEKOkdc-ZUIlxe6kcDQgROITkr3UJALIcNt/s1600/Buy-In.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4q9a3mhx4QfzJA0_V_AbUbA5AQQmfSqtjdLc-WenQcT7N2vDkaHr1hoc6k8d-dL3UIPKYYAfexftu-EUlqNSQlJOIq95W3FyOPRtTYFKQvWEKOkdc-ZUIlxe6kcDQgROITkr3UJALIcNt/s1600/Buy-In.jpg" /></a>One big difference
between intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs is that intrapreneurs must care about
the infrastructure they are disturbing. For
an intrapreneur, achieving buy-in for an idea is key.<br />
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In my experience, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">true
buy-in is best achieved through 3 stages: form a team, find a champion, and
achieving true buy-in from a decision maker.</b><br />
<br />
Read the full article on Huffington Post - <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/debbie-madden/intrapreneur-playbook-3-s_b_4987426.html" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">http://www.huffingtonpost.<wbr></wbr>com/debbie-madden/<wbr></wbr>intrapreneur-playbook-3-s_b_<wbr></wbr>4987426.html</a></div>
Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-68016351594894167482014-03-11T08:19:00.002-07:002014-03-30T06:57:32.668-07:004 Ways Your Business Can Benefit from Agile Engineering Practices Today<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioEZs-Hn9UBirpefhw8cbJaW0LC_IOFynM8zwpT7QxBA-kmHQ4ThKoy6w8bOBVvfiG7LmzYHUWNSnZc69xHj02unTkrojGQuNoYczURWMjr9xQkMfWEe1Vf3Cr8mE4pNEX86klMexdd3j/s1600/DSC04868.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioEZs-Hn9UBirpefhw8cbJaW0LC_IOFynM8zwpT7QxBA-kmHQ4ThKoy6w8bOBVvfiG7LmzYHUWNSnZc69xHj02unTkrojGQuNoYczURWMjr9xQkMfWEe1Vf3Cr8mE4pNEX86klMexdd3j/s1600/DSC04868.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Creating useful software is a
craft. There is no black and white formula for success. Yet, there are certain Agile
engineering practices that, if used thoughtfully, have shown to repeatedly add
value to a business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this article,
I’ll share 4 specific ways that your business can benefit today from Agile
Engineering practices.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">(If we use the basic formula of Scrum + Extreme
Programming (XP) = Agile, I am referring to the XP piece of the equation when I
say Agile Engineering Practices. Things like Test Driven Development, Pair
Programming, & Continuous Integration.)<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">In a </span><a href="http://www.jamesshore.com/Blog/Should-We-Adopt-Scrum-or-XP.html"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">brilliantly simple blog post</span></a><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">, James Shore claims</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">"Scrum
is easier and less threatening than XP(Extreme Programming), so I see a lot
more people starting out with Scrum. On the downside, the teams that start with
Scrum tend to struggle more than the teams that start with XP. The XP teams
experience more pain starting out, but then get to a high performance state
within the first year." </span></i><br />
<a name='more'></a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Yet often, a VP of
Engineering or CTO will approach me and say “I want my engineering team to get
better at Agile engineering practices so that we can go faster.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I agree with James Shore that XP is a struggle at first, which in
fact goes counter to the idea that Agile helps teams move faster. In fact, XP
has a steep learning curve, and by it’s nature, learning takes time and
learning XP is achieved by going slower than a team that isn’t doing any
learning. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">So, if “going faster” isn’t the true value of Agile engineering
practices, then what is?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I believe that the true<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> business
value of Agile engineering practices </b>is that<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> they allow a company to embrace change in a way that actually becomes
a competitive advantage</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Why?</span><br />
<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">As we enter 2014, the argument could logically be made that all,
if not most, companies are technology companies. If that’s true, then it would
follow that the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">companies that can best
leverage the process of building software are the ones that will succeed</b> in
the next decade. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">It is, of course, true that there are many competitive
advantages to be gained outside of software and that will remain true. For
example, the hedge fund that can best leverage a mathematical formula for
tomorrow’s stock predictions will have a competitive advantage. And, the retail
store that can best leverage fabrics and colors to predict tomorrow’s fashion
will have a competitive advantage. But, with 24/7 connectivity and global
information sharing, the minute you have a truly good idea is the minute your
competitors know about it. Which brings us full circle back to the idea that
the companies that can best leverage the process of building software are the
ones that will have the advantage over their competitors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Let’s say that an Education company called Acme Aces is using
Test Driven Development (TDD), Continuous Integration and Pair
Programming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The engineering team is
working on a project that will bring grading tests on iPads to K-12 classrooms.
One day, word comes down that a new Ed Tech Starup has entered the market and
is offering a service that doesn’t exist in the market – Individual student
grading from the iPads shared with parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">What’s Acme Aces to do? Luckily, Acme Aces knows their code is
solid, since it’s covered with Tests thanks to TDD. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, they are also confident that no one
person is off in the corner writing code that’s not integrated with the rest of
the system, thanks to Continuous Integration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thanks to pair programming, knowledge isn’t silo’d and there’s a healthy
cross functional team where every developer knows all pieces of the code base. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Acme Aces Management decides to be aggressive and aims to have
their own version of the iPad grading to parents available for the new school
year. With the confidence that TDD, Pair Programming and Continuous Integration
bring, the team can incorporate this change quickly. The team finishes their
current sprint and use the planning phase of the next sprint to reset the
priorities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Acme Aces can swiftly incorporate management’s change in plans
and capitalize on the change in the market so that they have a competitive
advantage. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Specifically, 4 business advantages Acme Aces has today are,
they can:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Turn on a
dime</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">In a matter of days, the new feature is prioritized,
scoped, and moved to the top of the prioritization list and is being worked on
by the team.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Re-allocate
development team members</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Those best equipped to work on the new feature can be
dedicated to it. Since pair programming and collective code ownership allow
team members to rotate and work on various parts of the code, the project isn’t
held up by any one rock star who’s too busy on something else. The whole team
can morf to the new requirements.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Avoid having
to scrap months of work</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Because the code they have completed is production ready
code that’s high quality, bug free, integrated and functional.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Have
confidence that the code already built represents the most important pieces of
the project</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Thanks to the fact that the engineering team has been
working closely with the business side to prioritize their work every 2 weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">The value of Agile
engineering practices has moved beyond the engineering team and is clearly
beneficial for the entire business. Have questions about the best way to
implement Agile engineering practices for your team? Ask any questions you
have, I can help and will gladly bat around ideas over coffee or drinks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-5544949283018469672014-03-06T19:32:00.001-08:002014-03-30T06:57:50.621-07:00Jim McCann’s Most Valuable Lesson About Life and Business<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCTFI6cbRg6L0Xg12gYBmemhoyeOI26QMMMqLC1cCYwF9r7z-Q4ZWTxC-1T_nJj62qLnvOREyE31MkhlaTtD2Z-yePy4TCmFMYxmakVozD2RtOvqjNVePFNVJl4jF2mwHfs-LcyWC1YMrs/s1600/flowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCTFI6cbRg6L0Xg12gYBmemhoyeOI26QMMMqLC1cCYwF9r7z-Q4ZWTxC-1T_nJj62qLnvOREyE31MkhlaTtD2Z-yePy4TCmFMYxmakVozD2RtOvqjNVePFNVJl4jF2mwHfs-LcyWC1YMrs/s1600/flowers.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
Tonight, I had the pleasure of attending an Inc Business
Owner’s Council (IBOC) event in New York City. Jim McCann, the founder and CEO
of <a href="http://1-800-flowers.com/">1-800-Flowers.com</a> spoke with an intimate gathering of 30 entrepreneurs for
about an hour. </div>
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I’ve been a member of the IBOC for 5 years, and I’ve been
fortunate to have a front row seat to some pretty amazing, small gatherings of various
wildly successful people. But until tonight I’ve never met someone like Jim.<br />
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Jim shared stories from his career with us. Half way
through, he stopped, and said he wanted to get to know us. He asked if we could
each tell him about ourselves. This took a good half an hour, and it was
surprisingly engaging, thanks to Jim’s ability to interject with a comment or
joke at just the right moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When it
was my turn, I said “I’m Debbie Madden. I recently exited my business and am
looking for my next great idea.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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An hour later, when the talk was done, Jim personally signed
his new book, “Talk is (Not!) Cheap”, for each of us. In mine he wrote “Debbie,
I look forward to your next big idea.” This was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">an hour</i> after I had told him one sentence about myself, and he not
only remembered, but he wrote me a personal message. I can bet that he did the
same thing for all of the others. Wow. That’s simply incredible. The man is
giving a talk to a group that’s interactive, no slides, lots of
Q&A, and he is able to remember what I said about myself. If Jim brings
even a smithering of this into his work, he’s the most active listening
executive I’ve ever met, by about a mile. Well done sir.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ok, and that wasn’t even the best part. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Jim spoke about lessons he’s learned in his career. He told
stories of being the first transaction on AOL, of being early to create a URL
and website for a business, about being early to adopt the phone number moniker
(1-800-Flowers.com). He also told stories of being an early adopter of dozens of
ideas that didn’t pan out. He postulated on what his big life lessons were.
Some of my favorite are – <o:p></o:p></div>
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<ul>
<li>Make it fun</li>
<li>Keeping score is important</li>
<li>Create a shared currency (a shared
incentive system that achieves true buy-in)</li>
<li>Recognize individuals</li>
<li>Setting goals matters, and so does
interim goals</li>
<li>On a daily basis, come to work with
a plan. If you come to work without a plan, you are more likely to spend your
day being reactive, and missing a chance to work on the most important stuff. </li>
</ul>
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And still, that wasn’t even the best part either. <o:p></o:p></div>
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For me, <b>the best part of the night was when I realized the
true brilliance in the most valuable lesson I had just learned from Jim McCann</b>.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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When I was talking to Jim at the end of the night I asked
him, “Jim, you got into many things early that are a big part of your success,
like the internet, 1-800 number, AOL ecommerce. But you also got into many
other things early that failed. You said that for the first several years you
had a website, it had no traffic, yet you chose to keep the website. Other
projects that haven’t taken off have been shelved in less time. How do you
decide when to pursue an idea and when do you decide to stop throwing good
money after bad and throw in the towel on an idea?” Jim said to me “There is no
formula. We continuously evaluate our business, measure success of an idea, and
look for trends in the market and in the world. We talk to lots of people. In
2008, we had a dozen projects and the recession hit, we shelved all projects
except for 4, including mobile and social media.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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And then I said Thanks to Jim and I walked away. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And then it struck me. The most valuable thing I learned
tonight from Jim McCann was – <o:p></o:p></div>
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Success isn’t a result of taking risks. It isn’t about
getting lucky. It isn’t due to being in the right place at the right time. All
of these things help, but none of these things creates <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lasting</i> success. None of these things creates a business that can
last decades and continuously survive as the world around it changes. No.
Success isn’t a one trick pony.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">True success is: The wisdom
to know when to catch <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the</i> next wave, combined
with the realism to run a business by good solid leadership, day in and day
out. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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Thank you Lewis Schiff for enabling my path in life to cross
with Jim’s. Thank you Jim McCann for choosing to spend the evening enlightening
a group of entrepreneurs.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-26808666304666256392014-03-03T13:47:00.000-08:002014-03-03T13:51:32.640-08:003 Recruiting Tactics You’re Probably Missing Out On<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiznmM4f6Efwvis3cIGtzXxgFdQlZC4wv6vJA6NuE6LUJvAKTxpnBbneyS_lApImy7wzLBEiDyFbWPkrMR7R9F_GIEujQdp46aT83M6o-X2SJbO5O00oio72qafyvrgTwYU-X6Z4yW_mZ8a/s1600/work-with-us-we-are-hiring.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiznmM4f6Efwvis3cIGtzXxgFdQlZC4wv6vJA6NuE6LUJvAKTxpnBbneyS_lApImy7wzLBEiDyFbWPkrMR7R9F_GIEujQdp46aT83M6o-X2SJbO5O00oio72qafyvrgTwYU-X6Z4yW_mZ8a/s1600/work-with-us-we-are-hiring.jpg" height="204" width="320" /></a>Whether you’re a startup looking for your first employee, or
an established firm looking to scale, keeping on top of the best hiring
practices is a key competitive advantage. Here are three recruiting tactics
that are underutilized:</div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1. Gender-Neutral
Hiring Practices</b></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><o:p></o:p></u></b><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
In 2013, <span style="font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">a study published in the American Psychological Association by the
authors Gaucher, Friesen, & Kay called, “<a href="http://www.ere.net/2013/03/01/you-dont-know-it-but-women-see-gender-bias-in-your-job-postings/">Evidence That Gendered Wording inJob Advertisements Exists and Sustains Gender Inequality</a>, ” concluded that certain
masculine-themed words impacted the percentage of women that applied for jobs. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Solution? </b>By
changing a few key words to be more communal, you can attrack a more balanced
and diverse applicant pool.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I conducted a study myself. I had a job
posting for an Agile Engineer in New York City that was receiving almost 0
women applicants. I also had a job posting for an HR Manager that was receiving
approximately 10% women applicants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
read the study on masculine-themed words and identified the phrases and words
in my job description that I thought were ‘at fault’. I kept the heading and
95% of both job descriptions identical, and changed maybe 10 words in each. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s worth noting that I myself am a woman in
tech, and have been for 20 years. I was the one who wrote the original job
posting and I was the one guilty of writing these masculine-themed words in the
first place.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Result? </b>The
repost of the Agile Engineering role saw an uptick to about 20% women. The HR
Manager saw a tremendous uptick to about 50% women. It was absolutely
fascinating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2. Collaboration <u><o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Everybody thinks they are collaborating, but I challenge you
to ask “What one or two things can I do to increase my collaboration?” Over the
years, the single best group of candidates I have encountered have come not
from referrals, but from collaboration. What’s the difference? Referrals are a
subset of Collaborations, in which someone does a one-way introduction. For
example, an employee refers a candidate to her company. Collaboration is a
two-way referral system. For example, a friend of mine is a VP of Tech at a
company in NYC that has a 20 person Ruby on Rails team. He sends me folks that
aren’t a fit for him and I send him folks that aren’t a fit for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Solution?</b> The
key to effective and useful collaboration is creating your collaboration
network in advance. Create a circle of ‘adjacent’ peers. Adjacent meaning they
are looking for employees that are close but not identical to the types of
employees you are looking for. Perhaps you are hiring Ruby on Rails developers
in NYC for an established firm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your ‘adjacent’
peer circle for collaboration might include: <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">VP Engineering for a Boston consulting company
that can’t hire anyone in NY</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">A CEO of a Startup that can only offer
developers equity and not salary</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">A CTO that is hiring Ruby on Rails developers
who also know iOS</span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<b>The Result?</b> Don’t
expect a flood of candidates. And, do expect to give first, then receive. The
next time you come across a star candidate that doesn’t fit your needs, do
whatever you can to help get that candidate a job with your ‘adjacent’ peer
group. They will reciprocate and you’ll
feel good knowing you helped get an amazing person a great job, and you’ll also
be introduced to a whole new pool of amazingly talented people.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3. Referrals <u><o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
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Many places give referral bonuses, but <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">rarely do I see a company giving a referral bonus for candidates that
make it through step 1 of an interview process</b>. In my experience, many employees
shy away from introducing someone they know to their company for fear that they
won’t make it all the way through. Employees tend to hold out until they think
they’ve found someone they are reasonably confident will make it through the
entire interview process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This leads to many missed opportunities for great referrals.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Granted, we don’t want to open the flood-gates and give
employees $500 for any Tom, Dick or Harry they introduce to the recruiting
team. I’ve personally got a big Italian family who I could introduce and make a
killing on, and I’m quite sure none of them would get the job. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Solution? </b>Offer
employees a referral bonus for each referral that makes it through Step 1 of
the interview process. For example,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>step
1 might be a phone screen, which can easily weed out those that aren’t a
fit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Employees should be encouraged to
refer people who they believe will be a good addition to the company and who
will be valuable and happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Result?</b>
Employees will trust that your recruiting process will filter for good matches,
and will also reward them for their efforts. Everyone wins. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-20098149814497275302014-01-21T12:39:00.001-08:002014-01-21T12:40:26.398-08:00Starting a New Company? Step 4: Create a Landing Page with KickoffLabs<div class="MsoNormal">
After 10 years of growing a successful consulting company
from the ground up, into a profitable, 50 person firm, I've sold the business and I’m launching a startup. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Launching a startup is exhilarating! There's so much to do, and it's definitely an adjustment from working at a 50 person company. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-fU1uvg3uQgFMkVwaaIAkRG7TaaJZHBJiEsshM1qDcsY5RxDHOqPHFjaiRBhsqhS4SAP-sgT2QJ3AuUjAOjQC3rTDmvGFO-tEgtMG1osZ6wDWY81e3_peEI-CZtRAU7XJ5vJeSIZ_gXp6/s1600/mountain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-fU1uvg3uQgFMkVwaaIAkRG7TaaJZHBJiEsshM1qDcsY5RxDHOqPHFjaiRBhsqhS4SAP-sgT2QJ3AuUjAOjQC3rTDmvGFO-tEgtMG1osZ6wDWY81e3_peEI-CZtRAU7XJ5vJeSIZ_gXp6/s1600/mountain.jpg" height="232" width="320" /></a>Many things are different. For starters, the way I generate and process ideas is drastically different. I used to rely on collaboration with my co-workers. Now, I've taken inspiration from the movie"Akeelah and the Bee". Akeelah is studying for the big spelling bee, and he coach sets her free to study on her own. She's terrified and confides in her mom, who tells her "I bet if you just look around, you got 50,000 coaches."</div>
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Thanks to the outpouring of support from the NYC and Boston tech communities, I truly feel like I've got 50,000 coaches. </div>
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With the combined advise of my coaches, here are the first 5 things I did.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Step 1: Take a Break</b></div>
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This is specifically a mental break. A time in which you
give yourself permission to stop thinking about everything in the past and
allowed yourself to not yet think about all the things to come. A time for the
present, for the now. To clear your brain, reset, and watch reality TV to your
heart’s content.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Step 2: Brain Dump
onto Index Cards<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Go to Staples and buy a giant pack of blank index
cards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then brain dump everything
you can think of. Don’t worry about how realistic anything is, how long it will
take, how important or unimportant it is. Just get everything out of your
brain, onto index cards. One idea per index card please. For example
“Incorporate LLC” is what I wrote on one index card. “Create Hiring Plan” is
what I wrote on another. “Buy garbage can for office” is yet another. Doesn’t
matter how small or large the items are, keep it simple, don’t worry about how,
when, where, just get all the stuff you think you need to do to start your company
down.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Step 3: Create
Iteration Zero<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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I come from the world of Agile, where everything is done in
iterations. I even do my kids homework in iterations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Starting a business should be no different.
To create Iteration Zero, you can be as formal or informal as you’d like. For
me, I was quite informal. I took a look at the brain dump of 200 index cards I
had just created and thought “Holy Cow, that’s a lot of stuff, I’m
overwhelmed.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then I took a 5 minute
break. And then I asked myself “What small set of things should I do week one?”
<o:p></o:p></div>
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An important question to ask here is – “Do any of these
items have a cost of delay?” If something is a ‘now or never’ type of thing,
that you must either do in week one or you don’t get a chance to do it again,
you need to know that and make sure that item gets into week one.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Be realistic about how much you can accomplish. Here’s where
estimating and all the good Scrum behaviors come in handy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Truth is, you’re not going to know how much
you can get done. That’s the whole point of iteration zero, to see how much you
can accomplish in week one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to
worry. Pick a few things, start on a couple, finish these couple before you
start on others. Be careful to not have too many balls in the air at once. Take
a task fully to completion before bringing on more work. For all you Agile
folks out there, I’m preaching to the choir.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Step 4: Create a Landing
Page<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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This is super fun. I used <a href="http://www.kickofflabs.com/">KickoffLabs</a>. I found the site to be top
notch, but more importantly, there are real people on the other side of the
internet that actually respond to your emails. What a concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They walked me through the entire process,
and even gave me free access to <a href="http://www.landingpages107.com/">Landing
Pages 107</a>, an easy to follow online tutorial on creating effective landing
pages.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Last Thursday, I launched my landing page – <a href="http://www.debbiemadden.com/">www.debbiemadden.com</a>. KickoffLabs walked
me through not only the design of the page, but also gave me feedback on
content, and gave me advice on how to offer great things to my audience like a
content piece that’s valuable to them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Step 5: Take another
break<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Starting a company is hard. There’s a lot of temptation to
go directly into overdrive. Problem with this is, if you don’t stop to think
big picture, chances are, you’ll go 100 miles per hour in the wrong direction.
It’s been shown that wandering minds are the often the most creative. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The New York Times piece <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/29/science/29tier.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0">“Discovering
the Virtues of a Wandering Mind”</a> states that a wandering mind “<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">fosters creativity and helps you solve
problems</span><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 15.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">And then?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">The process I
describe here took me through week one of my journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel energized, focused, and in control. I
have the large majority of hard work ahead of me, and I’m glad I’m going into
this journey with fresh mental energy and a de-cluttered mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">To learn the next
5 things I do, stay tuned. Part 2 of this series coming soon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-9903052762701316252013-09-26T08:12:00.002-07:002013-09-26T08:15:04.947-07:00What Would I do if I had One Month to be CEO?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5LJokvNA_LxV4VIpWzp3vetJS-V2NjSn5oPLcH4_-R6jarD3mV1htnRNpNJNlXusayM1Ze1TSAy_Or40-w4T9ekfQIuXkVR7I1qrjmRpNmnrQh-TtwDFkcE2KLD7aMGEGtj5rl0ALOYwX/s1600/IMG_4981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5LJokvNA_LxV4VIpWzp3vetJS-V2NjSn5oPLcH4_-R6jarD3mV1htnRNpNJNlXusayM1Ze1TSAy_Or40-w4T9ekfQIuXkVR7I1qrjmRpNmnrQh-TtwDFkcE2KLD7aMGEGtj5rl0ALOYwX/s200/IMG_4981.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Whether
discussing it with our friends, seeing it as a topic on our favorite TV show,
or just imagining it for ourselves, we are all familiar with the question “What
would you do if you had one month to live?” And even though we’ve heard it a
bunch of times before, this is not just some fantasy, throwaway question. If
taken seriously, the “one month to live” question will challenge you to focus
on the things that are truly important in your life, whether that be family,
friends, career, or hobbies. It can also help you learn how to live life to the
fullest in order to minimize and eliminate the regrets that many people have as
they grow older.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt;">Recently, I
was thinking about a slightly different version of this common question. My
version was related to work, and it was “What would I do if I only had one
month to be CEO?” It started out innocently enough as a fleeting thought, but
as soon as I took the question seriously, it spiraled into a long,
well-thought-out exercise that was helpful to me, and I believe could be
helpful to everyone. Some of the questions I asked myself were:</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p><br />
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“What would I do differently?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Would my focus stay similar or change
completely?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“How could I operate as CEO without leaving
myself open to having regrets?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">See, I have
been the CEO of Cyrus for a glorious 5 months now, and the amount that I have
learned has been immeasurable. It took a few weeks to get into the swing of
things, but soon enough, I found my own groove. My confidence has grown every
day as I get more and more used to the position, and with that has come a
better ability to lead through making more confident decisions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">One of the
most important things I did when I took over as CEO of Cyrus was to make a
conscious effort to seek out advice from mentors and other people who have
served in similar roles. The advice was incredibly useful and helpful, but
interestingly enough, I found that most of it was focused on the long term.
Just as in most other aspects of life, focusing on a healthy long term outlook
at work is a fruitful exercise. I mean, if I only had 30 days to live, I might
eat bacon and donuts at every meal so I could enjoy every moment to its
fullest. But I wouldn’t even dream of doing that if I was hoping to live
another 70 years. Just like with Cyrus, where if I want to stay on as a
successful CEO for years to come, I can’t run the business with a 30 day
outlook. Yet, I believe there are also some tremendously valuable lessons to be
learned by focusing on the short term. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">So, what
would I do if I had one month to be CEO?
I would…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">1. I
would make every day count for my team.</span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">
What does this mean? In general, it means that I would do as much as I could to
help them each and every day. More specifically, I would come into work each
morning and identify one thing I could do that day that would have as positive
an impact as possible on as many employees as possible. And then I would work
hard to ensure that thing was done as quickly as it could be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">2. I
would say “thank you” more.</span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> And
not just the words “thank you.” I would buy gifts. I would mail thank you
notes. I would pick up the phone, or use Skype, or even instant message
employees on our internal messaging system just to say thanks. I would do all I
can to show how much I appreciate everything people do for both Cyrus as a
business and me as a CEO, from the biggest accomplishment down to the smallest
detail.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">3. I
would toss my laptop out the window.</span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">
Okay, I wouldn’t do this literally, because someone could get hurt. But what I
mean is that I would spend my days having face-to-face conversations with
employees, clients, and whoever else I could. We could have coffee. Have lunch.
Whatever. Just as long as it’s not done virtually.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">4. I
would speak my mind, and have the courage to act on things I believe in.</span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> To be honest, I am already quite an
outspoken person. And I think that the straightforward openness and honesty I
provide has been a benefit to the companies I have worked for. But there are times
when I do still hold back, because often when you are focused on the long term
health of a business, holding back on communicating what you believe is a
necessary and a sound strategy. But, with only one month to go as CEO, I’d want
folks to know where I stand on basically everything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Debbie Maddenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12609844224882765541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-16282211801112493062013-09-12T11:07:00.000-07:002013-09-12T11:07:37.436-07:00Want Your Startup to be Successful? Hire Intrapreneurs<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
Before I was named the CEO of Cyrus Innovation, I
spent 9 great years working my way up at the company. I watched it grow from a
small startup with big ideas, to the cutting-edge software development and
consulting firm it is today. Before that, I spent 8 years at various other tech
firms, most of which I began working with at the startup stage. And just like
with every other person who chose to build their career around growing tech
companies (or any type of company, for that matter), I have experienced my
share of successes and failures. But from each of these experiences, I learned
a valuable thing or two.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Looking back, there are some common traits that the
successful companies I worked for all had in common. For one, everyone involved
with these great companies, from the CEO on down to each software developer,
had a <a href="http://debbiemadden.blogspot.com/2013/08/building-company-around-passion.html">passion</a> for what the company
stood for and was looking to accomplish. But that isn’t enough. At the startup
stage especially, not only do you need people who are passionate, but you also
need employees with a certain personality type. You need people who are willing
to think outside the box to come up with great ideas, and who have the guts to
pursue those ideas with a goal of putting them into play. What you need… is
intrapreneurs.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you don’t know what intrapreneurship is, the definition
is simple. It’s just like entrepreneurship, but acted out within a larger
organization. For example, an employee at a large corporation is acting as a
intrapreneur by coming up with an idea, then taking the necessary steps to
implement that idea in a way that gives it the best chance of resulting in
success (which in most cases means profit). This may often include things like
starting a small division inside a large firm in order to innovate in a certain
fashion, developing a new product, etc. But even though intrapreneurship has
historically been thought of in terms of smaller parts of a large organization,
that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a vital place in a startup.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Think about it this way. What is the most important thing a
startup must focus on in order to truly succeed at a high level versus
established competitors? INNOVATION. To
truly make it big and grow your startup business, you must bring something new
to the table. Whether that’s a new product, a new process, or a new way to
attack a market, startups must pursue new angles with vigor and courage. And
who better to do that than employees with a natural entrepreneurial spirit?
Those who dream up a great (though sometimes risky) idea, and have the
confidence to walk into the CEO’s office and pitch them on why they should
dedicate precious startup resources to see the idea through. Who are willing to
put their own reputation, time, and sometimes even job on the line to make it
happen. Those are true intrapreneurs. And if you want your startup to be
successful, that’s who you should be looking to hire!<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-60100102459491055792013-09-10T13:32:00.000-07:002013-09-10T13:33:04.492-07:00Common Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring Programmers<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
No matter what type of business you are involved in, there
is one element that clearly must be present in order for you to succeed. This
vital element to success is TALENT, and as the CEO of software development
consulting firm <u><a href="http://www.cyrusinnovation.com/">Cyrus Innovation</a></u>, one of the most important areas I need
to make sure to staff with high-level talent is our team of programmers. But
picking out the right candidates who fit into our cutting-edge business model
is not always easy. However, I have learned a lot of lessons over the</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
years that
now allow me to minimize hiring mistakes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p>
<o:p> </o:p>Here are a few common mistakes to avoid when hiring
programmers:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1. Rushing to make a
hire for a new project.</b> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a>There’s nothing more exciting than bringing on a
new project to your firm. And there’s nothing scarier than realizing you don’t
have the personnel on staff to handle it. Maybe that’s because all of your
programmers already have full plates of work. Or maybe it’s because the project
is so unique that you need a specialist. Whatever the case may be, you need to
avoid making a hire out of fear and desperation. Take your time. Find the
perfect programmer for this project, as well as other projects you have in the
pipeline. In the end, your clients will thank you for it.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2. Not weighing
cultural fit heavily enough. </b>You may come across the most talented
programmer in the world, but if they don’t agree with the beliefs and goals of
your business, they will do you more harm than good. Great businesses often
thrive because of their community atmosphere, and one bad egg can spoil the
whole bunch. That’s why you must make sure to hire people who believe in what
your company is doing. But how? Here’s a hint. Try taking candidates on more
casual interviews outside of the office. They may be more inclined to open up
to you truthfully over a nice meal as opposed to sitting across from your desk. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3. Not seriously
considering outsourcing.</b> There is something comforting about handing an
important project to an in-house employee. They are under your roof and at your
fingertips. You are their main means for financial support.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And simply, you just know them and their
skill set very well. But in certain situations, not considering outside
programmers is a major mistake. For starters, a lot of the most talented
programmers out there work freelance. They do this because they like the
freedom of picking and choosing their projects, not because they aren’t
talented enough to get a permanent, in-house job. Like I discussed earlier,
talent is the key to creating great project. So don’t ignore talent just
because it isn’t under your own roof.</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">4. Not giving
candidates a tryout first.</b> So, let’s say that you interviewed a bunch of
possible programmers and narrowed the list down to your favorite candidate. You
could just go ahead and hire them right away. But you could also hire them on a
trial basis for a specific project. Now, this is not a way to get cheap labor.
On the contrary, you should pay them a fair wage that is somewhat equivalent to
what they would make if you hired them full time, because what you are trying
to do here is test out what it would be like to have them work for your
company. If they do a great job, you can now be ultra-comfortable hiring them.
If they don’t, it is very easy to move on to other candidates.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-73634397617325260052013-08-15T06:19:00.004-07:002013-08-15T06:27:38.473-07:00Building a Company around Passion<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C7aQxYkg8yk/UgzT8L_YemI/AAAAAAAAAG8/zu0YJHleqDg/s1600/IMG_4814.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C7aQxYkg8yk/UgzT8L_YemI/AAAAAAAAAG8/zu0YJHleqDg/s320/IMG_4814.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
For over 17 years, my business life has revolved around
building and growing tech companies from startup through success. Doing this is
a job, no doubt. But if that’s all that it was, there’s no way I would have been
able to achieve the things I have throughout my career. Nor would I have
enjoyed the past 17 years of my life nearly as much. No, tech entrepreneurship
is more than just a job for me. It is a passion!</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p> </o:p>In April of 2013, I was named the CEO of <a href="http://www.cyrusinnovation.com/">Cyrus Innovation</a>,
we craft mobile and web apps for clients. I have been with the company for over
9 amazing years, and in that time I have further developed my core values to
where I now honor honesty, courage, and fairness above all else. But since I was
named CEO just a few short months ago, one thing became crystal clear. None of
those three vital values are enough without the glue that holds them all
together… PASSION.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p>At Cyrus, building around passion is my major focus as the
CEO. This applies to every area of the business, from the company’s leadership,
to its employees, products, and even clients. I have developed some rules on
how to best do this, which should be helpful to anyone who wants to make
passion a bigger part of their business or work life.</div>
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<b>1. Set the tone at
the top.</b> As the CEO of Cyrus, I have to be the one who sets the example for
all my employees to follow. And that starts with showing up to work each day
wearing my passion on my sleeve. You’d be amazed at how much more productivity
you will get out of your employees when they know they’re working for someone
who truly cares about what they do. Passion is infectious, so put it out there
at the top, and it will surely trickle down to all levels of your organization.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>2. Hire for passion.</b>
A Harvard degree is impressive, but hiring an employee with one won’t do you
any good if they don’t believe in what your company stands for. And while it’s
the top-level management’s job to inspire passion, an employee who just sees
what they’re doing as nothing more than a job will never reach their full
potential. That’s why you need to put some hiring practices in place to make
sure you only bring on employees who really care. And when you realize you have
made a mistake with a hire, which happens to all of us, don’t hesitate to
correct the problem.</div>
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<b>3. Reward Passion.</b>
Even the most passionate person needs to know that the great things they bring
to the table are not going unnoticed. So make sure you show your best employees
that you see and appreciate all the things they’re doing. This will not only
keep them motivated, but also act to motivate their peers.</div>
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<b>4. Listen to your
employees.</b> For starters, seriously consider policies and procedures that
are suggested by your workers, and try to implement them whenever possible.
Another suggestion is to put employees in places and on projects that they
truly believe in. At Cyrus, we may have multiple software development projects
going on at one time. It’s my job as the CEO to assess what’s in the pipeline
and put employees on projects that they believe in and will excel at.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>5. Take on projects
you are passionate about.</b> Not all projects and clients are created equally.
That’s why at Cyrus, we have adopted a policy of only taking engagements we are
truly excited about. And to go even farther, we will only pursue a potential
new client if we have a champion inside the organization that’s passionate enough
about the client to completely dedicate themselves to winning the account and
personally tending to the project. This helps us to only take on projects that
are right for us, our employees, and our clients, resulting in much better
relationships, performance, and finished products.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-35615482032831706942012-10-16T07:43:00.002-07:002014-03-20T10:29:59.735-07:00Before You Find a Technical Co-founder, Answer These 4 Questions <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="color: #262626;">You’re an entrepreneur and your startup is based on an amazing
business idea. You’ve struck “creative gold” and now you are ready for the next
stage: developing your app.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One of the most important steps, maybe <i>the</i> most important step, is to find a great team: a team who shares
your enthusiasm, and compliments your skillset. For many business-savvy
entrepreneurs one of the first key hires is a technical co-founder.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a name='more'></a><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, deciding which specific type of technical expert to
bring into your startup can be a tough call. Having worked in this industry for
nearly 17 years, I have seen entrepreneurs struggle with this. Companies that
have thought through the 4 questions below have fared better than most. Taking
the time to go through these questions will help you make the right decisions
moving forward:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.2pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Does my startup currently have a team member who knows how to
read code?</span></b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">If someone on your team knows how to read code, this section is
not for you. This ‘someone’ can be the founder, an employee, an advisor, or a
contractor. If your team includes at least one person that can read code, skip
to Question 2. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
If code-literacy is non-existent in your current team, then keep
reading.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
This may <i>not</i> seem obvious,
but <b>as a first step, </b>I recommend
that you<b> find someone who can read code </b>and<b> make them part of your team</b>: <b>As a part time Technical Advisor</b>. This
person will ideally be a seasoned, senior-level person that has seen both
success and failure in software development teams. Perhaps she is a serial entrepreneur, or a
member of a tech team at an established company.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
The key to this first step is that <b>the Technical Advisor will join your team in a part-time capacity</b>. Why: Because this <i>drastically</i> widens your net of possible candidates. A Technical Advisor
can keep their day job. She can work 2 hours a week for you (either for pay,
equity, performance based-bonus or for bartered services) and keep her other
job. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
In terms of how/where to find a part time Technical Advisor, I’d
recommend asking your network, and your network’s network. This is not
something that you will post a job ad for. Searched your LinkedIn, Twitter and
Facebook connections and see who you know. See who your network knows. Tell
everyone you know you are looking for a Technical Advisor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
Starting this way – i.e. bringing in a part-time collaborator to help evaluate the jargon-filled, code-ridden world of technical expertise – is
less expensive and less risky than hiring a technical co-founder or a CTO right
off the bat. Having this person on your team will pay dividends and here’s why:
<b>finding a competent technical co-founder
without the advice of an internal, “code-literate” member will be extremely
difficult.</b> However great your idea,
if you cannot read the code a technical candidate presents to you, you will not
be able to know if he or she will develop your plans the way you envision. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.2pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></b><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Next, consider this: <b>What are my near and long-term goals for
the code I need to develop? </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 13.5pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">This question assumes you have a team member who can read code (aka:
an “Advisor”). Either you found them via Question 1 or someone on your existing
team can read code.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Now you are close to hiring someone to code your application.
Maybe you don’t have a single line of code written yet. Maybe you already have
some code and are looking to raise Series A funding. Or, maybe you have
secured funding and are building an MVP in order to get traction with customers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">In any case, I'd recommend sitting down with your Advisor or
code-literate team member and writing down your answers to the following
questions. This exercise will help you think about your near and long-term
goals: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt .5in; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 28.35pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt 28.35pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.15pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #262626; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Do you want the code your team builds to be a kernel for future product
development? Or will it be throwaway code?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 28.35pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt 28.35pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.15pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #262626; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Do you have a tech stack in mind or is it open? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 28.35pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt 28.35pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.15pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #262626; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Do you want to start with a web or mobile app? If you answered
“web,” and assuming you will eventually build an accompanying mobile app, will
you choose to build a native mobile app or skin the web app to look good on
mobile?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 28.35pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt 28.35pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.15pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #262626; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Are you targeting a specific launch date? For example, if your
business is seasonal, do you need to launch by November 15 in time for the holiday
season?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 28.35pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 11.0pt 28.35pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.15pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #262626; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">What are the biggest technical risks the company faces? How can you
test these in the ‘cheapest’ way possible?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -14.2pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">With questions 1
and 2 taken care of, you are now ready to find a technical co-founder. Which
brings us to the questions: <b>Should I hire a technical co-founder, a CTO or a
developer? </b>and<b> How should I
compensate this person?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
In truth, at the end of the day, <b>regardless
of title</b>, the job description is the same: <b>This person will be
responsible for the creation and upkeep of your code base.</b> If your company grows, this person will be
responsible for building out a tech team and may or may not manage this
team. If your company does not grow, the
role of this person will remain close to the code on an ongoing basis.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
You and your Advisor can decide if you should title the role Lead
Developer, CTO, or Technical Co-Founder. I’d recommend actually posting several jobs,
some for a Technical Co-Founder, some for a CTO and some for a Lead
Developer. I have seen multiple job
titles attract different candidates, even if they all have identical job
descriptions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
How do you know when you’ve found the person you are seeking? It is your Advisor’s responsibility to
vet the technical abilities of candidates. And it is your job to vet the non-technical
aspects of candidates. (Going forward,
your Advisor will also help evaluate the performance of this hire, other
technical hires and any tech-related partnerships.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
I recommend creating a set of acceptance criteria prior to
talking to the first candidate. This way, if you find a candidate who passes
both the technical and non-technical vetting rounds, you can be confident that
the person is a good fit. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br />
In terms of compensation options, you
have multiple arrangements to choose from. You can hire someone full time, part
time, or contract to hire. You can pay
salary, hourly, equity, bartered services, and/or bonus. (Note: There are laws
regarding what each type of compensation and employee classification can be
tied to specific types of work arrangements. For advice on this, please <a href="mailto:dmadden@cyrusinnovation.com">email me</a>.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 14.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 13.5pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -13.5pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">As you embark on hiring a Technical Co-Founder, the last question to
consider is: <b>How will I move my
company forward as I take the time I need to hire?</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Taking time to find the right
technical expert takes time. Expect it to take 3 months. But, in direct
conflict with this is the fact that startups thrive on getting product to
market quickly.</div>
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<br />
Luckily, the time spent searching for
an employee doesn’t have to be independent of time spent getting product developed.
<b>You can move forward with your
product development while you make your technical hire.</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 13.5pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">How?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Many entrepreneurs have
effectively bridged the 3 month gap and bought themselves time to “hire slowly”
by outsourcing the first three months of development. They do this by hiring a <a href="http://www.cyrusinnovation.com/"><i>local</i> consulting firm</a> to pump out high
quality code. </span><span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Note that this
process is not the same as offshoring product development. Rather, it is a means to maintaining the hyper-productivity
inherent in all startups.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 13.5pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Someone once told me it was like
‘renting a brain’, and that’s basically what you are doing. You are paying for
experts to come in: You are taking advantage of a team of developers that have
worked together already, know how to build high quality code using modern
technology languages and using modern technology practices. The word “local” is key. You want people that
you can physically meet with in person. You are building your vision, and
whether it’s in your head, in a word doc, or in a prototype, it’s still fuzzy
and unclear. Colocating, at least part of the time, with the consulting firm is
the most effective way to benefit from the 3 month ‘bridge the gap’ plan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 13.5pt;">
<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">As a bonus, as you vet and onboard technical
candidates, the consulting firm may be
able to help with interviewing and onboarding.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">In summary, I
recommend:</span></div>
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<ol>
<li>Ensuring you have a code-literate
team member</li>
<li>Writing down your near and long
term goals</li>
<li>Working with your code-literate
team member to vet and hire a Technical Co-founder</li>
<li>Buy yourself 3 months to hire
slowly by having a local consulting firm build the first 3 months of your
product</li>
</ol>
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<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-34126249965096638512012-07-23T19:23:00.000-07:002012-07-23T19:23:38.122-07:00MVP - When to Start CodingLast week, I published a blog on the Cyrus Cylinder called "<a href="http://blog.cyrusinnovation.com/2012/07/minimum-viable-product-when-to-start-coding.html">Minimum Viable Product - When to Start Coding</a>". <br />
<br />
In short, it provides a checklist that will help you identify when you are in that sweet spot: when you have just enough of a solid idea to use your development budget and start coding, yet you are still a teeny bit scared your idea sucks. <br />
<br />
Happy reading.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-22683984415043520442012-07-19T19:56:00.000-07:002012-07-19T20:00:27.997-07:00Scrum vs XP - Which comes first?<br />
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">When embarking on Agile, many teams start with Scrum. Sooner or later, they inquire about XP. Is there one 'right' way of implementing Scrum and XP? Do you 'have' to do both? </span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">This <a href="http://jamesshore.com/Blog/Should-We-Adopt-Scrum-or-XP.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">article</a> by James Shore does a great job of summing it up. He says <span style="line-height: 19px;">"Scrum is easier and less threatening than XP, so I see a lot more people starting out with Scrum. On the downside, the teams that start with Scrum tend to struggle more than the teams that start with XP. The XP teams experience more pain starting out, but then get to a high performance state within the first year." </span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;">As Agile evolves, and as Lean Startup enters the picture, I am sure of only one thing, that people will continue to debate this topic. </span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-size: 13px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">For me, I can say that I have seen successes both small and large when a team implements either one of Scrum or XP, and also success when they implement both. It's not so much that you go through the motions, but rather that you understand why you are going through them and make them meaningful for your team.</span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-size: 13px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-size: 13px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-13593010281996675852012-06-28T04:59:00.000-07:002013-08-15T06:15:36.808-07:00The Art of the Same Day Job Offer<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DR6HfKXud8Y/UgzTyu47cyI/AAAAAAAAAGs/Dahk3SnNwDM/s1600/DSC03428.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DR6HfKXud8Y/UgzTyu47cyI/AAAAAAAAAGs/Dahk3SnNwDM/s320/DSC03428.JPG" width="320" /></a>To land the best developers in town, make a job offer the same
day you bring the candidate on site.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="text-align: center;">I have spoken to hundreds of hiring managers over the last
16 years. I often get asked: Where are
all the good developers? How come I can’t manage to hire any of them? When I dig into their recruiting process in
the hopes of helping the hiring manager answer this question, I too often find
that they are doing more things than they realize right, but are getting in
their own way in the end zone. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It often plays out like this: The company writes an engaging
and fun job description and gets some interest. Company interviews a handful of
developers. Then….. thinks about who
they like best. By the time the hiring managers decide who they want to make an
offer to, they are often shocked to learn the developer has multiple offers or
worse, has already accepted another job.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Please believe me when I tell you that developers are
interviewing with more than just your company and often, the simple act of
being the first to offer them a job puts you at an advantage. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oh, and as a side note, if you are a small (less than 100
people) business, it also goes a long way to have the CEO or senior execs
personally speak with the candidates that are getting a job offer. Candidates want to work for a small company
often because they believe in the vision of those that are running it. It’s
very powerful to allow the candidates the chance one-on-one to chat with those
creating this vision, to hear first hand about the company and to ask
questions.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In response to this, I often hear “Well, I believe you, but
we just can’t make a job offer the same day we bring a candidate on site.” Oh
really? Please tell me why, I’d love to hear it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will bet you $5
that you can. Here’s an exercise that
will help you figure out how. Ask
yourself “Why” five times. (Wikipedia describes 5 Whys as “a question-asking technique used to
explore the cause-and-effect relationships underlying a particular problem. The
primary goal of the technique is to determine the root cause of a defect or
problem.”). The idea is to identify the root cause and then work on
addressing this root cause. That in turn
will allow you achieve progress on the item you initially identified as an
issue.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s an example of how this may play out:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Why</span> can’t I make a job offer to candidates the
same day I bring them onsite?</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Answer: Because our CEO isn’t
always onsite the same day we bring the candidates onsite, and we have to get
his approval before we make any offers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span>Why do we have to get the CEO approval before
making an offer?</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Answer: Because we want to ensure
we hire candidates that meet our criteria both financially and technically, and
also fit with our culture and the CEO is the one who approves these decisions.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Why can’t we pre-define our criteria so that
senior execs know when they see a candidate that meets these criteria?</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Answer: We could, but our CEO also wants to personally
meet each candidate that we make an offer to.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Why can’t we make the offer while the candidate
is onsite, and tell them everyone that gets an offer gets to meet the CEO in
person, and then schedule the CEO meeting within the next week?</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Answer: I guess we can. But, what if the CEO doesn’t agree with our
assessment?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>5Why can’t the offer be contingent upon the CEO
meeting going well?</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Answer: I guess it can.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
This is a very simple example. I
am certain your particular hiring process and company situation is unique. If anyone would like help with the Five Whys
exercise, email me and I can facilitate the discussion. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Once you identify the root cause
of not being able to make a job offer the same day a candidate is onsite, it is
useful to get the team buy-in to address the root cause, with the goal of
achieving same day job offers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
<br /></div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-90802646366336321652012-04-26T15:05:00.001-07:002013-08-15T06:17:32.589-07:003 Tips: How to hire for motivation<style>
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“Hire and promote first on the basis of
integrity; second, motivation; third, capacity; fourth, understanding; fifth,
knowledge; and last and least, experience. Without integrity, motivation is
dangerous; without motivation, capacity is impotent; without capacity,
understanding is limited; without understanding, knowledge is meaningless;
without knowledge, experience is blind. Experience is easy to provide and
quickly put to good use by people with all the other qualities.” - Dee
Hock , founder and former CEO of VISA </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
( <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/online/05/dee2.html">http://www.fastcompany.com/online/05/dee2.html</a>
)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Last month, I wrote on how to hire for
Integrity, which remains my number one most important quality. Now, we’ll chat
about motivation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, how does one hire for “motivation”.
What does this even mean?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I hire someone, my goal is to
ultimately have that person super excited to show up for work on day one
because they are so happy to be joining our team. To me, that’s the motivation
I am looking for.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
3 Tips on how to know if someone is
Motivated to join your team:</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
1.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>This is cliché, but ask them why they
want to work for your company. You’ll be amazed at the answers you get, I
promise. In my experience, I have gotten
largely honest answers to this question, which often directly contradict with
showing me someone is motivated. If
someone tells me that they want to write code, earn a paycheck and work in NYC,
that does not convey specific motivation to work at Cyrus. If they say they
specifically sought out Cyrus because they were impressed with XYZ, that tells
me they are here for a purpose.</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
2.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>Have them define ‘meaningful work’.
When someone believes the work they are doing is meaningful, they are
intrinsically motivated to do that job well.
If someone can’t talk about what type of work is truly meaningful to
them, or if their answer doesn’t match the work you are offering them, they are
not properly motivated to do the job.</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
3.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>Make sure they’ve done their homework
and researched the company. If someone is interested in working specifically
for your organization, they are going to take the time to learn something about
it. Five minutes on the internet can give a candidate enough fodder to look
like they have a wealth of knowledge, yet amazingly this does not always
happen. One could argue that an inexperienced interviewee may not know any
better and is truly motivated but didn’t realize she ought to research. I would argue back that those closest to
college are the ones most on twitter and facebook and would have the most access
to social media and your company information.
If someone is truly motivated to work at a specific place, they will do
a base level of research.</div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-63005354977870701022012-02-06T13:53:00.001-08:002013-08-15T06:14:38.399-07:003 Tips: How to Interview for Integrity<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b>Lately, I’ve heard a lot of commotion about using technical exercises, brain teasers, problem solving tests, and the like as the basis for an interview process for developers, as well as for other members of Agile teams. However, in the quest to nab the top development talent in 2012, recruiters and tech managers alike may be sacrificing integrity for tech chops. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, if you go into each interview prepared to interview for integrity, you can land yourself a top candidate that is both honest and extremely technically talented. </div>
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Here’s how:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
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1.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Fill in the gaps.</b> Review the resume. Prepare questions to fill in any gaps or questionable things you see. For example, many people take time off in-between jobs. If you see someone was a Company A 2010 and Company B 2011, maybe they were employed continuously, perhaps they had 6 months off, hard to say. If the candidate’s current job is in Alabama but they have a NYC address, ask if they are telecommuting, or perhaps that job ended and they moved to NYC three months ago and didn’t put an end date on their most recent job. </div>
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2.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ask scenario questions.</b> Prepare a handful of open-ended scenario questions that help you see how honestly a person approaches a problem. A couple of examples that I like are below. The idea is to ask a question that forces the candidate to think about how they’d personally handle an awkward situation. After asking these types of questions for years now, I’m amazing at the variety of answers I get, and also continuously surprised at how often a person’s true colors come through as they answer these questions.</div>
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a.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span> “You are doing 2 week sprints. One day before the end of the sprint, your manager tells you and your pair that we have to push extra story points into this sprint, and if we skip TDD for this code and don’t tell anyone, we can ‘squeeze it in’. What do you do? “</div>
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b.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span>“Your peer approaches you at lunch one day. He says “I’m going to skip out this afternoon, I told the boss I have a doctor’s appointment but I don’t. What do you do?” </div>
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3.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Dig deeper.</b> There comes a point in many interviews when the interviewer feels they may have just been lied to. Many of us react by doubting ourselves and backing off, moving on to the next question. Instead, dig deeper. Ask follow-up questions until you are sure you have the information you need to assess honesty. For example, here’s a sample conversation that digs deeper: </div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Interviewer: “Tell me about your job”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Candidate<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">:</b> “I worked on XYZ project on an Agile team.”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Interviewer: “Tell me about an agile process you really like”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Candidate: “ I like standups because I get to hear what everyone is doing for the day”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Interviewer: “Tell me about an agile process that you aren’t a big fan of”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Candidate: “I like them all.” {NOTE: Is the candidate being honest, or are they not familiar with Agile?}</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Interviewer: “Ok. Tell me why you like pair programming”</div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>Candidate: “Actually, I don’t really know what that is”</div>
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So, this is a simplified conversation but you get the idea. As soon as you start digging deeper I promise you’ll be quite interested in the answers you get. </div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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Oh, as a side note, always do your due diligence. Background checks are a key component in ensuring the person you are hiring has accurately represented their history. </div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-35093687482278747292012-01-23T05:48:00.000-08:002013-08-15T06:15:12.360-07:003 Tips: How to achieve work/life balanceI am a working mom. I have two kids that I absolutely adore and a job that I absolutely love. Yet, for the past 7 years, I face the daily challenge that every working mom that I know faces - how to balance it all. Here are 3 things I've learned along the way to help achieve work/life balance on a daily basis.<br />
<br />
1. Be present.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Whether you spend 1 hour or 24 with your kids today, and whether you spend 4 or 12 hours at work, make absolutely sure your mind is present. Stop thinking about the 20 things you need to get done tomorrow, or the bills you have to pay. Instead, focus on enjoying the present moment. If you are like me and find it difficult to free your mind from wandering thoughts, carry a pad and pen, and write down your thoughts as they arrive, so that you can address them later. <br />
<br />
If you are in a meeting, ensure that you are adding value to the meeting and are getting something out of it. If not, ask permission to leave. At my company, every person is permitted to leave a meeting if they aren't contributing or getting value out of it. <br />
<br />
If you find you can not be present, try leaving the room for 5 minutes to clear your head. Maybe send yourself an email to write down your thoughts. If something that happened in the past is bothering you, say to yourself that you are going to "put your thoughts in a box" for the next hour. Give yourself permission to "open the box" in an hour and think about the bothersome thought some more. Set a timer on your phone for one hour so you can focus on the present and know your phone will alert you when the hour is up. If it is still a problem, spend 5 minutes brainstorming constructive ways to address it. <br />
<br />
2. Prioritize.<br />
<br />
There are always going to be things at work and in your personal life that you just can't attend, no matter how organized and efficient you are. Prioritize what's important to you and make a decision to attend those things. It's always easier to make larger, overarching decisions than to make one-off decisions (but that's another topic for another day). For example, I get 3 emails per day from my kids's school asking me to help with this and that. When asked to help out with something that allows me to spend quality time with my kids at school, I volunteer. If not, I pass. So, if I'm asked if I want to volunteer to sell brownies at a school bake fair, I pass. If asked if I want to chaperone a field trip where I get to go see a 3D movie with my daughter, I'm all in.<br />
<br />
Same for work. I am the type that instinctively wants in on everything. But, I try my best to work on only those projects that I feel I add specific value to. I am also invited to many weekend and evening work events. I limit myself to one per week max, with almost no exceptions.<br />
<br />
3. Plan time for yourself.<br />
<br />
You have to nurture yourself before you can be useful to those around you. One thing that's worked very well for me is scheduling 1 hour each weekend to myself, I can lay on my bed and read, go shopping, surf the web, do whatever I feel like at the moment. This is not a time for errands or taking care of others, just focusing on relaxing.<br />
<br />
Also, I find that I need at least 30 min of down time each day. I know this seems silly, but I can sometimes get up at 6, go full speed to get the kids to school, go straight to work, forget to take a lunch break, get home at 6 to go full speed again until the kids are asleep and then realize I didn't take any breaks at all during the day, not good. Sometimes I'll actually schedule the 30 minutes into my work calendar to ensure it happens. Sometimes I'll leave work 30 minutes early to give myself a cushion that way.<br />
<br />
I also find that taking a few minutes each weekend to look at the week ahead, and do some light weekly planning goes a long way in ensuring balance and productivity throughout the week. For example, if I know Monday is a light day but Tuesday is packed, I can plan around that and not let it surprise me Tuesday morning.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-71307059584070576382012-01-17T09:10:00.000-08:002012-01-25T14:08:21.306-08:00Don't let great be the enemy of good<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b>Or, how do I know if the developer I am interviewing for my team is good enough or if I should hold out for the perfect match? </div><div class="MsoNormal">Over the years, as I've helped technical managers navigate the recruiting world, I often hear the following comment - "We found someone we like, but we don't want to make him an offer just yet, we want to see who else is out there." </div><div class="MsoNormal">While these well-intentioned managers are debating, the candidate is busy interviewing with other companies. This results in one of two scenarios: 1. The candidate accepts another job or 2. The candidate gets another offer which he then uses to get a better offer from you.</div><div class="MsoNormal">One of the most important things you can do for you interview process is: know up front what you are looking for, and when you find someone that meets the criteria, act on this immediately. </div><div class="MsoNormal">Now, I don't mean loosen your criteria and jump on the first candidate that is decent. No, what I mean is, have an evaluation process in place. If the candidate passes, don't doubt this process, make them an offer today. </div><div class="MsoNormal">Worst case, you are wrong and then you learn from the process and improve. Best case, the candidate is great. Most likely case, the candidate is very good and your evaluation process worked. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-5157902950824360192012-01-09T11:19:00.000-08:002012-01-25T14:09:03.218-08:00How to Hire Developers in 2012<style>
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</style> As we enter 2012, the outlook for tech in NYC is strong. There are more start-ups here than there have been since 2007. And, from what I’ve seen, this time around folks are actually trying to make a profit rather than the way we all did it in 2000. Plus, Wall Street is now an attractive place to work again. And, several big guns like LinkedIn and Facebook have made NYC home to development teams.<br />
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What does that mean for those of us that need to hire developers this year? It means we are entering the year with a very marked 'Talent War' in NYC. It's difficult to hire A-list developers, and even harder to retain them.<br />
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My advice – don’t settle and don’t panic. Here’s a 3 step process to help start you off in the right direction.<br />
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First, identify what your success criteria are. Rather than focus on skills needed to create a job description, imagine what a successful developer in your organization will look like 3, 6 and 12 months from now. Include all aspects of the job, from what this person should know technically, to how they will fit in culturally. Write these things down and use that as a basis for your job description.<br />
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Second, know what your company stands and what a successful employee in your organization looks like. Create an interview process that tests for each of these components. If developers that take criticism well tend to excel in your company, figure out a way to include analyzing this in your interview process. (Note: Not all questions are considered ‘legal interview questions’, so do your homework and be sure to avoid illegal questions.)<br />
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Third, know that it’s going to take some time to find the right fit (thus, don’t panic). The saying “hire slowly, fire quickly” will be more valuable in 2012 than it’s ever been. Evaluate your process and ensure you are making progress, but don’t rush. Making a bad hire quickly can take years to undo.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-40664408836086220432012-01-03T09:24:00.000-08:002012-01-03T09:24:22.518-08:00This Year I Resolve To... Tips on how to make your resolutions stickFigure this being the first blog of the new year, I should write about all the great things I'm going to do this year.<br />
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First, let's back up a bit. My whole adult life, as long as I can remember, I've always made new year's resolutions. Some years because I thought it was fun, some years because I thought I ought to, some years because I felt I needed a direction. Usually they lasted about 1 week. <br />
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Then, about 3 years ago, I figured out how to do it right. This is going to sound silly, but I used Agile frame my new year's resolution creation. Here's what I do each year:<br />
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1. Brainstorm. Find a quiet place and set aside some time. At least an hour, more if you can. Think about all the things you'd like to do this year. Write each thing down, one idea per index card. Let the ideas flow, don't stop and think about if it's silly, unattainable, embarrassing. Spend at least 15 minutes doing this, throw all index cards onto the table.<br />
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2. Prioritize. Take all of your index cards, put them into piles A (most important), B(great if you can achieve it this year), C( nice to achieve).<br />
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3. Clarify. For all the A's, turn each index card into a concrete, measurable, achievable goal (ideally a SMART goal, but at the very least, something you can read and have a clear picture of what it would look like complete).<br />
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4. Write Stories. For the A's that are now concrete, add the 'special sauce', as I once heard Jack Daly say. That is, what are you going to do each month, week, day, to implement this goal. Each 'special sauce' is a Story, one per index card please.<br />
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5. Make Visible. Pick 3-4 A's to work on first. Hang them on the wall somewhere, along with the Stories for each one.<br />
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6. Review. Just like in Agile, have a weekly, biweekly, or monthly review of your achievements. Figure out how you progressed towards your goals. If you finish one, pull another one from the A pile, write Stories, hang it on the wall. Don't move on to the B pile until all A's are finished.<br />
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7. Quarterly Kaizen. Every 3 months, pull out all goals, lay them out in one big pile. See how you are doing, adjust as needed. Repeat.<br />
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And now, to keep me honest, here's a glimpse of what I want to achieve in 2012:<br />
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1. Lose 10 pounds. These are suspiciously similar to the 10 I lost back in 2010, but they seemed to have found me and so I must shake them loose once again. My Stories: Life weights 2 times per week. Do cardio 4 times per week. Eat Clean every day, except for 1 day per week.<br />
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2. Get more sleep. My stories: Each weekend, plan the week ahead, ensure I get 8 hours of ZZZs per night by getting in bed 8 hours before I have to wake up. So easy, yet soooooo hard.<br />
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3. Complete my ultimate organization plan. My stories: I already have tasks to achieve weekly, and I am staying on top of them. The problems are the ones that never seem to have to get done, which are often the things I find fun. My stories: Pick one fund task each week, leave about an hour to work towards it. Admit to the fact that many of my 'Someday, Maybe' tasks, like learning how to play the sax, are not going to get done this year. Files those away for 2013.<br />
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Happy 2012, and good luck with your goals!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6076945265102824423.post-38877337782332612012-01-03T09:06:00.001-08:002012-01-25T14:09:20.414-08:005 Things to Avoid When InterviewingI've seen tons of articles, speeches and emails on proper interviewing etiquette, do X, Y and Z and you magically land the job of your dreams. In my experience, which has unbelievably been 16 years of being involved in technical recruiting, a candidate can do all the right things, but do one thing wrong and not be able to overcome it. Reason being, interviewers are on the prowl for this, and feel when they see you do or say something negative they are seeing your true colors and this is often the tip of the iceberg to your true self. However true or false this may be, it's best to keep these 5 things in mind when interviewing:<br />
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1. <b>Don't boss bash</b>. We've all worked for someone that rubs us the wrong way, doesn't see our true potential, or is just simply difficult to work with for one reason or another. However, it's best to try to keep these sentiments to yourself, or somehow spin your experience into something either neutral or positive when discussing it at an interview. For example, if your old boss thought it was his way or the highway, discuss how you came up with a really cool idea and worked in a grass-roots way to implement it and win his approval.<br />
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2.<b> Don't lie.</b> An interview is a sale. You are selling yourself so be sure to put your best foot forward. Just be sure the foot you choose is one of your own. Nobody likes dishonesty and if you are caught in a lie you will likely not be able to overcome it regardless of how flawless you perform on the rest of the interview. <br />
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3. <b>Don't ramble.</b> If you are asked to talk about your current job, don't say "To help you get a full picture of my current job let me take you through my entire job history". Be prepared to enthusiastically discuss everything on your resume but be sure to listen closely to the question being asked and focus on answering this question only. If the interviewer wants to probe deeper he will. <br />
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4. <b>Don't show up unprepared.</b> I can't tell you how many times I've interviewed people, either on the phone or in person, and they've gotten the name of my company wrong. This is inexcusable. Or, my favorite is "I meant to check out your website but I haven't gotten around to it yet". This just chalks you up as failing #2, you've just lied to me. Always be prepared. In today's age, this means knowing where you are interviewing and even knowing a bit about the folks that run the company, the team and their background. In 10 minutes you can print out a company's LinkedIn, Facebook and home page and have a complete bio of all the executives and folks you are talking to by printing out their LinkedIn pages. Doesn't take much to show you've put in a little effort.<br />
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5. <b>Don't settle.</b> Know your bottom line before you send out your first email or have your first interview. Know the compensation, benefits, work environment, location, work hours and culture you need to be happy. Then, be sure to ask questions until you have a clear sense that your needs are going to be met. If you settle for something less than what you need, you are the one that is going to lose out. A word to the wise, be realistic about needs vs wants. I need X to pay my mortgage and bills but I want Y to have a cushion. There's a difference.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0