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 Time and again, we see people making digs at business cliches. The sad truth is, those barbs are mostly justified. Over the years, I've observed (and also been guilty of, sometimes) company presentations, site descriptions, resume' introductions - all reduced to a steaming pile of cliche-crap because the writers went overboard with the cliches. But while we're at it, we might want to look at the other viewpoint - how do you describe certain things without using cliches? The problem is circular - the reason cliches come to life is because when they were first used, they perhaps succintly described something in a few words what paragraphs could not. They meant something, and when the phrase was used - it drove home a point. But when overused, they not only lose significance, but also begin to sound jarring. How do you get around it? The answer to that is of course 42. On a more serious note - really - how do you get around it? It might seem simple at first, just use simple straight english where you can. While this is great most of the times, the problem is that in certain cases, the people you talk to actually expect you to use the 'latest' catch phrases or mistake you for being ignorant! In such circumstances, you are actually better off sounding pompous than sounding straightforward. That's where gauging body language and personality perception comes in, it's never black-and-white. In any case, I personally prefer simple, straight and realistic language. When I say realistic - I mean "not always at the 10,000 feet level" (i.e. talking in such vague generalities that you have no idea of how that would translate to anything realistic. It's the difference between saying 'we will institute a standardize compliance procedure on our work products to ensure system wide compliance" and saying "we will follow coding conventions"). Finally, how could we possibly replace some of the more popular cliches? Let's start with "thinking out of the box" - you could replace it with "innovative approaches", "innovation", "fresh outlook","new perspective" - but as you observe the alternatives, you realize that most of these fall into the derided cliche set as well! So if I really want to say, as part of my conversation, that "we will do something that is new and useful and we think you'll like the fresh approach", but in a short to the point phrase, what do I say? Then comes the "adding value", that horrid repeated-a-million-times-everywhere phrase. What it's trying to say is "we will do something beyond what you expect, and therefore help your business in ways that your perhaps did not anticipate or explicitly state in your expectations." Now we can't possibly say all that so we need something short and to the point. "adding value" does that. The problem is, when we hear it now, it sounds awful. What are the alternatives then? can we say "do more than you expect" (it doesn't mean the same thing), the truth is - I'm having a hard time finding a short replacement that means the same thing. Perhaps we don't need to mean the same thing... maybe we should stick to a simple "we'll exceed your expectations." Use that a million times and that'll join the cliche list. The "next generation technology" is the worst of the lot. I work in the technology industry, and this is pretty confounding. At any given point, every company touts its "next generation technology" - next generation of what? my generation, the generation of the domain, the generation of the actual product? I won't even get into alternatives. Companies work on the next revision of the product, or come up with interesting, useful new approaches - they are by no means "next generation." That phrase might suit only those few areas where a specific work is truly a huge technological leap either in terms of the features or complexity/approach. The leap from a 9.6kbps modem to 1.5Mbps wireless broad-band is really next generation, but using a new approach to update your web page is not. The truth is, while you may not find exact replacements, it is still possible to circumvent their usage by sticking to a simple language. You probably don't need find a replacement at all, you just need an understandable way to say what you want to. If you were to replace the pompous blurb of the cartoon, what would you replace it with? I'd like to hear your opinions! Tags: approaches, business, cartoons, cliches, technology
Current Mood:  amused
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There was a question somewhere on JoelOnSoftware on if good teams made a difference. As one would expect, a majority of responses said 'of course!'. It's tempting to think that good teams can be formed by just throwing together a bunch of people who have some technical knowledge, and then expect them to deliver. It doesn't happen. A lot of good teams take time to evolve, and it's usually a combination of several traits
- Mutual respect - listening to some one else when necessary and respecting others opinions even if you disagree with them. It doesn't matter if you are the boss or the member.
- Like working together - you don't have many complaints about how X does not want to work with Y etc.
- Share the credit for success - will point out others who contributed to success without usurping it all themselves and creating resentment.
- Passionate about work and committed to its success.
It's hard to get everything together - but when it happens, the productivity difference is substantial. When I say substantial - it really is substantial. Timely products are delivered by good teams, not necessarily companies. Organizations that can nurture good team spirit will do well, because teamwork - with all the cliche attached to it - is incredibly important for success of large projects. Personally, I've had the pleasure of working with some fantastic teams in the past. If I take just my present organization, the first team I was part of was required to study the market in an area in infancy, create a product by developing a set of protocols, and then find market for it. The work was such a pleasure because everyone got along so well. Sure, there was pressure and the technology in question took a severe beating with the telecom downturn that began in 1999-2000. And yet, we managed to find people that were interested in the product, and then they were glad to get the kind of support they wanted. To this day, I'm in touch with most of them. 2 years after that, I was part a pretty large team for product development of a wireless technology. The work was incredibly hectic - and developing products for multiple platforms in an service environment is an entirely new experience. This team was not just brilliant (picture a team of 20 having to handle over 16 protocol layers, multiple product lines, 3 operating systems, customers in 6 countries, support existing customers, get new customers, manage trade shows, demos - and all in a overall non-product development environment), but also very hardworking, passionate about what they did. Over a period of 2+ years, barely did we have shouting matches, complaints or general unpleasantry. New comers were welcomed warmly, senior engineers gave them orientation courses, and then they were 'drowned' in work. Individual performance standards were tough, and people were helped when required. I'm no longer with them, it's been a while - but the fact that good teams can sustain as they evolve is evident in what they have achieved now, and at this point their work will reach hundreds and thousands of people. It is simply not possible to reach such levels if everyone did not share that energy and commitment. And now, once again, I've been lucky to work with a fine team. The difference now is that unlike in the past, the teams come under a general group - but they are part of different projects. However, it's wonderful to see the cross collaboration, learning how we are able to share a common goal for performance. Without a question, I'd take a great team to work with above all else. It makes work fun, it saves time and bandwidth from unnecessary firefighting. However, building a good team is difficult - we've had our share of trouble when people do not fit in. But once it all falls in place, the efficiency increases rapidly from assignment to assignment. Perhaps that is also the reason a large number of our customers ask us not to change the team composition and continue existing ones - because sometimes, there is simply no guarantee that the new team will click like the old one. So you're new to work and you wonder why many people chant the 'team' mantra? trust me - it's every bit as important as they say. But how do you build good teams? That's a topic I'll talk about soon.
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Over the period of last several years, I've had to chance to work with some really talented teams and individuals. When you work with great teams, not only does your work (which might be hard) become easier, you also learn a lot - both by observing and by leading. It's interesting that over a period of time, I've noticed a familiar pattern with respect to people performances, the hand-scribbled page below shows that (click for full size. I find it easier now to simply scribble what I think and scan it. Whole lot faster than trying to draw or format graphs. )  I too must fall under one of these categories - but that's for my boss to decide. One of the most important observations is that people often step up to a level that you set. If you set a low level, thinking the person cannot do better - then the person will reach that low level, making your prediction true! Instead, set a higher bar - and real performers will step up. Tags: consistency, performance, teams
Current Mood: cheerful
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My attitude towards food is rather simple: If I like it, I eat it. If I don't, I won't. I really dislike being forced to eat something I don't want to. In my culture, it's a norm to "pretend" to say "no" when the host asks if you want more food, therefore causing them to force you - and you relent. It's a tradition, don't ask me why and how it came about. But I've never stuck to it. For me, if I like it - I will ask for more, and eat it. If I say "I don't want it", I really mean I don't want it. Anyway, my recent "not-so-favorite" food is called tellav, it's a close but less palatable version of the popular south Indian dish called "Dosa". So I was told I would be eating it today - which prompted my dream. I was a warrior, fully armed, and fighting a bunch of violent, ruthless and angry tellavs that surrounded me.  I'm kidding. About the dream of course.
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