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Latest Updates: consulting RSS

  • 10:25 am on August 25, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: consulting, , , product mangement,

    Listening to customers

    Back when I was in Product Management, I used surveys to gather feedback from beta testers. Given how valuable (and appreciated) the feedback could be, I now make a point to participate in surveys when asked. Unfortunately, even something as simple as a survey doesn’t always go as planned. Here’s what I was greeted with yesterday during an attempt to provide feedback:

    Screen shot 2010-08-24 at 9.16.04 AM.png

    Pretty awesome, huh?

    I had better luck loading the page today; However, after spending a few minutes filling out a survey, guess which button didn’t work?

    Screen shot 2010-08-25 at 10.58.30 AM.png

    I generally expect only a very small percentage of customers to fill-out surveys, so the reliability of the survey service is of utmost importance — if you actually want to listen. In this case, I hope that web metrics can be used to track how many customers started the survey vs. how many completed the task. [NOTE: If you're designing surveys, tracking abandonment points during the survey process can also give you an idea whether your surveys are too long, or asking the wrong questions.]

     

  • 1:26 pm on August 12, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , consulting, ,

    The self-defeating effects of micro-management

    I started drafting a blog post about the self-defeating effects of micro-management when I came across this interview response (from Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz) which sums it up perfectly:

    What classic mistakes do you see managers making over and over?

    “Setting a goal is one thing. Telling people how to do it step-by-step is another thing. That’s what happens especially with new managers. They not only tell the result that’s supposed to happen but they also tell them how to do it, which is such an insult. People just friggin’shut down–I guess I’m not going to do it well enough. I’ll just wait to have you tell me how to do it.”

    (via Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz: “I’m Just a Manager”.)

    I’ve seen teams “shut down” for this exact reason, and the result is a loss for everyone.

    When faced with continual “managerial vetoes” and micro-management, teams stop delivering the value they are capable of. They no longer seek the best solutions — they no longer listen to their customers. By not delegating and trusting their team, these managers have created more work for themselves! And the odds are pretty good that whatever comes out of this process will be sub-par.

    The idea raises an interesting perspective on the evaluation of new products and services: If the solution is sub-par, was it for lack of ability on the part of the implementation team? Or was it lack of ability on the part of their management?

    On a related note, I highly recommend
    “The Effective Executive” by Peter Drucker if you happen to be new to management (or, in this case, have under-performing teams.) “Reflections on Management: How to Manage Your Software Projects, Your Teams, Your Boss, and Yourself” by Watts Humphrey has some nice views on this issue as well.