This post falls into the category of amusing stuff to do over morning coffee.
McKinsey wrote an article that is creating much discussion. I am sure this was written in good faith in an attempt to solve a management problem associated with software development teams. That article is here The response from Dave Farley – YouTube link below is pretty funny.
I no longer manage software teams, and when I last did, agile was just beginning. However, I love to keep track of all of the discussion about management techniques – generally those that are either trying to fix the mistakes of agile, or debunk it entirely. This is relevant from a data perspective, as data and applications are obviously tied together and any data project is going to get tied up into a DevSecOps or a DataOps discussion – both seeking to be agile in one form or another.
My high level take away from the McKinsey article was that they were trying to focus on the soft issues or capabilities – indeed this is the issue Farley had with the article – that the metrics were not measurable. This is typical McKinsey – they are a management consulting company after all. Farley argues that one can stick with established metrics and measures and do better. His point is that it is the production of the team that counts. However, still does not get at understanding the management challenge at the individual level. Nowadays, I would have to think that team productivity is impacted when people leave, and thus within the scope of the McKinsey discussion is the idea of retention – not a bad idea. Are you looking things as a manager – in which case retention matters, or as a developer – in which case quality and speed matter are what should be measured.
Either way, have a read and a look – amusing musings!
analyticaltern 