Author Topic: Management Culture  (Read 660 times)

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Offline Omni

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #60 on: October 19, 2018, 02:26:01 pm »
I was sent to Georgia one time (not the US one but the former USSR one) to establish a base of operations in support of a contract with a major oil company who were building a pipeline to the Black Sea. I was on the ground in Tblisi for two weeks working to fulfill the contract requirements when the American woman, who had been in charge of her company's office there for a couple of years, returned from her visit back to the US. We had a meeting in her office during which she gave me a briefing on the various methods of corruption one could expect to encounter doing business in this country. When she had completed her talk on that subject I looked at her and told her she had just described pretty much to a "T" my previous two weeks. Everything from renting long term accommodation, to leasing hangar space, all the way to approaching the military with regard to hiring some of their crews (contract requirement) seemed to all revolve around some form of palm greasing. There was so much corruption left over from the Soviet days. It took some time to get that sucker up and running, and I swear I have some gray hairs I didn't have before, but getting out of town and travelling through the Caucasus mountains helped me maintain  at least some sanity.   

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #61 on: October 19, 2018, 06:10:33 pm »
Yeah, I have heard that.  We are going there soon.

Offline Queefer Sutherland

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #62 on: October 23, 2018, 12:19:21 am »
Agile offices look stupid because you have no cubicles and therefore no privacy, everything is out in the open and how the hell do you concentrate that way?

I guess these open workstations are cheaper and encourage people to not waste as much time surfing the web or on their smartphones instead of doing their jobs.  But oh hey now i'm rubbing elbows with an annoying person who won't STFU while i'm trying to work.
"Nipples is one of the great minds of our time!" - Bubbermiley

Offline kimmy

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #63 on: October 23, 2018, 12:21:21 am »
Agile offices look stupid because you have no cubicles and therefore no privacy, everything is out in the open and how the hell do you concentrate that way?

On the bright side people will spend less time on Facebook and Reddit when they're supposed to be working...

 -k
Paris - London - New York - Kim City

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #64 on: October 23, 2018, 05:49:46 am »
On the bright side people will spend less time on Facebook and Reddit when they're supposed to be working...

 -k

Yeah, you can't hide your screen from people so no CPE forum, no MLW, no facebook.  But I don't have time anyway.  If I miraculously get 15 minutes, I go on my phone.  And I don't have to defend that because it happens infrquently.

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #65 on: October 23, 2018, 05:52:26 am »
1. Agile offices look stupid because you have no cubicles and therefore no privacy, everything is out in the open and how the hell do you concentrate that way?

2. I guess these open workstations are cheaper and encourage people to not waste as much time surfing the web or on their smartphones instead of doing their jobs.  But oh hey now i'm rubbing elbows with an annoying person who won't STFU while i'm trying to work.
1. Damn I hate that term.  The new space we are going to has 'collaboration spaces' 'quiet spaces' 'meeting rooms'.  You move to the area that suits the work you are doing.

2. The one type of work it doesn't account for is work that is sporadically interrupted but mostly requires focus.  Maybe that's good because focussed work shouldn't normally be interrupted.  That's annoying.

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #66 on: October 23, 2018, 06:04:33 am »
Quote
Individual interactions over process and tools
Working software rather than thorough documentation
Collaboration with customer instead of contract negotiations
More than following a plan, respond to change.

Those are the 4 Agile values.

They reflect that planning & documentation having become less valuable than talking and doing.  You still need the former, but not as much.

It might sound crazy, but in the world of software people overplan and try to plan things that can't/shouldn't be planned.

A few simple tools, and collaboration with the team fixes a lot of this.  The model is so successful they are now rolling it out to non-software business.  This is a good thing for people because:

- it empowers workers
- it focuses work on what is valuable to customers
- it is more productive

Those who think it's just management doublespeak haven't seen it, and have become jaded from working their entire lives with stuffed shirts who believe that manager is a title, like 'Lord', and not a bundle of skills....


Offline Goddess

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #67 on: October 26, 2018, 02:09:25 pm »
As much as there are problems at my office, we are still a pretty funny bunch.  This is on the bulletin board in the copy room. 

That's good advice for the weekend, hope you all have a good one!  :)
"A religion without a Goddess is half-way to atheism."

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #68 on: November 14, 2023, 03:18:20 pm »
Wow.  Six year old thread.

Love it...

Here is an ode to middle management, which I am in....


Offline kimmy

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #69 on: November 22, 2023, 12:21:42 am »
Michael have you had the chance to watch Andor? Interested in hearing your thoughts on Major Partagaz' management style.

 -k
Paris - London - New York - Kim City

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: Management Culture
« Reply #70 on: November 22, 2023, 05:19:52 am »
Michael have you had the chance to watch Andor? Interested in hearing your thoughts on Major Partagaz' management style.

 -k

Is it sci Fi?  Really nothing much in this genre I have loved since the puberty...

You really recommended a Marvel Movie here years back and I wanted to try it but Joan nixed it...