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ManagerRules

I am in that strange transition world between software developer and manager. (At my company called Technical Lead)

I am looking for ways to let those that I support and work with to quickly know some of my ground rules.

I have a new boss that yesterday told me some of his and I wanted to share them in the hopes of getting comments from others about great bosses they have had and ground rules they had.

His ground rules

1.1) This means don't give me a committment to the earliest possible day if everything goes right. Make sure that you have some buffer for the sorts of things that typically happen.

1.2) This also means that you may have to do some checking before making a committment. That is okay.

2) Don't surprise me! As soon as there is a problem or an issue, let me know. Don't let it grow until we can't do anything about it. I will do what I can to help, but even if I can't help then I can do things to help us survive it.

3) It's okay to say "No, I can't do that". As the development arm, we bring truth. If the business people want to commit to something that development has told them we have no chance of meeting, that is their position. But we will not tell them that we can make a date just to make them happy.

We'll see how this turns out, but I was encouraged by his ground rules.

-- anon 2004.11.04 (I'll change it with my name later, but the fact that I am taking a new job is not known widely yet, and I don't want to put it on a public site until it has been announced.)

Your new boss's ground rules sound good. However, since there can sometimes be a big difference between what someone says they believe vs their behavior in the heat of software development battles, a 'trust but verify' approach might be in order.

Did he really say "As the development arm, we bring truth."? One possible definition of 'great bosses': those who do what they say and say what they do. Another possible definition: one who understands that the 'truth' can depend on your perspective...

I think your approach of "We'll see how this turns out" is a good one.

RickHower 2004.11.04

I make mistakes

I like to have everyone stand, raise their right hand, and repeat that statement in public. It emphasizes that we all make mistakes. I won't chastise anyone for making a mistake.

DwaynePhillips 5 November 2004

I make a mistake whenever my role as a manager become more than a role.

I am NOT my title. It's a role: There is more, a whole lot more, to me than my performance as a manager.

Bring all of you to whatever you do.

SteveSmith 2004.11.05

-- anon 2004.11.05