Johanna Rothman, Management Consultant
Expert in Managing Product Development
All kinds of people are talking about “back” to normal. However, I see several problems: Many of those same people think there’s a talent shortage. (Management can’t hire people for the same salaries they used to pay.) Or, that while managers might want people “back” in the office, not everyone wants to work in an …
Continue reading “Three Slightly Ranty Thoughts on “Back” to Normal”
I see too much micromanagement, even in supposedly agile organizations. Micromanagement tells people, “I don’t trust you.” When we have insufficient trust, morale and the products deteriorate. Instead, we can extend trust and keep innovating for morale and the products. This image shows a 6-person team where the leader/manager micromanages. All decisions go through that …
Continue reading “Leadership tip #9: See & Stop Micromanagement—Learn to Trust Instead”
One of my colleagues, Al, private-messaged me. “I’m so much more effective now that we’re remote. I get a ton more work done. I’m so much happier. I love where the product is going. How can I do more of this?” Al feels productive and engaged. Why does he feel this way? When I spoke …
Many organizations heeded the COVID-19 warnings and sent people home to work as remote teams. The managers want to proceed as if the people can work from home and have “business as usual.” They’ve made these requests to their staff: Work at home, as if you were at the office. (Keep the same hours and …
Continue reading “This Is Not and Cannot Be “Business as Usual””
Your customers can’t take your product more often than once or twice a year. Because the product doesn’t need to leave the building, the teams don’t release internally. Nor do the teams demo on a regular basis. The teams miss the feedback loops so critical for an agile approach. Their agile transformation falls apart. Rethink Your Definition …
It took me a couple of days reviewing these posts to realize I’d missed one of the biggest problems in organizations especially when it comes to human interactions: romance. When I was single, I did date people who were my peers in my organizations. I still see office-romance occur with a fair amount of frequency. …
Continue reading “Respect and Romance in Organizations, Part 5”
I’m (finally!) circling back around to Joe Berkowitz’s statement: There is no template for how to be a good man in the #MeToo era. I said that respect provided that template. (And, we can say “good people” instead of only men because abuse of power is not limited to men. See Power, Management, and Harassment: It’s …
Continue reading “Families vs Organizations and Organizational Culture, Part 6”
I started this series positing that respect is the cornerstone for how we might treat each other, to manage our interactions with success, especially in light of the #MeToo conversation. The series so far is: Organizations Are Not Families, Part 1. Why the metaphor of family-as-org demeans the people working there. Build Respect in Organizations, …
Continue reading “Build Respect in Organizations, Not Families, Part 4”
I wrote about treating each other with respect in Organizations Are Not Families, Part 1. In these respect posts, I’ll address possible ways we can treat each other with respect. These are not the only ways. You might have better ideas than I do. Please do comment if you’ve seen alternatives that work better. I …
Continue reading “Build Respect in Organizations, Not Families, Part 2”
I started this series positing that respect is the cornerstone for how we might treat each other, to manage our interactions with success, especially in light of the #MeToo conversation. The series so far is: Organizations Are Not Families, Part 1. Why the metaphor of family-as-org demeans the people working there. Build Respect in Organizations, …
Continue reading “Build Respect in Organizations, Not Families, Part 3”