Re: communication with programmers

[Mary Paliotta <Mary -at- AMAREX -dot- COM>]

I would say that it doesn't matter whether a GOOD manager would be able to
recognize this problem since, hearing your current situation, your ACTUAL
manager obviously doesn't have a clue on the best way to make you produce
useful and effective documentation to the company.  From a project
management point of view, being forced to continually search out needles in
a haystack unnecessarily is a criminal waste of time.

In my experience, I've found that you need to decide whether your situation
is capable of reform, and if so, hunker down and make as good (and
elaborate) a presentation as possible in order to bring to your manager's
attention that-yes, there is another to do this.  Certainly you are probably
in the best position possible to produce this plan and determine the actual
details of how, when, and why they should implement your suggestions.  But
be extremely clear, specific, and don't leave out the tangible costs/losses
to the Company/Dept. for each issue you bring up should they continue with
the status quo.  It's the starkness of reason that seems to best cut through
the bureaucracy, chronic busyness, and relentless fog that the business is
forever caught up in.

My advice anyway, Mary :)

-----Original Message-----
From:   Archie Ziviello [mailto:aziviello -at- NESL -dot- COM]
Sent:   Wednesday, August 11, 1999 2:16 PM
To:     TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Subject:        communication with programmers

. . . I can not develop user guides fast enough.  In fact, now I waste no
time with it.  It seems during implementation we have significant amounts of
interface design change which determines exactly how the user is supported
in the job.  The design of the system is essentially the same except now we
have a new screen which is "doing it all in one shot."  Therefore I can
provide NO USER GUIDE when the system is turned on because I can not change
156 pages of reference guide into 25 pages of user guide with a wave of my
hands.  I tried it and it stinks! - the user guide stinks and the effort to
produce it stinks.

I do a fair amount of trouble finding and bug shooting because I spend hours
trying to write out procedures with little to no explanation of the screen.
I spend enormous amounts of time trying to shoot holes in tasks.  I call
this "defeating" controls - you know crediting account invoices more than
what the invoice was for. . . . .

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