I work with a lot of IT folks in my programmes. I wish there were more of them in my Management and Leadership programmes - and the only reason they are not there is because people in IT (at all levels) dont believe that soft skills make a lot of difference where it really matters. (By the way, Ive always wondered why we refer to them as "soft skills"! They are as "hard" as they get in terms of importance.) here's why:
I do a capsule titled "Coders to Consultants" and I always open with this slide:
“Software engineers have the mentality of designing code with one purpose in mind: to impress everybody with the sophistication and sleekness of their software. The impact it has on what the customer is looking for and on the bottom-line of the customer is almost nonexistent for them.” Eliyahu Goldratt
Lets take the example of Customer centricity as a soft skill that is so critical. My IT folks are so caught up in what they think is a brilliant solution, they almost see the "customer" as an interruption! The ability to listen to what is said and unsaid, the ability to empathize with the customer's world, understand what really is the problem before jumping into a"brilliantly architectured" solution that does not address the fundamental problem are all indications of lack of soft skills.
The ability to really "listen" to the voice of the customer - internal or external - can dramatically impact bottom lines, accelerate execution, reduce costs and improve productivity, ESAT, CSAT all the way.....and yet among IT folks given the choice of attending a "Customer Service" training programme versus an "Agile computing" programme, the technical programme wins hands down!
And therefore is it any surprise at all that:
28 percent of IT projects are delivered on time and budget
49 per cent are delivered late or over the budget
23 percent are never delivered at all
My IT folks, if you want to move from Coders to Consultants, add soft skills to your "cloud"!
The challenge that we face in IT today is that many times we, as providers of IT solutions, don't understand how the solution we provide is helping our clients help their clients. Without understanding this, we can only deliver "software". However if we, all members at every level of our delivery team, understand this, we can deliver the proper "solution". And the money is more in the solution (helping our client win) than it is in the software.
ReplyDeleteabsolutely Binod! Thanks
ReplyDeleteI have been thinking more and more about this subject and trying to understand why this is the case.
ReplyDeleteI really feel that there is a lack of curiosity as to whether the solution(s) or software(s) really worked. In a way, it's like the doctor who treats us here - they give us the medicine assuming that it works - because otherwise, you'll be back. The doctor never calls back to find out if the patient is better (wow, what a refreshing thought!) because his/her job is not (yet) in jeopardy.
Curiosity beckons questions and if there is no obvious disincentive for
not validating success, I am afraid that the new days aren't anywhere near!!!
It comes from asking the right questions and not being shy of the answers that come your way.
Couldn't agree with you more, Naresh! My own experience has been that many people who are in the IT space overfocus on the "T" part to the detriment of the "I" part. Unfortunate, because they forget that the "I" was the reason they were hired for in the first place!
ReplyDeleteMost of the time, the one doing the coding isn't the one talking to the customer.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that in the rare occurance, when the tech-whiz-kid is talking to the customer, irrespective of the problem, the solution is an iphone app, because thats the "in" thing.
But I won't blame the coders completely. What really riles them up is when the customer starts suggesting solutions. Once we understand the problem, validate it completely, it's OUR job to come up with the solution.
Once solutions start being suggested, the customer gets closed around their opinion and isn't open to a more vibrant "fool-proof", sleek, and shiny solutions. This is when the coder stops listening and starts doing her thing.