Box of delight

Our team has done a lot of work over the last while reflecting and improving on how we build product. Our goal was to arrive at the minimal process that gives teams a framework to plan and structure their time, and most importantly, to prioritise and make the best tradeoffs.

Previously, we thought about building product over three timelines – 6 weeks, 6 months and 6 years (which Paul catchily referred to as the “666 mindset”). But now the 6 month roadmap is no more. The one constant, the core of that framework that we’re doubling down on, is the 6 week cycle. Here’s how we think about it, and what it looks like in practice.

Similar images of the ‘Iceberg of Ignorance‘ have been around for decades. Today they are spreading like wildfire on social media, rapidly becoming one of the most shared legends of popular management culture.

It all originated (so it is said) in 1989 when consultant Sidney Yoshida produced his study called ‘The Iceberg of Ignorance‘. (Unfortunately, we couldn’t get our hands on the original.) Allegedly, Yoshida revealed what he saw in the work and leadership habits of Japanese car manufacturer, Calsonic.

What can help you build a car, save your marriage, code software, write a book, or even renovate a house?

A whiteboard and a pad of sticky notes (the analog OR digital kind!).

Well, and the knowledge of how to use them, of course.

If you work in tech (or spend any amount of time with engineers), you’ve probably heard about “Scrum” and “Agile.” It’s a system mentioned in reverent tones by tech types and seems to have its own strange language. Terms like “planning poker,” “stand-ups,” and “sprints” are thrown about by its proponents.

When we’re facing a deadline or getting ready to tackle a big project, the standard approach is to plan from the beginning and then work our way forward, starting with the first step and ending with our final task.

How many times have you made the decision to start something new: write an abstract, start a new project, join a group or committee, start a blog, apply for a job, and then, nothing happens? It’s easy to convince yourself that the timing wasn’t right, or that it was too hard or you aren’t ready (hot tip: you’ll never be ready), we’ve all done that. When I’m stuck in that “I want to start but am caught in the headlights” position, I remind myself of these three points to force myself into action.

Avoiding technology project failures in higher education requires mitigating five project risk factors as well as setting up a well-functioning project team.