you cant sprint all the time - bcs - the chartered institute for it · pdf file ·...

©Lloyd Roden of 1

You can’t sprint all the time: the importance of slack

We are often told that we need to achieve more with less, or we need to become

more efficient with the resources we have. Lloyd reveals a counterintuitive principle

that explains why certain efficiency efforts can slow a company down and why agile

projects in particular can create "burnout" with staff members.

Companies need to design workloads that allow people to think, innovate and

reinvent themselves. By taking the risk of creating slack for team members it will not

only allow changes to take place and foster creativity the surprising aspect is that the

team's productivity will be increased. Creating slack will work for agile and traditional

lifecycles and will provide a model for achieving and maintaining true efficiency and

effectiveness.

Join Lloyd as he presents the clear evidence in how continuous sprinting can be

harmful to both employees and employers and how busyness is not always

productive. Be prepared, during this session, to be challenged into trying something

new that could revolutionize your company’s effectiveness and efficiency.

© Lloyd Roden Slack120218

slack-1

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You can’t sprint all the time: the importance of slack

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Contents

Evidence that demands a verdict Busyness is not always productive

Try something new


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A sprinter cannot sprint all the time

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Athlete Theory Record Fastest 100m Usain Bolt Fastest 200m Usain Bolt Fastest 400m Michael Johnson Fastest 800m David Rudisha Fastest 1000m Noah Ngeny Fastest 1500m Hicham El Guerrouj

the mathematics speaks for themselves

Background to this presentation

!   companies are demanding even more efficiency !   more with less

!   employees are working longer and harder than ever before !   average worker in UK in 1990 = 35hrs per week !   average worker in UK in 2011 = 42.7 hrs per week

~  BUT over 20% work more than 45 hrs per week !   recent report confirm UK is amongst the counties that

work the longest !   traditional teams are stressed towards the end of a project !   agile teams are burning out because of the continuous

sprints

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there is a desperate need for our organisation to introduce some “slack” to improve efficiency and productivity


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We even have “nicknames”

!   hump day !   Wednesday

!   TGIF day !   Friday: Thank God it’s Friday

!   POETS day !   Friday or Saturday (depending on your work

week) !   “Push Off Early, Tomorrow’s Saturday” !   “Push Off Early, Tomorrow’s Sunday”

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Monday Wednesday Friday

Why slack is especially important in Agile

!   we know the theory…

disturbing case studies: !   company A

!   company B

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Consequences of no slack

!   decreased productivity

!   stress

!   personal burnout !   reduced quality

!   people leave

!   sickness 7

Slack and efficiency are enemies

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but slack at all levels is necessary for organisations to work effectively, grow and change


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Contents


Try something new

Why do people work long hours

!   guilt and anxiety !   people wont leave the office until their

boss has left, even though they have finished their work

!   fear of loosing their jobs !   but if you constantly live in fear is it a

job worth keeping? !   just having “too much” work

!   self-inflicted or management-inflicted !   some people enjoy work

!   just don’t want to go home!

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“too much over-time soon becomes under-time” Tom DeMarco

“people under time pressure don’t think faster” Tim Lister


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And we call this progress…

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from this to this question how much time is wasted waiting for our coffee?

is that deadline that important that you skip your lunch break?

how many emails do you get per day and did you get the same number of letters?

life is full of time saving devices…but do we have any more time available?

Full capacity does not mean greater productivity

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August 2010: productivity in the United States unexpectedly decreased in the second quarter after employers expanded the workweek by the most in four years. Employees output decreased

by 0.9% per hour of output

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4

5 2

6 1

8 3

7

4

5 2

6 1

8 3

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Management’s decision:

to fill spare capacity to Increase productivity

11.1% spare capacity efficiency is improved by 11.1% J

BUT we cannot play the game… productivity is reduced…to zero L

Productivity declines unexpectedly as US workweek lengthens

source: Tom DeMarco, “Slack”

Car engines work at their optimum efficiency

(mpg) at 56mph


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Case study: Personal Assistants – what a waste!

!   remember PAs: the manager’s ultimate resource

from this to this assigned to one manager reduce PAs by 40% available all the time shared resource able to do anything anytime 100% productive cheaper resource BUT only 60% productive

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People are not a fungible resource

money is fungible:

net result: still have £100

but people are not:

net result: at least 30% loss of productivity “on average there will be a net loss of 15% productivity due to task switching”

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bank 1

£100

bank 1

£30

bank 2

£50

bank 3

£20

100% on project A

30% on project A

50% on project B

20% on project C

decide to divide money into 3 banks

management decide to divide your time into 3

projects


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When “hurry up” really means “slow down”

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!   this is only efficient if the workload remains constant

!   if priorities change or workloads increase this might cause unpredicted consequences:

me

John

Sue

Amy

flow of work

Understand the body to improve performance

fact: athletes know getting enough rest after exercise is essential to higher level performance

fact: but still many over-train and feel guilty when they take a day off

rest allows the body to: •  replenish energy stores •  repair damaged tissue •  reduce the level of cortisol (stress hormone) •  clear the mind (to sort the brain) •  replenish nerve energies

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sound familiar?

we can “sprint” / work long hours for short periods of time, but we need rest / “slack” to recover


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Bad management could lead to “busy bad”

!   principles of bad management leading to “busy bad” !   if something isn’t working, do more of it !   reduce headcount but keep the workload the same !   hold a meeting !   freeze of abolish holidays !   don’t delegate – do all the work yourself !   unfair workflow to your best employees

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are you currently “busy good” or “busy bad”?

The need to sharpen your axe

!   don’t procrastinate !   create tools and utilities to make testing more efficient !   share your ideas with others !   measure your own effectiveness efficiency and improve !   create ‘me’ time !   occasionally go home “on-time” !   challenge inefficiency and wastage

!   conducting meetings

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complacency is only one step ahead of

apathy make it your mission to become the

best at what you do


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Wastage example 1: meetings

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10 people @ 1 hour meeting = 10 hours •  1 person arrives 6 minutes late……………………………… •  4 people receive texts and respond taking 2 minutes…….. •  1 person gets a call and leaves room for 15 minutes……... •  6 people on laptops responding to emails…………………..

suggestion: conduct meetings with etiquette !   no laptops !   no phones !   no interruptions !   start on time

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Contents


Try something new


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Companies who have introduced “slack”

Gore 10% dabble time 3M 15% think time Google 20% anytime Atlessian 20% Fedex days

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Benefits of introducing “slack”

!   increased motivation

!   greater productivity

!   new inventions

!   healthier and happier staff

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Clear evidence demands a verdict from you

!   is it foolishness or foolproof? !   ideas for you to consider

!   allow “think time” ! Fedex days, 10% dabble time

!   take a lunch break !   with power naps

!   take less into the sprint !   reduce the team’s velocity

!   provide some fun in testing !   paired testing sessions

!   learn to apply the breaks !   try to “kick the leaves” again

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whatever you decide to do, remember to

measure and monitor the

success/failure and to learn lessons

along the way

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Summary

!   efficiency and slack are often seen as enemies, but we need slack to become more efficient

!   full capacity doesn’t mean greater productivity, often it is the reverse

!   companies who have adopted “slack” have seen greater retention in staff, higher motivation and incredible ideas taken into production

© Lloyd Roden

About Lloyd Roden With more than twenty-eight years in the software industry, I have worked as a Developer, Test Analyst and Test Manager for a variety of different organisations. From 1999 to 2011 I worked as a consultant/partner within Grove Consultants. In 2011 I set up Lloyd Roden Consultancy, an independent training and consultancy company specialising in software testing. My passion is to enthuse, excite and inspire people in the area of software testing and I have enjoyed opportunities to speak at various conferences throughout the world including STAREAST, STARWEST, EuroSTAR, AsiaSTAR, Belgium Testing Days and Better Software as well as Special Interest Groups in software testing in several countries. I was privileged to be Programme Chair for both the tenth and eleventh EuroSTAR conferences and won the European Testing Excellence award in 2004.

My Values I believe that any work that I do, whether it be in the form of consultancy or training, must be relevant, practical and must make a difference to the individual as well as the organisation. It is important to me that people not only enjoy the courses that I run but they improve their skills in software testing which will ultimately reflect on the improved quality of the products being delivered by the organisation. I also aim to be at the leading-edge of latest ideas and methodologies within the IT industry so as to remain relevant and real in what I deliver in the testing community.

you cant sprint all the time - bcs - the chartered institute for it · pdf file ·...

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