Feedback That Builds a Team
First, let's discuss what feedback looks like. You've seen interactions that tear a team apart. People label each other. They say things such as "You always do that," "You never do that," or "What were you thinking?” None of those is helpful.
Instead, imagine the following scenario.
Jimmy normally leaves at 4 pm so that he has a slightly longer weekend during the summer—an agreement he has made with the team. Lauren has noticed that, on the past two Fridays, Jimmy has checked in code at 3:45 pm that has broken the build, and then Jimmy has disappeared. Lauren wants to make sure this does not happen again and catches Jimmy on Friday at 2 pm.
"Do you have a minute?" Lauren says.
"I'm trying to finish this story before I leave. Can it wait until Monday?” Jimmy says.
"Well, that’'s what I want to talk to you about. The past two Fridays, you checked in code that broke the build. I know you want to finish your stories, but I don't want the build to break. When the build breaks, it affects me as a technical lead because the team can't build. Everyone is running around saying, 'What the heck happened?’ When we discover it's in your code, you're not here to help. When I hear the team complaining about that, I tell them, 'Wait a minute, Jimmy has an arrangement to leave early on Friday.' One person told me, ‘Well, we might as well all leave early on Fridays.'"
"Oh. I didn't realize."
"I figured you didn’t realize. How can we resolve this?"
"Well, I guess I could pair on my stories."
"That's one great solution. Do you have another idea?"
About the author
Lisamarie Babik is a practice leader in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She is an oft sought-after speaker for conferences and professional organizations who, if you let her, will talk your ear off about interpersonal communication, team dynamics, and the burgeoning world of "agile project management." You can contact her at lisamarie.babik@gmail.com.
About the author
Johanna Rothman, known as the “Pragmatic Manager,” helps organizational leaders see problems and risks in their product development. She helps them recognize potential “gotchas,” seize opportunities, and remove impediments. Johanna was the Agile 2009 conference chair. She is the technical editor for Agile Connection and the author of these books:
- Manage Your Job Search
- Hiring Geeks That Fit
- Manage Your Project Portfolio: Increase Your Capacity and Finish More Projects
- The 2008 Jolt Productivity award-winning Manage It! Your Guide to Modern, Pragmatic Project Management
- Behind Closed Doors: Secrets of Great Management
- Hiring the Best Knowledge Workers, Techies & Nerds: The Secrets and Science of Hiring Technical People
Johanna is working on a book about agile program management. She writes columns for Stickyminds.com and projectmanagementcom and blogs on her website, jrothman.com, as well on createadaptablelife.com.
