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In consulting, I run into this type of engineer pretty often. And these engineers often work at companies that are scared of being disrupted. So my work in "Di

In consulting, I run into this type of engineer pretty often. And these engineers often work at companies that are scared of being disrupted. So my work in "Digital Transformation" is a two part challenge of teaching management to think of their IT department as a source of creative energy and not bricklayers, while trying to get the engineers out of the mindset of bricklayers themselves after many years of being shoehorned. It is not easy.

arbitrary_name 7y ago
Very interested in this topic, as I work in IT and analytics org redesigns and tech strategy. If you have some content or thinking you'd like to share, it would be appreciated!
sk5t 7y ago
Are you saying part of your job is to solve learned helplessness in the software engineering workplace? Are you effective?
to11mtm 7y ago
> So my work in "Digital Transformation" is a two part challenge of teaching management to think of their IT department as a source of creative energy and not bricklayers, while trying to get the engineers out of the mindset of bricklayers themselves after many years of being shoehorned. You're doing the work of a higher order function there. You have my thanks. I've worked in environments where this type of change has been attempted. It's not easy and does run the risk of running VERY awry.
- braindouche 7y ago
  how did that change go for you? because I'm living through that transition right now at my company and it's not been smooth.
  - to11mtm 7y ago
    In one case I've observed, the effort was _honest_. There was a real attempt to make IT have the same seat at the table as the rest of the business. That doesn't mean it was easy, and I wouldn't call it SMOOTH, but the transition itself wasn't that bad. Ironically I think if they had just 1 or 2 different people in the right places during the transition they would have done well enough for themselves I'd wish I was still working there. In another observed case, well, the process did seem to shine a light on people who's primary duties at work were to make sure they still had a job... In that scenario it can get really ugly because the optics make it look like "We empowered IT and things got worse!" Of course ignoring how the gatekeepers would rather quietly ruin projects before giving another division a 'win'. Leads to a huge fear culture because you start to ask who's going to be the next sacrifice for the lack of real progress on anything.

arbitrary_name 7y ago

Very interested in this topic, as I work in IT and analytics org redesigns and tech strategy. If you have some content or thinking you'd like to share, it would be appreciated!

sk5t 7y ago

Are you saying part of your job is to solve learned helplessness in the software engineering workplace? Are you effective?

to11mtm 7y ago

> So my work in "Digital Transformation" is a two part challenge of teaching management to think of their IT department as a source of creative energy and not bricklayers, while trying to get the engineers out of the mindset of bricklayers themselves after many years of being shoehorned. You're doing the work of a higher order function there. You have my thanks. I've worked in environments where this type of change has been attempted. It's not easy and does run the risk of running VERY awry.

braindouche 7y ago
how did that change go for you? because I'm living through that transition right now at my company and it's not been smooth.
- to11mtm 7y ago
  In one case I've observed, the effort was _honest_. There was a real attempt to make IT have the same seat at the table as the rest of the business. That doesn't mean it was easy, and I wouldn't call it SMOOTH, but the transition itself wasn't that bad. Ironically I think if they had just 1 or 2 different people in the right places during the transition they would have done well enough for themselves I'd wish I was still working there. In another observed case, well, the process did seem to shine a light on people who's primary duties at work were to make sure they still had a job... In that scenario it can get really ugly because the optics make it look like "We empowered IT and things got worse!" Of course ignoring how the gatekeepers would rather quietly ruin projects before giving another division a 'win'. Leads to a huge fear culture because you start to ask who's going to be the next sacrifice for the lack of real progress on anything.