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A cabinet maker has the option to say no because they're the one in charge of accepting the job AND implementing it. At least that's the way the article made it

A cabinet maker has the option to say no because they're the one in charge of accepting the job AND implementing it. At least that's the way the article made it sound. Most of us are cogs in the machine and are given much less autonomy. So what is the "professional" to do if given a job and insufficient time to do it?

jbmsf 2y ago
Our profession doesn't always work the way you describe. Some companies want cogs, some want professionals. I can't give you advice beyond that, there are too many different circumstances. But in most of the places I've worked, it's been developers, not managers, cutting corners. Sometimes these are good choices, informed by product context and trade-offs. Sometimes it's a perceived urgency that doesn't actually exist. But it's almost never a micromanaging boss asking for something specific.
- Aeolun 2y ago
  > But it's almost never a micromanaging boss asking for something specific. They don’t ask people to cut corners specifically, they just create a culture where speed is paramount above all else. Where the only metric of success is tickets completed per day.
  - jbmsf 2y ago
    I'm sure these managers exist, but there's plenty of places where they don't. My recent experience has been that the managers I work with, when asked, almost always say yes to extending technical work to do a better job and that it's inexperienced developers who either assume they can't have more time or don't know how to ask in an effective way; these are professional skills after all. This doesn't mean that there's never a need to hurry, external deadlines exist, but these are the minority in a healthy organization.
RangerScience 2y ago
Yah. Article’s advice about “owning the implementation” is great and all, but limited to places where you’re not blocked from or fired for doing it. Notably, from my small sample size (only small startups) - I don’t think I’ve known anyone who was fired for doing it. So it seems like it’s not a thing we can do… but I bet it’s something we can do in a lot more situations than we think.

jbmsf 2y ago

Our profession doesn't always work the way you describe. Some companies want cogs, some want professionals. I can't give you advice beyond that, there are too many different circumstances. But in most of the places I've worked, it's been developers, not managers, cutting corners. Sometimes these are good choices, informed by product context and trade-offs. Sometimes it's a perceived urgency that doesn't actually exist. But it's almost never a micromanaging boss asking for something specific.

Aeolun 2y ago
> But it's almost never a micromanaging boss asking for something specific. They don’t ask people to cut corners specifically, they just create a culture where speed is paramount above all else. Where the only metric of success is tickets completed per day.
- jbmsf 2y ago
  I'm sure these managers exist, but there's plenty of places where they don't. My recent experience has been that the managers I work with, when asked, almost always say yes to extending technical work to do a better job and that it's inexperienced developers who either assume they can't have more time or don't know how to ask in an effective way; these are professional skills after all. This doesn't mean that there's never a need to hurry, external deadlines exist, but these are the minority in a healthy organization.

RangerScience 2y ago

Yah. Article’s advice about “owning the implementation” is great and all, but limited to places where you’re not blocked from or fired for doing it. Notably, from my small sample size (only small startups) - I don’t think I’ve known anyone who was fired for doing it. So it seems like it’s not a thing we can do… but I bet it’s something we can do in a lot more situations than we think.