You can find the html version of this newsletter on the Tejas Software
Consulting web page - http://tejasconsulting.com/#news.
If you're not a subscriber, please consider filling in the ultra-simple
subscription form in that same section.
I'm a new graduate of Weinberg & Weinberg's Problem Solving Leadership workshop (PSL). This one was taught by Jerry Weinberg and Eileen Strider. It was a really fabulous experience, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to hone their leadership skills. See this issue's feature article below for a few additional comments, and I'm sure I'll be writing more about it in the future after everything that happened really soaks in.
I was invited to present a tutorial on scripting languages at the Spring 2002 Software Test Automation Conference, scheduled for March 25-28, 2002 in San Jose, California. Stay tuned for details.
I want to point out another newsletter that you might find useful. Quality Techniques Newsletter (QTN) has been around for several years in various forms. It sets a standard for usefulness that I try to emulate - providing useful information that's not commercially slanted and keeping the advertising low-key. Like the Tejas Software Consulting Newsletter, QTN is electronic and it's free. See http://www.soft.com/News/QTN-Online/.
In the email version of the October issue, the long URL to the full
text of the newspaper article I was featured in was difficult to click
through. The best way to get there is from the hyperlink in the html version
of the October
issue. By the way, I know you're just itching to see that photo of
me with my kids that was printed with the article. I found that it's posted
at krtdirect.newscom.com
(presumably there's a fee to download it, but the preview is pretty decent
by itself). The caption there is much less embarrassing than the one that
was published in the newspaper.
The "end zone dance" is classic. Great newsletter.Thanks for your kind words, Robert. For the sound effects for a tester, it should say something like "You are a worthy opponent!"Speaking of sound effects, I set up my computer to play various explosions and other poignant sounds for various warnings, failures, etc. in Windows. It gives my abstract awareness of what's happening a nice concrete reinforcement. After all, the Blue Screen of Death is not just a virtual event. A warning message comes with a man saying "Your attempts are futile." And when I get a GPF, I get the sound of an explosion and someone yelling "Aww Crap!"
Robin Goldsmith adds these comments to our ongoing discussion about Glenford Myers' statement, "Testing is the process of executing a program with the intent of finding errors":
Your response misses what I said: We need a _positive definition of our objective_. That is not the same as saying we should just run positive tests. The errors-based definitions are _negative definitions_ in that they lead us to trying to prove a negative--that we have found all the errors--which is impossible to prove unless we already know what all the errors are.As always, I encourage your feedback! You can contact me at faught@tejasconsulting.com.In contrast, a _positive definition_ describes things that can be proved and needs to include both the positive _tests_ (does what it should do) and the negative _tests_ (doesn't do what it shouldn't do). Our challenge is adequately defining _correctness in positive terms_ (what it should do and what it shouldn't do).
While this sort of training is fairly rare in the computer field, I was reminded of many experiential leadership training sessions I participated in as a Boy Scout. One of them was called "Brownsea Double-Two." Named after the original Scout camp set up by the founder of the Boy Scout movement, Brownsea was a week-long course conducted at the local Scout camp facilities. It was residential like PSL, in that we all were staying in the same area. This allowed the training to continue into the evenings. Plus, at Brownsea, we were responsible for taking care of all of life's necessities, so if we had a leadership breakdown, it might mean that we didn't get to eat! It was full immersion.
I'm still absorbing all the different learnings that I took away from PSL. But I want to share one thing about Brownsea Double-Two. The one thing I remember most, that was drilled into my head repeatedly through the week, was the phrase "Use your resources." According to the Random House Webster's College Dictionary, a resource is "a source of supply, support, or aid, especially one that can be readily drawn upon when needed." Resources might mean material resources, people resources, or information resources. When we think outside the "box" where we usually look for resources, we might find more effective ways to do our jobs.
I may have to think outside my self-imposed resource box to find all the material resources that are available. On a recent project, I managed to obtain some equipment I needed that was sitting idle in a coworker's office. I also was able to obtain an underutilized computer to use as a testing platform. I often find people going without material resources they need, simply because they assume that they aren't allowed to ask for them. At Brownsea, we were trying to earn a prize by improving our campsite. We were in the Texas badlands, where rocks were plentiful. We normally didn't think of the rocks unless we stubbed a toe on one or bent yet another tent stake on the bedrock. But someone in my patrol got the bright idea to line the paths through our campsite with the rocks. It looked great when we finished, and we earned a large brightly colored feather to hang from our patrol flag. We also found out what happens when we abuse our resources. We left the campsite with the campfire still burning, and for that mistake, we earned a drab turkey feather. If only all of our mistakes in the workplace had such benign consequences!
As leaders, we have to be very aware of our people resources. We should learn all the ways that our managers can help us, and we need to be sure to ask for their help when needed. We also have to enable the people on our teams to contribute using all of their skills. On a project I'm leading now, I've been a bit overloaded lately. So I've made a concerted effort to delegate some tasks so that I don't become a bottleneck slowing down the team. I also got creative in soliciting help with the quality process from people outside of the SQA team. At Brownsea, I learned about people resources when I was put in charge of organizing a campfire program. If you're not familiar with a Boy Scout campfire program, think of it as a variety show, with all of the audience contributing in various ways. I called upon all of the patrols in the camp to contribute, and I made sure that I didn't get tied up with creating the content myself. If I had gotten too worried about the content, I would have neglected the opportunities for other people to pitch in with their unique talents. I was very nervous before we started, but it turned out great, and we all felt a shared ownership of the result.
Information resources have been my specialty in the software quality field for quite some time. I make sure I know what books and periodicals can help, what web sites could provide additional information, and what training courses and conferences can enlighten me. At Brownsea, we had course materials to refer to, as well as manuals such as the Boy Scout Handbook and the Field Guide. We also had staff members who could answer questions. Information resources are really just an extension of material resources (things that give us information) and people resources (people who give us information).
Perhaps this article was just an excuse for me to tell old Boy Scout stories. But hopefully it will get you thinking about the resources that you have available to you. The most useful resources may not be the ones that you traditionally look for, and they might not even come in the form that you usually expect to see them in. Make sure you're using all the information, materials, and human resources that are available to you. Have I missed any big categories of resources? If I have, please let me know. After all, my readers are a great resource for me!
Copyright 2001, Danny R. Faught
#####
| Back to the newsletter index | Back to the home page |