How to Talk to I.T.

Slowly, with lots of TLAs (three letter acronyms).

The key to talking with IT is to first understand a bit about computers.  Now think through what you you're trying to achieve:

• What do you want vs what do you need?  The business side typically has a lot of things it's looking for.  What is absolutely necessary for the system to be of value? What would be nice to have?  What is a bit ridiculous to ask for, but might be useful?

• Separate out the doing from the simple decision-making and the judgment calls.  This will help guide the discussion on complexity and flexibility.

• Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize.  If everything is a priority, nothing is a priority.  Remember that the more a system is asked to do, the more complex and therefore more fragile, costly, and time-consuming it is.

• Don't pre-suppose the solution. You may be sure that the solution to your phone problem is to go with a shiny new VOIP (voice over internet protocol, or just internet phone), but are you a telephony expert current on all the latest developments?  Do what you do best, which is to know and articulate your business needs.  Let the tech experts do what they do best: use the appropriate technology to solve technology-appropriate problems.  If you don't have the necessary skill set in-house, either develop it or look for outside resources.

I'm a big fan of obtaining the basic system first and only then adding in the nice-to-have bells and whistles.  This accomplishes a couple of things: it speeds the delivery of the required functionality and allows for the users to get experience with the system and maybe realize some requirements that nobody had thought of before the final development/implementation work is performed.

One final thought, when talking to a salesperson or IT leader:  if they can't explain the computer system and the benefits and ramifications of the options available so that it's understandable to a non-techie, they don't really understand the technology.  It's part of the educational reality that you don't really know something until you've had to teach it.  If one person can't help you understand, find someone who can.

If you have any questions about this article or effective IT communications, or would like to talk about how to get the most for your IT dollar, contact me at  617-855-5439 or jmarcos@complexityclarified.com.