Home  Articles Columns CM Journal Knowledge Empowerment for the Virtual Development Team
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Knowledge Empowerment for the Virtual Development Team |
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Written by Rich Bianchi
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Monday, 19 February 2007 |
Let's face it, nowadays going from version 7.0 to version
8.0 means working with a dispersed team of developers who aren't necessarily
located in the same corner of the building - if the same corner of the world.
Software development and configuration management are often
conducted by professionals in locations distributed about a larger virtual
environment. In fact, the Gartner Group estimates that by 2008, 41
million corporate employees worldwide will work virtually at least one day per
week.
I'd wager that the figure might even be higher for the
software development community.
But is there risk in running a virtual project team?
There may be some trepidation about the absence of in-person
communications. The risk of not of not
being face-to-face, though, is outweighed by the merits of a virtual
environment.
In a 2005 article for the Canadian - based business
publication, Business Edge, Mike
Dempster cites research done by Dr. Darleen DeRosa of Right Management Consultants
about the efficacy of global virtual teams.
In Dempster's article he stated that when "DeRosa surveyed
10 disparate, major global organizations, two-thirds of them said enhancing the
performance of virtual teams was ‘important, or very important' to their
business."
The popularity of the virtual team in software development has
come a long way. It has evolved as an effective
way of doing business for dispersed project teams.
With the right project tools and technology, any
disadvantage posed by not being live and in-person with your team members is
trumped by the benefits of a technology
tool that organizes and archives communications in one place and accessible by all.
Many project communications are not formal or
structured. Not every communication
comes out as a formal directive or correspondence. Many are unstructured, and consist of email
notes, electronic "post-its" and other notes that may consist of scanned handwritten
notes, and tablet-generated idea notes
and sketches.
Without a common "parking lot" for communications such as
these, team players may miss some important correspondence. With a common Intranet or web-based project
tool, such communication may be archived and available to all.
To understand the value and merit of a repository for
structured and unstructured communications, it is important to look at how
information flows in a project environment.
Mike Burk is the Chief Knowledge Officer for the Federal
Highway Administration. In an article he
wrote, he describes the cycle of knowledge from his vantage point. This cycle shares a close semblance to the
flow of knowledge in many team environments.
"In traditional organizations, knowledge tends to flow along
organizational lines, from the top down. But that pattern seldom results in
making knowledge available in a timely fashion and where it's needed the most.
In organizations with managed knowledge, information can flow across
organizational lines, reaching the people who can use it in ways that best
promote the organization's goals and that enhance service to the customer at
the same time," says Burke.
"How this happens can be understood by examining the four
basic elements of the knowledge management cycle: find/create, organize, share,
and use/reuse."
Under "find/create," knowledge is gained through a variety
of means, including publications, conferences and meetings, project
experiences, research, and industry expertise.
Then comes a step to "organize," the knowledge, where it is filtered and
catalogued with accessibility to it from
outsiders.
Then the information is "shared" with all privy to the data
by using the Web and natural communication channels created in a collaborative
work environment.
The "organize" and "share" functions of knowledge warrant
that a community of workers has a knowledge manager who serves as an
information broker by assisting people to obtain the information they need. The
knowledge manager can also serve as an advocate for knowledge-sharing practices
within and beyond his or her specific community of practice.
Finally, "use/reuse," involves both informal contacts and
access to reports, good practices, success stories, and other forms of
communication, including exhibits, demonstrations, and training sessions. Once
documented and archived, the knowledge cycle begins all over again.
Of course, to make the cycle work requires reliable
technology tools that expedient and user-friendly. Because a configuration management tool
describes itself as "collaborative", it does not automatically mean that its
collaboration features are the best way to manage project communications. Project communications are best stored and managed
in a dedicated technology tool used by the widest pool of knowledge workers
akin to the project. Wide availability
of communications and information is a definite best practice.
The U.S. Office of Naval Research cites in its Best
Manufacturing Practices, several collaborative environments that have worked in
managing the communication element for dispersed team environments.
When the Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC) Engineering
Systems Department developed a series of Web-Based Data System Solutions for
information and document management applications they employed an Intranet site
for all those involved in the project.
Prior to this system of knowledge management, various
uncontrolled, undocumented processes as well as hardware and software platforms
were used at the Center. This situation created problems in processing and
accessing information; handling security; and changing or developing systems.
Web-based data systems were recognized as a way to establish a paperless
environment in support of their ISO-9001 certification, and provide immediate
accessibility to information. Their tool
is a cross-platform, visual productivity tool for the distributed electronic
enterprise.
Also of note by the Office of Naval Research was the Intranet site of General Dynamics Armament Systems of
Burlington, Vermont. They established an Intranet site, which
provides employees with easy and quick accessibility to company policies,
procedures, forms, calendar-of-events, bulletins, internal news, and special
announcements. Designed with the user in mind, this on-line system is now
integrated into the workforce environment as a single-source information and
communication tool.
What then is the moral of the story when it comes to project communications?
If there's any truth to the adage, "knowledge is power", keep your project
communications managed with a dedicated project tool and allow all members of
the virtual team to access it.
Don't rely on one tool to manage all aspects of your project. Keep your communications clear, simple and
accessible to all in a separate software
tool.
Make the power of the knowledge become the substance of personal empowerment
by all members of the virtual team.
Rich Bianchi is
the president of Alexsys Corporation (visit
http://www.alexcorp.com), based in Stoneham,
Massachusetts. Alexsys' Team Pro software manages complex
projects. It is used by software
development teams. Alexsys Corporation is an innovator in software solutions
designed to automate the management of tasks and business processes associated
with any kind of organization. Alexsys Corporation's solutions have been
deployed by hundreds of organizations of all sizes around the world, including
leading Fortune 50 companies in the petroleum, financial services and
telecommunications industries as well as large government agencies. For more
information visit: http://www.alexcorp.com.
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