Making Technology Better

Basic

By Robert Daniel

Robert Daniel is an ICT consultant and developer, and has worked with a lot of organisations, of all sizes, both within the third sector and outside. Computanews asked Robert if he had any tips on how to assist the smooth running of technology projects, based on his experience.

Communication

It seems that many of life’s problems stem from a failure of communication, and ICT is no exception. The communication between those providing the technology and the users is particularly prone to misunderstanding, and the outcome may be that the user doesn’t quite get the solution they wanted, or that the solution they end up with has consequences they did not anticipate.

To try and avoid those problems, I always make sure I understand why the user wants, what they do, and what they hope to achieve, even when they are clear what they want. There may be alternative solutions they have not considered, or other possible causes of the difficulties they are having. I also try and explain any implications that a particular choice may have, just in case they were not aware.

For example, clients often ask me to make some specific changes to a database, such as adding some new fields to a form. I always find out more about the information they want to collect, and how they intend to use that information. Often, I can suggest improvements that will make it easier for them to report on that information later on.

The stereotype of people who work in technology is that we lack communication skills, but I really don’t think that is the case. We do, however, have to be careful to explain ourselves in plain English, rather than in technical terms, and as the specialists we have to take responsibility for the service we provide.

Small Things

Not all technology projects have to be large. A small improvement to a task you carry out frequently can add up to a large saving over time. Using a template to create frequently used letters or emails, or creating a macro to automate a task in Word or Excel could be all you need to speed up a tedious task.

I once helped an organisation where, once a month, the finance person spent half a day reconciling bank accounts in a bank statement with a list of known subscribers. With a few Excel macros, I was able to automate the process so it took just minutes. Half a day a month may not seem like much, but over a year that is six days work saved!

Obviously, not everyone feels confident enough to have a go at writing macros or creating templates, but if there is someone in the organisation that is, why not encourage them to help others?

Three Magic Words

It’s hard to say “I don’t know”, especially at work when perhaps we feel we should know everything, but I don’t think it is reasonable in a field as broad, complex and fast-moving as ours to expect to have a ready answer to every question. Unfortunately, some people when they don’t know the answer to a question will become evasive or they will try and bluff their way through. Better to say that you will find out and reply later.

I was in a meeting once with developers and managers, where a developer, when asked a question on the spot, gave an answer that he was not at all sure about. Decisions were then taken on the basis of that answer, and when it later turned out that his answer was wrong, he then had to inform everyone involved in the meeting. It was embarrassing for him, and ultimately the delays caused by unpicking the decisions made at the meeting were greater than would have been caused if he had just said “I don’t know – I will find out and get back to you.”

Another three magic words: “keep it simple”. I have met quite a few people in IT who, when asked to solve a problem, seem to take it as a personal challenge to find the most elaborate solution they can. The trouble with elaborate solutions is that there are more ways they can go wrong, and they may be too confusing for the user.

Personally, I think the simplest solutions are the most elegant, and when you break a complex procedure into simpler steps, it is often easier to spot which steps can be improved or automated.

Penny Pinching

Anyone who has ever battled with a slow PC, an unresponsive mouse, an unreliable network connection or struggled to read a screen that is too small or poor quality will know how frustrating it is. It’s bad for productivity and it’s bad for morale. Poor quality mice and keyboards can exacerbate problems like repetitive strain injury (RSI) and poor monitors to headaches.

Obviously organisations don’t have unlimited technology budgets but, in relative terms, hardware has become much cheaper over the years, so I really don’t think it makes sense to cut corners with equipment. I’ve worked in organisations where it took literally minutes for applications like Outlook to open, and where you had to be careful not to open too many applications at once, in case your PC ground to a halt. When you add up all the time being wasted and compare it with the cost of a bit more RAM, or even a new PC, it just doesn’t make sense.