>I just had a request to recommend a book for someone with all the power -
>to do or not to do resides with him -- yet is clueless.
>
>Ummm..
>
>I would say Database backed Websites by Greenspun.
>
>
>Umm....
>
>Any ideas?
_The Kevorkian How-To Handbook_
_The Michelin Guide to Skipping the Country_
and a gift subscription to _Guns and Ammo_
seriously, for him:
_Information Architecture for the WWW_ (O'R&A)
based on my experience trying to pound ideas into the heads of my own
senior managers, a resource which covers ideas about implementation will be
ignored. the powerful clueless tend to retreat to the 'big picture',
because that
offers fewer opportunities for them to say something provably stupid.
implementation is precisely where they don't want to go, because it throws
everything they don't know into sharp relief.
_Information Architecture_ is a good book for managers, because it presents
a high-level view of building a website without going into the details of
implementation. it discusses the problems and delays that face any online
project.. deciding how the content should be organized, making sure
everything is presented in a consistent manner, *getting* the content in
the first place.. in a way that ties into the big picture. it won't solve
your upcoming problems, or even prevent many of them, but at least it gives
you a common basis for communication when problems arise.
i'd also suggest that both of you read:
_Death March_ by Edward Yourdon
it's basically a step-by-step guide on how to make a project fail
miserably, with tips on scheduling, communications, managerial tactics, and
selecting the stupidest priorities available.
one of the things i've noticed in my dealings with decision-makers is that
they make a lot of decisions based on herd mentality. they do things the
way the other guys do, because as far as they've been able to tell, that
works. they're willing to over-commit resources and promise delivery
before the plans are even finished because there's a meme in their
environment which says they can pull it all together when it counts.
they're like alcoholics in denial.. they're willing to admit the
possibility of a problem, but only to insist that they have it under
control.
_Death March_ undercuts their confidence by showing that 70% of the
projects with the standard "aggressive" mindset fail. it presents hard
evidence of the hundreds of millions of dollars wasted every year by
managers who think they have it under control. that gives you the power
to counter a statement like:
"look, we know what we're doing."
with the counter-argument:
"so does everyone else. 70% of them are wrong. what makes you
think you're in the 30% that are right?"
and gives you the leverage to force a more reasonable discussion of a bad
situation.
the only solution i know for cluelessness is experience, and that only
works if the victim is willing to ask for help. these books won't work
the magic of curing cluelessness, but they might make your decision-maker a
bit more willing to listen.
mike stone <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 'net geek..
been there, done that, have network, will travel.
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