Sten Vesterli's Blog

Making IT Live up to its Promise

Tag: Priorities

Don’t Replace Production With IT

IT Leadership, ,

The public broadcaster here in Denmark has just announced they’ll be firing 47 journalists to hire more IT people. What the hell are they thinking?!

I’m all for well-staffed IT departments, but IT is supposed to be something that helps the business. When you start firing the people who actually create the product that is the reason your business exists, you are on the wrong path.

If you want more people in IT, present a business case that explains how these people will pay for themselves. That involves calculating a business benefit in dollars and comparing it to the cost of the new people. They should pay for themselves in 12 months. Things are changing much too rapidly to depend on the multi-year repayment schedules used in the past.

Do You Want Fancy, Cheap, or Usable?

IT Leadership, Technology That Fits, , ,

Do you prefer fancy, cheap, or useful? Car manufacturers have found that touchscreens look fancy and are cheaper than physical buttons. That’s why modern cars have touchscreens and no buttons. I prefer buttons, and science is on my side. A survey shows that it is almost twice as fast to perform common car tasks with buttons than with a touchscreen.

Unfortunately, a car is not required to be easy to operate. Aircraft cockpits, on the other hand, are full of physical buttons. An aircraft manufacturer accepts the extra cost of physical controls to provide an optimal user experience for the pilot.

Marketing wants fancy. Finance wants cheap. User Experience wants usability. Who has the last word on product design in your organization?

Making The Most of Your Time

Spiritual Programmer, ,

As if the Afghan people did not have enough problems already, they have also just been hit by an earthquake. People are fleeing war and prosecution all over the world. If you are sitting in a comfy office working on your computer, spend a moment appreciating the good hand you’ve been dealt. Then reflect on what you are spending your life on. Are you really making the most of the talents and situation you have been given?

Use Your Money Well

Spiritual Programmer, ,

Money doesn’t buy happiness. Yet there are some ways to spend money that makes you happier than others. Research shows that the happiness from buying things wears off very quickly. You know it will take less than six months for the shiny new device your purchase today to be replaced with a new and better one.

But the happiness you get from buying experiences lasts longer. Many of your memories will last a lifetime. Maybe you don’t need a new phone right now? Save a little on things today and spend a little more on your holiday this summer. It will make your happier in the long run.

Be the Author of Your Life

Spiritual Programmer, ,

Are you the author of your life? Think of your life as a book where you write a new page each day. Some of the things that happen have to be done. You need to eat, sleep and take care of personal hygiene. You will spend part of your time on your job. I discussed that on Monday.

But that still leaves a lot of time under your control. Are you spending that time wisely? For some people, watching Netflix is the right choice. For others, it is keeping in touch with friends, contributing to open source, or learning something new.

The test of your priorities is to write down what you did with your personal time each day. If you feel proud and happy to write about your day, you are on the right track. If you feel hesitant or shameful when writing down how you spent your time, that shows you there is something you can improve.