1 (12) Test Management Summit London, 28 January 2009 Survival Skills for Difficult Times Bogdan Bereza-Jarociński Survival Skills.

1 (12)www.bettersoftware.eu

Test Management SummitLondon, 28 January 2009

Survival Skills for Difficult TimesBogdan Bereza-Jarociński

Survival Skills for Difficult Times(12-slides version for handouts only)

Test Management Summit, 28 Jan. 2009

(inspired by www.homocreatore.pl)

Mount St. Helens, 1982




Great Survivors: Good & Bad

Francisco FrancoRichard BransonMother TeresaFridtjof Nansen

Steve JobsKen Wilber Andrei Gromyko Lech Wałęsa




Survival – Avoiding Crises• Avoiding crisis means sound Software

Engineering & Project Management practices, especially:– Requirements Engineering– Risk Management– Configuration Management– Testing– Mature processes– Measurements




Survival - Mitigation• Risk management – contingences• Sound financial politics• Information security• Avoiding bottlenecks – integral quality (total

quality, CMMI)• Management by values• Proactive instead of reactive policies• Corporate culture




Survival in Organizational Culture• Clan culture• Adhocracy culture• Hierarchy culture• Market culture• Tough-Guy Macho Culture• Blame culture• Rituals and routines• Masculinity vs. femininity




Assertiveness• Feel free to express your feelings,

thoughts, and desires• Know your rights• Control (not repress) your anger• Ghandi• Feel good about yourself




Negotiation Skills• Assertiveness• Positive emotions• Look for win-win solutions• Feedback• Direct communication, telephone, e-

mail and chat, SMS• Non-verbal communication• Games people play Eric Berne




Stress Management• Signs of workplace stress:– Mood and sleep disturbances– Upset stomach, headache– Disturbed relationships

• Prevention:– Workload– Design jobs to provide meaning and stimulation– Clearly define roles and responsibilities– Opportunities to participate




Creativity in Survival• Doing things differently• Change design and implementation• Finding joy in everyday activities• Cutting costs without suffering• Finding ways out of difficult situations• Using new technologies• Using your brains• Using your intuition




Pessimism vs. Optimism• Martin Seligman (Learned Optimism,

Authentic Happiness)

• Mihály Csíkszentmihályi Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

• Richard Wiseman (The Luck Factor, Quirkology)




Organizational Culture• Various organizational cultures respond to

crisis in different ways• Edgar Schein• Geert Hofstede• Deal & Kennedy• Charles Handy• Arthur F. Carmazzi• Kim S. Cameron & Robert E. Quinn




Happy in Spite of Crisis?• Eckhart Tolle• www.eckharttolle.com• The book has helped countless people

around the globe awaken to the spiritual dimension in their lives, find inner peace, increased joy and more harmonious relationship

1 (12) Test Management Summit London, 28 January 2009 Survival Skills for Difficult Times Bogdan Bereza-Jarociński Survival Skills.

Documents

test management summit

cmmi management

difficult situations

femininity slide

intuition slide

eric berne slide

direct communication

workload design jobs