Summary
I was a team-lead manager in a rather small IT company, which specialized in mobile applications development. The company has run several projects using agile scrum methods therefore there were eight teams assigned to specific tasks. I led a small team of copywriters, who were working on mobile game materials. Our main responsibility was writing various articles necessary for the development and marketing teams of the project.
While we were working on the product, the head of the company and the executive director had to take an eight hours long flight halfway around the world to conduct crucial negotiations. Before departing, they compiled a list of prescriptions for each team so that production could continue while they were absent. My team was instructed to finish working on the papers needed for the development team to proceed with the project.
As the product owner and the director flew away, the work continued at its normal pace: I came to my office, held every day blitz-conference with my team, and proceeded to work. Suddenly, our head of marketing, Ethan, came and told me that he had work for my team to do. He seemed to be very happy while telling me that he had arranged a profitable advertisement program for our project with a famous gaming publisher. Afterward, he instructed me that my team and I must urgently start working on an article for the commercial.
I was in complete shock not knowing what to do, as my team had a direct order from the product owner to finish working on technical papers by the day. We simply did not have enough time to complete both tasks. I tried to tell Ethan that I was not able to fulfill his request now, as my team had other work to do, but he did not seem to care. “That article must be on my table by the end of the day,” he said leaving the room. As soon as he left, I decided to call the product owner to explain the situation and ask if my team should, indeed, write that article immediately. Unfortunately, I realized that both the owner and the executive director were on a flight and I would not be able to reach them until the next day.
I knew that prioritizing such time-consuming tasks was out of my hands. However, it seemed to be the only option at the moment. I was mad at Ethan for being so arrogant and mad at myself for not being able to come up with an idea or not having the courage to make a decision by myself. I felt like there should be some kind of a compromise solution, which may allow me to achieve both objectives in time, but I could not see it. At this moment, even though I realized, that if my team agrees to work overtime, we might be able to make it, I had no idea how to convince them. All of a sudden, it all came together, so I headed up to Ethan’s office.
I entered Ethan’s office and summarized the problem, proposing my solution and asking for an additional payment to my team members for working overtime. He simply laughed at me and said, “Why should I pay you extra for doing your job?” Ethan must have thought that maximizing the income by attracting new players is more important than providing them with a decent product. In addition, we both knew that if the deal with the publisher goes sour, the blame would be on my team and me. I felt completely frustrated and cornered as I left Ethan’s office and headed to my place. There still was some hope, but I clearly understood that I have run out of ideas.
Compromising Solution (Epilogue)
As soon as I came back to my office and saw my team, I comprehended that I forgot to do one thing I should have done as soon as the dilemma arose. I immediately told everything or thoughts (Maximini, 2018). After conferring for just a while, we came up with a brilliant plan of writing the minimum crucial documentation for the development team so that they have all the necessary papers to continue working until we finish the remaining documentation the other day. Such actions have been intended to save us at least six hours without delaying the company’s work on the project. Saved time was just enough to finish the advertising article by the end of the day. Even though the general plan appears to save the day, the real important solution was consulting with my team. One of the main aspects of sound decision-making is the amount of information taken into consideration (Maximini, 2018). Getting other people’s opinions expands the initial data about available resources and potential moves. In addition, brainstorming might lead to the generation of nontrivial solutions.
Reference
Maximini, D. (2018). The scrum culture: Introducing agile methods in organizations (2nd ed.). Springer International Publishing.