Opinion: The unspoken truth about managing geeks
Computerworld - I can sum up every article, book and column written by notable management experts about managing IT in two sentences: "Geeks are smart and creative, but they are also egocentric, antisocial, managerially and business-challenged, victim-prone, bullheaded and credit-whoring. To overcome these intractable behavioral deficits you must do X, Y and Z."
X, Y and Z are variable and usually contradictory between one expert and the next, but the patronizing stereotypes remain constant. I'm not entirely sure that is helpful. So, using the familiar brush, allow me to paint a different picture of those IT pros buried somewhere in your organization.
My career has been stippled with a good bit of disaster recovery consulting, which has led me to deal with dozens of organizations on their worst day, when opinions were pretty raw. I've heard all of the above-mentioned stereotypes and far worse, as well as good bit of rage. The worse shape an organization is in, the more you hear the stereotypes thrown around. But my personal experiences working within IT groups have always been quite good, working with IT pros for whom the negative stereotypes just don't seem to apply. I tended to chalk up IT group failures to some bad luck in hiring and the delicate balance of those geek stereotypes.
Recently, though, I have come to realize that perfectly healthy groups with solid, well-adjusted IT pros can and will devolve, slowly and quietly, into the behaviors that give rise to the stereotypes, given the right set of conditions. It turns out that it is the conditions that are stereotypical, and the IT pros tend to react to those conditions in logical ways. To say it a different way, organizations actively elicit these stereotypical negative behaviors.
Understanding why IT pros appear to act the way they do makes working with, among and as one of them the easiest job in the world.
It's all about respect
Few people notice this, but for IT groups respect is the currency of the realm. IT pros do not squander this currency. Those whom they do not believe are worthy of their respect might instead be treated to professional courtesy, a friendly demeanor or the acceptance of authority. Gaining respect is not a matter of being the boss and has nothing to do with being likeable or sociable; whether you talk, eat or smell right; or any measure that isn't directly related to the work. The amount of respect an IT pro pays someone is a measure of how tolerable that person is when it comes to getting things done, including the elegance and practicality of his solutions and suggestions. IT pros always and without fail, quietly self-organize around those who make the work easier, while shunning those who make the work harder, independent of the organizational chart.
stereotypes


Time: 1:00 PM EDT / 11:00 AM PDT
Did you know that companies spend an average of 30% more on software licenses and maintenance than they need to? It's not that surprising when you consider the challenges that IT executives face as they struggle to manage software across their organizations. Poor visibility into remote assets, an inability to ensure the security of PCs, and failing to deliver satisfactory service to end users on a consistent and cost-effective basis are a few of the challenges. Attend this webcast to learn more!

- Forrester Consulting - A Standard Branch Office IT Platform to Optimize and Consolidate
- Want a standard IT platform that delivers network optimization and virtualization to the branch office?
- Achieving Business Value with Network and Application Visibility
- Improve the usability of performance data. Learn more now!
- The Human Factor in Laptop Encryption
- Download this new White Paper today!
- For PCI, the Future is Now
- Download Now.
- Unified Communications and Your Business: The Myths, the Market Drivers and What You Need to Know
- Map out a strategy for implementing a seamless Unified Communications experience. Learn how now. All Management and Careers White Papers
- Solving 10 Common IT Systems Management Challenges
- In this panel webinar, gain valuable management insights from IT executives at People's Bank & Trust and senior analysts at Enterprise Management Associates,...
- Solving 10 Common IT Systems Management Challenges
- In this panel webinar, gain valuable management insights from IT executives at People's Bank & Trust and senior analysts at Enterprise Management Associates,...
- Disaster Recovery: Improving Performance While Controlling Costs
- How long can your Enterprise afford to be without your data?
- Your Goal Achieved: ROI and Happy Online Customers
- View now!
- Managing Secure File Transfer to Save Time, Money and IT Resources
- Learn how companies are using innovative technology to overcome these challenges and improve user productivity by offloading e-mail attachments and replacing FTP with... All Management and Careers Webcasts