10 BEHAVIOURS OF EFFECTIVE EMPLOYEES by Rob Lambert www.cultivatedmanagement.com
IT’S THE PERSON NOT JUST THE SKILLS Attitude. Belief. Persistence in the face of obstacles. Relentless pursuit of improvement. Alignment to the purpose.
DEREK He’s awesome at testing. Truly awesome.
RESUME = AWESOME He has an ISTQB, CBPBOS, APB, MIT, ATM, DTT
HE GETS THE JOB Almost every job he goes for. He is hirable.
DEREK IS TALENTED However: He is overlooked He quits jobs often His contracts don’t get renewed
DEREK IS Hirable. And seemingly relevant. He has the right skills. But he doesn’t have the right attitude.
STOP KILLING MY CREATIVITY Stop telling me what to build, I want to decide.
GIVE ME 6 MONTHS I’LL DELIVER WOW
TESTING IS MINE “Fight Agile to the DEATH!”
THIS JOB SUCKS A tester told me this once, yet his colleague was thriving in that team.
THAT’S NOT IN MY JOB DESCRIPTION
QUITTING IS TRENDY The grass is seldom greener on the other side.
BAD WORK EXISTS Not everyone can choose to avoid bad work. Avoiding “bad work” often means running away from change and opportunities.
IF NOT SKILLS? THEN WHAT?
10 BEHAVIOURS
1. VISIBLY PASSIONATE Show your passion in a positive fashion
2. BE AGGRESSIVELY OPEN-MINDED
“It seems to me that beliefs about the future are so rarely correct that they usually aren't worth the extra rigidity they impose, and that the best strategy is simply to be aggressively open-minded. Instead of trying to point yourself in the right direction, admit you have no idea what the right direction is, and try instead to be super sensitive to the winds of change.” Paul Graham – How to be an expert in a changing world http://paulgraham.com/ecw.html
3. DRAW A FRAME AROUND YOURSELF Draw a frame - but don’t restrain
Opportunities, business problems and learning exist between roles
4. GET SMART Become company smart Right from the start
With a wider awareness You will be surprised less often
5. WHO’S THE CUSTOMER? Who do you work for? Who buys the service? Who uses the software? What values do they have? What do they expect from you?
6. IMPROVE THE PROCESS Relentlessly…but from your customer’s perspective
Here’s a process improvement that helped a company report Can I have 10 volunteers please?
Improving the process is part of your job. Here’s a (seemingly) simple way to do it: Observe the process Fix the process Bring in IT Via John Seddon - Vanguard
7. DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU WILL If you say you’ll do it.
8. COMMUNICATE WELL Become uber great and learn how to communicate
SUPERPOWER Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Purpose Audience Context Understanding Non-Verbal communication is a SUPERPOWER
9. ADD SKILLS Skill + Skill + Skill = Value
“If you think extraordinary talent and a maniacal pursuit of excellence are necessary for success, I say that’s just one approach, and probably the hardest. When it comes to skills, quantity often beats quality.” How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: By Scott Adams
Testing + Support + Technical Writing Testing + Coding + Teaching Testing + Management Testing + Marketing + Coaching Testing + Foreign Language
10. BE BRAVE Don’t be afraid to challenge the norms and status-quo Don’t be afraid to try new ways of working
TEN BEHAVIOURS Be Visibly Passionate Be Aggressively Open-Minded Draw A Frame Around Yourself Become Company Smart Learn Who Your Customers Are Improve The Process Do What You Say You Will Communicate Add Skills Be Brave
THANK YOU Download the free 10 Behaviours Book www.cultivatedmanagement.com/ten Blog www.cultivatedmanagement.com Twitter @rob_lambert NewVoiceMedia www.newvoicemedia.com