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Mod-E-Vasion vs. MotivationQA Staff Meeting 7/15/2010

Boredom at WorkYou know who you are if it’s you…RIGHT? It happens to (almost) everyone…If it wasn’t WORK…They’d call it VACATIONAnd CHARGE you…

Maybe It’s Management’s Fault?Employee Motivation: Theory X and YThe Human Side of Enterprise, Douglas Mc Gregor 1960http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/mcgregor/http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Log-Mar/Management-Styles.html

Theory XAssumes the average person:Dislikes work and attempts to avoid itHas no ambitionWants no responsibilityWould rather follow than leadIs self-centered and therefore does not care about organizational goalsResists changeIsgullibleand not particularly intelligent

Management X ApproachesHard Approach:CoercionImplicit threatsClose supervisionTight controlsResults in hostility, purposely low-output, and hard-line union demandsSoft Approach:Permissive and seek harmony with the hope that employees will cooperate when asked to do soResults in ever-increasing requests for more rewards in exchange for ever-decreasing work output

Problem with Theory XA satisfied need no longer motivates.Company relies upon money and benefits to satisfy employee’s lower needsOnce needs are met, motivation is lostStyle actually hinders higher level needs (i.e. money isn’t everything for job satisfaction)

Theory YAssumes the following:Work can be as natural as play and restPeople will be self-directed to meet their work objectives if they are committed to themPeople will be committedif rewards are in place that address higher needs such as self-fulfillmentPeople will then seek responsibilityMost people can handle responsibility because creativity andingenuityare common in the population.

Theory Y: If true…Opportunity to align personal goals with company goalsUse employee’s own quest for fulfillment as the motivatorNote: Theory Y Management does not implya soft approach…Also, some people may not have reached level of maturity needed and might need tighter controls that can later be relaxed as employee develops.

Theory Y ManagementMotivational Energy can be harnessed by:Decentralization and DelegationReduction in levels of managementResponsibility and decision making delegatedJob EnlargementBroadening the scope of jobAdd variety and opportunitiesParticipative ManagementConsulting employees in decision making process to tap creative capacity and provide SOMEcontrol over work environmentPerformance AppraisalsHave employee set objectives and participate in the process of evaluating how well they were met

Out of the RutStickyMinds.com ArticleMichael BoltonI'm testing, and I just realized that I'm bored. This is a Bad Thing. I'll have to do something about it…I'll sneak a few moments of disposable time, defined as:"the time that you can afford to waste…without getting into TROUBLE."

No tester that I know of is really supervisedeveryminuteof everydayWe have moments in which we might… try a new test idea

look briefly at a different area of the product

or just do something else for a while.If it turns out that I've wasted disposable timeit's OKby definition I can afford to waste it…And maybe I'll learn something COOL…

"... boredom isn't the same thing as being in stasis. Being bored doesn't mean there's nothing to do…... It means that SOMETHING BIG... …is keeping us from doing what we want to dofrom playing outside from expressing ourselvesfrom moving forward

Triggers of BoredomRepetitionRepetitionRepetitionMinute and fragmented tasksInsufficient motivationThe absence of a need for intellectual engagementThe absence of things that !!! WAKE US UP !!!

Without motivationI lose engagement……and without engagement……motivation becomes more difficult….

Common Tester Complaints When Mandated to Repeat Heavily Scripted Tests: Not discovering new problemsNot findingbugs Can feelthat they're not learningDon't feel as though in control of their own testing process

What Can You Do to Take Back Control?

Trade AssignmentsOn a well-managed or self-organizing team, we might be able to trade assignments to play to our strengths. Note: The downside of simply trading off work is that you might deprive yourself of an opportunity to learn something valuable. Check with your lead first!

Exploit VariationWhen feeling bored, try to change the work in subtle but interesting ways. Doing vs. DescribingCareful vs. QuickWorking with the product vs. working with the developerDesign vs. ExecutionData gathering vs. Data analysisSolo work vs. Team effort

VariationWhen BORED, pause, note whatever approach you’re using at the moment, and trygoing the other way…Try branching and backtracking:deliberately choosing a different path of execution, and then aborting it and backing up several steps. This can be very useful for revealing state-based bugs. The downside of variation is that too much of it might take you off charter or testing mission.

CollaborateChat with a programmerAsk about workflows or pitfallsPair with another testerConversation using whiteboardCan help to model the systemSee new risksTake a new approach

Focus on Something ElseMaybe I'm bored because I've been paying attention to: One thing too closelyTo the same thing for too longTo the wrong thingRisk: Inattentional BlindnessA psychological phenomenon wherein we can miss significant things that are happening right in front of our eyes

I've found that consistent alternation between focusing and defocusing----looking at some detail, then looking at the big picture, then looking at some other detail----helps keep me engaged and helps me see a different set of potential problems.

Put the Machine to Work If it's genuinely better done by a machine, get a machine to do it. If I'm doing something that is monotonous and repetitive that includes a decision that the machine can make: there's a good chance that some little tool I cobble together will be extensible or reusable. Moreover, I need to exercise programming skill regularly, or I get rusty quickly.

The risk is that automating a task limits my observations to things that I can program the machine to observe, greatly reducing my ability to spot an unanticipated problem…I have to consider opportunity cost. That reminds me to ...

Assess Cost vs. ValueMy boredom might be a subconscious trigger that I'm doing something that’s not terribly valuable. Maybe I'm whacking on an empty piñata and the value of what I'm doing no longer supports the cost of doing it? Perhaps it's not just uninteresting to me butuninteresting to my client, too???That leads me to the…

Mission CheckMaybe I should have a chat with my manager to make sure that we agree that I'm doing something worthwhile? Their perception of risk might not match what I've been observing in the product. I like to manage this by using session-based test management and time-boxing my testing charters.Deliberately change charters on my own every ninety minutes or so. That helps keep me fresh, because the end of a session marks a good time to ...

Just Take a Break!Go for a walk,read a magazine, take a bike ride, grab a coffee, get a snack, run an errand, etc.Over the years, I've noticed a lot of people who are virtually chained to their desks. They claim it's because they have important work to do and that they can keep flow going. Fair enough, but if they're genuinely in flow, they're engaged--not bored. Making some change to clear out the cobwebs is important, too, sometimes.Now, back to work…

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