wouldwurker Posted March 10, 2015 Report Share Posted March 10, 2015 It's the pits. Ironically, the cookie-driven ads that I get are all for tools I just purchased. Don't they know that if a woodworker gargled "Veritas Cabinet Scraper" or "Festool Half Sheet Sander", he probably bought it 5 minutes later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted March 10, 2015 Report Share Posted March 10, 2015 ==>unless the technical staff is very very assertiveThe issue is rarely in the hands of the technical staff – how could it be? They have little-to-no control over CAPX/resource allocation... Unless the technical staff’s Sr. management can make a solid business case for increased development improving top-line opportunity, bottom-line efficiency, customer experience/service, and/or the rest of the business-rational club, then development suffers… And, if you'll forgive a former CIO, so it should… I've been on both sides of this one... Did my time in the engineering and development trenches needing more resources to do a proper job and later as the business guy watching P&L…Probably depends if you are selling the code your write, or if you're using the code you write to sell other stuff. The code that I work on is of the later type, and the standard that I have held myself to, as well as those I used to mange is as follows. The developers job is to ensure anything they produce is not abusive to the companies systems/staff first, the end users machines/data/experience second, and the requesting departments needs last.The trick I have always found, is presenting why the first two points are more important to the bottom line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted March 10, 2015 Report Share Posted March 10, 2015 Agreed… Some organizations are much better than others in taking queues from the tech staff… Wonder if the brain trust at Taunton will get RMS-FWW turned in the right direction before they stop to take on some ice… Their current strategy of, “How hard can this be? We’ll just hire a ‘web guy’... It'll be easy"… isn’t quite working out… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted March 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Agreed… Some organizations are much better than others in taking queues from the tech staff… Wonder if the brain trust at Taunton will get RMS-FWW turned in the right direction before they stop to take on some ice… Their current strategy of, “How hard can this be? We’ll just hire a ‘web guy’... It'll be easy"… isn’t quite working out… Could it be a typical case of too much work for too few staff? Either route, they really need to get it together. I am a print subscriber, and i like their Ipad app for digital issues (in Canada, I get the paper copy about 2 weeks after Americans. I get the digital issue right away). I am loathing their website, as the ads and speed are brutal. I am hoping things improve over there, as their content is great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Could it be a typical case of too much work for too few staff? Either route, they really need to get it together. I am a print subscriber, and i like their Ipad app for digital issues (in Canada, I get the paper copy about 2 weeks after Americans. I get the digital issue right away). I am loathing their website, as the ads and speed are brutal. I am hoping things improve over there, as their content is great.possibly, but unlikely. Stuff like limiting the number of resources need to make a page render, are fundamental concepts. I also see some stuff on the front page today, that shows stuff isn't being thoroughly tested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 My e-mail to the staff of FWW, sent recently: I'm sure I'm not the first person to tell you, but the new website design is quite possibly the worst I've ever seen with regards to advertisements, speed, and functionality. I'll be cancelling my $4.99/mo membership. The website is literally unusable. I have not encountered one person in the woodworking community who doesn't hate it. In fact, Taunton has become a running joke. Seems my new choices in woodworking content are Popular Woodworking and "Pop-Up" Woodworking. I have to assume this is an internal point of contention within your organization, but wanted to ensure you were aware of the dissatisfaction of your readers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgreenb Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Ha - don't pull any punches Vinny! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjeff70 Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Hiring the person you think can be best worked with (nepotism included) rather than the most qualified is partly why the business world is like it is today. Now we just need to quantify what 'best qualified' means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Hiring the person you think can be best worked with (nepotism included) rather than the most qualified is partly why the world is like it is today.I agree, I'd rather work with a bunch of over qualified a-holes, then a bunch of under qualified friendly people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 I agree, I'd rather work with a bunch of over qualified a-holes, then a bunch of under qualified friendly people. Thread took a weird turn, but since we're on the subject... Given the choice between qualified a-holes and under-qualified friendly people, I'll take the latter, as long as they're willing to listen and learn. Of course, as I qualified A-hole myself, I might be biased 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 My e-mail to the staff of FWW, sent recently: I'm sure I'm not the first person to tell you, but the new website design is quite possibly the worst I've ever seen with regards to advertisements, speed, and functionality. I'll be cancelling my $4.99/mo membership. The website is literally unusable. I have not encountered one person in the woodworking community who doesn't hate it. In fact, Taunton has become a running joke. Seems my new choices in woodworking content are Popular Woodworking and "Pop-Up" Woodworking. I have to assume this is an internal point of contention within your organization, but wanted to ensure you were aware of the dissatisfaction of your readers. I do think Taunton is a well-managed company. They have to be, they have survived for 30-40 years in a very difficult industry. Their offering is focused. To my knowledge, they only have 4 or 5 magazines. They have smartly resisted the urge to diversify into a thousand different categories. Without Taunton, a lot of the reference material we rely on simply would not exist. I have to assume that Asa stepped down partly because of their podcast implying that internet woodworking is "unvetted" and part of a "perfect storm of stupidity" (not to rehash that whole debate). So at least they pay attention to what their readers think. And compared the other magazines, their content is really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 I'll take the latter, as long as they're willing to listen and learn. I'm in that situation right now and it's getting old quick. I went ballistic on a coworker yesterday after answering questions for 30 minutes, only to find out at the very end, they never even read the documentation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 ==>they never even read the documentation. One x-mas, I made the better-half (she's a Sr. IT wonk) a deskset with my first attempt at letter carving -- I substituted her name with RTFM... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 I use RTF(insert appropriate letter here) every day. Probably my favorite acronym. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 When I hire people, I figure my job is to maximize the success of the project/task/mission. The mission can fail because people don't have the necessary skills, because the people aren't able to learn the necessary skills fast enough, because of poor planning or supervision, poor communication, poor cooperation, low morale, staff turnover, etc, etc. There are a lot of other factors which have to be considered besides skills. In most cases, the ability to learn, on their own and from instruction, is more important than the skills they come in with. I won't hire or work with a-holes regardless of their skills. I might move this thread to "off-topic" if it continues to drift away from woodworking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Chip - You won't hire a-holes in Philly? Who's left?? Sorry...too easy. My whole family and I - born and bred in Philly....I couldn't resist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Willingness to learn vs capacity to learn. I have seen too many abrasive over qualified hurt the bottom line. Myself included. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 I will start off by saying I like my company. I should, I have been here 14 years. We have a saying "No one likes the smartest guy in the room" I try to recognize that everyone learns differently. Some people need to ask an annoying amount of questions. Some people can go read a manual and learn everything they need. Some people just need to make a mistake one time. Some people need a ton of information to make every decision. Some people can make very good decisions with surprisingly little information (but can hone in on the stuff the matters). My job, as a manager, is to help everyone on the team understand that and appreciate each other's strengths. Its not easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Everyone needs a style... Lot's of good ones out there... I'm a bit more, “Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun”… I got into Sr. Mgmt when it was still stylish to do the shrink thing… Let’s just say I scored to the results-oriented side of the grid… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Everyone needs a style... Lot's of good ones out there... I'm a bit more, “Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun”… I got into Sr. Mgmt when it was still stylish to do the shrink thing… Let’s just say I scored to the results-oriented side of the grid… Yeah, don't let my touchy-feely post fool you. Results are what matters, I care less about how people get there (which was my point). Micro-management is the crutch of the new manager and at the end of the day, yields a cost of capital result. Yes you can micro-manage a C player up to B levels, but you will also put an anchor on your A players. And BTW, shrinking is always stylish.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjeff70 Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Yeah, don't let my touchy-feely post fool you. Results are what matters, I care less about how people get there (which was my point). Micro-management is the crutch of the new manager and at the end of the day, yields a cost of capital result. Yes you can micro-manage a C player up to B levels, but you will also put an anchor on your A players. And BTW, shrinking is always stylish.... And that's good enough for government work: bureaucracy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Let me put in a plug for the book, "One Minute Manager". It's totally results based, it's an efficient use of the manager's time, and in my experience it works great and employees love it. I don't follow it word for word, but I use its concepts all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 Let me put in a plug for the book, "One Minute Manager". It's totally results based, it's an efficient use of the manager's time, and in my experience it works great and employees love it. I don't follow it word for word, but I use its concepts all the time. in my career as a manager I've had 2 employees (out of the several dozen I have managed) that were supremely addicted to feedback. They couldn't function without some daily affirmation. One guy is an absolute rock star and is worth the time invested. The other guy was a C player on his best day. I felt bad on the day I let him go but the minute I walked out of that little conference room it was like a PM2000 was lifted off my shoulders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted March 11, 2015 Report Share Posted March 11, 2015 I suppose my experience is the crux of the problem. I've been to FWW's site a few times. Usually trying to buy plans I liked. Every time, I have thought the website was (temporarily) malfunctioning. . If users can't even go there and spend money, what's the point of having a web presence at all? I didn't know it was a systemic issue until this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted March 12, 2015 Report Share Posted March 12, 2015 I suppose my experience is the crux of the problem. I've been to FWW's site a few times. Usually trying to buy plans I liked. Every time, I have thought the website was (temporarily) malfunctioning. . If users can't even go there and spend money, what's the point of having a web presence at all? I didn't know it was a systemic issue until this thread. some times companies get all caught up in hip trendy crap. A good example of this on the fww website is the stupid 4 panel slideshow thing on the front-page. It's easy to do in strait jquery/JavaScript, but o no they used a plugin that does nothing but add JavaScript bloat. I had an intern 2 years ago that still sends me thank you messages every now and then over Facebook, because I always came down on him like a ton of bricks, for using plugins for trivial stuff. Apparently at some point the lesson of learning how to do it yourself hit home, and it's helped him get ahead in his new job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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