ARE ISV DEVELOPERS TAKING ADVANTAGE OF PROPRIETARY WEB-BASED APPLICATION PLATFORMS?

Popular web-based companies are seeking to influence developers to use their new and emerging development platforms. Their primary goals are to enable more widespread use of their proprietary tools and resources in web applications, and to facilitate the build-out of specialized applications within their sites.

This research employed a web-based survey among 1866 randomly chosen Microsoft® partners in 8 countries and was conducted in 5 different languages. For reporting purposes, these countries were organized into four geographic sectors: North America, EMEA (Europe, Middle East), APAC

(Asia-Pacific), and LATAM (Latin America). The survey respondents represented a cross-section of independent software vendors.

What will you do if people do not "want" to share?

• 1. Change the people• 2. Change (Replace) the People• 3. Drop KM

• 4. Put “Collaboration” into the Job Descriptions.

• From ACTKM

Lessons Learned from Lessons Learned

Report Back on Experiment

Gurteen Knowledge Café - Sept 2008

Format

• Recent Experiment.

• Interpose your experiences as we go

Slide 2 of 2,338

Knowledge Forum Server

• Hierarchical Searching

• Automated Hyperlinker

• Forum Software

• On-Line Help System

• Knowledge Historian – Sharon Watson

• Knowledge Librarian – Peter Bridges

Client Background

• Long Term, Good Relationship, Knew all participants personally.

• Recent Amendment Version to Software which I had done, involving– 2 clerical staff (one in Brisbane, one in Melbourne)

– 2 Marketers (one in Brisbane, one in Auckland) plus a Manager in Brisbane

– 3 IT people in Melbourne (Chinese Lady Manager, 1 Skip, 1 Sri Lankan)

• Only 1 had done a Post Implementation Review anywhere before.

• This Business had never done a “lessons learned” before.

“In 35 years nobody has asked me for lessons learned….”

Startup

• 2 line comment in an email from me – “its coming” “In the next few days, we will be sending out a link to a Post Project Review on this version, so have a think

about the lessons you have learned from this exercise, so that you can give good feedback”.

• Letter from Sharon“Here is a link to a site to help us review this mini-project.

I would really appreciate you doing this, as we are evaluating what is necessary in terms capturing the story, and gathering lessons learned.

Please say as much or as little as you want, and be truthful.

The aim is to work out what needs to be different next time, or what we can take away as a good thing to do elsewhere.

This software is still being developed, so pardon any crudity.”

• Management Re-enforcement

Opening Screen

New Version of xxxxx Software During this exercise we have introduced some new people to Updating a new version of xxxxxx; and we have

introduced some new steps and complexities such as better Testing, and having 3 people developing. We would like to trial the FSHIST module from Fry Systems and track some of the lessons learned that you have gained from this exercise. Please think about the questions and just give the best answer you can 

Make my Comments

I have decided that I just want to make a general comment about something. 

Call Sharon Watson

Questions

Responses

Follow Up #1

• 1 person, answered 1 question. Thanks for leaving the note, Kim.

All you are meant to do on this screen is select your name, and then describe in your own words, what you think your role was in this project.

For example, I know that you entered a lot of documents, but

How would you describe that?

What else did you do.

• Another person, added a general “free form” commentThanks very much for your response, Peter.

Your note about the success of the project has been recorded. (Did you want to expand your comment or add anything under the other questions?)

Your feedback is valuable and I appreciate your contribution. Thanks again.

• More EncouragementThank you to those who have made comments so far. If you have thought of something else, please free to make more comments.

Some people have not made comments so far. It is a good idea to do so while the experience is fresh in your minds. If you would like help with

recording your comments please feel free to contact me.

• No Reaction. The software audit trail showed that they had not gone beyond the opening screen.

Opening Screen

New Version of xxxxx Software During this exercise we have introduced some new people to Updating a new version of xxxxxx; and we have

introduced some new steps and complexities such as better Testing, and having 3 people developing. We would like to trial the FSHIST module from Fry Systems and track some of the lessons learned that you have gained from this exercise. Please think about the questions and just give the best answer you can 

Make my Comments

I have decided that I just want to make a general comment about something. 

Call Sharon Watson

Follow Up #2

• Direct Interview with 4 non-participants with Managing Director present.

• Verbal answers showed the gap in business understanding.

• Minor element of distrust.

• Nobody claimed they were “too busy”

• It was new.

Follow Up #3“The exercise was an interesting study in remote management.

We know remote management works and in this case the project was successful in that we achieved the stated aim but I wonder how much better it might have been had we enjoyed the advantage of getting everyone in the same room at the commencement of the project for an information and brainstorming session. There was a mountain of tedious stuff to get through and Bernice, Kim, and Julia’s team did a terrific job, but these people were working pretty much in isolation from each other and I don’t think they get much of a sense of satisfaction from that. If we had a ‘whole of project team’ approach then everybody has the opportunity of celebrating success rather than thinking of it as just another task knocked over.

I know I’m used to more generous corporate budgets that enable project teams to meet and that we are a tighter ship, but I really believe that we need to think about the ‘ownership’ aspect of any significant projects in future. A few hundred dollars on air fares can produce a better result and pay for itself in terms of better understanding, commitment, enrolment, shared ownership, and ultimate success.”

Summarised as:

Peter raised the issue that co-ordination was very difficult with 4 sites (Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane and New Zealand) and that a small amount of money on some air fares would have meant face-to-face communication – which is clearly superior to emails and phones. This has been raised with the Managing Director and the response is that we will make more (and immediate) use of the WebCams in Melbourne and Brisbane.

TELSTRA• Need to do it immediately after the exercise• Don’t share beyond the participants• Set up KM approach at the start of the Project

ACTKMGia Lyons (http://giatalks.com/blog/why-is-it-so-hard-to-get-smart-

people-to-share)Thu, 8 May 2008   Why is it so hard to get smart people to share?

[...]  For the record, please do not try to harness or harvest my knowledge.  I am not a horse, nor a corn crop.  Why is it so hard to get your smart people to share?  Because human beings typically share their precious knowledge only with people they trust.  Not a

software application.

Next Takers ?

• Preselling the exercise• Symptomatic of other issues (Induction, Understanding, need for

improvement, willingness to take on the new….)• More expansive explanation in software• Analyse and Engage

Thomas Edison

“I have not failed. I have just found a whole lot of things that did not work”