9/25/2007

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Why is it that so many intranet content owners ask me, "how should I deal with IT?" with the same air as when reluctantly asking a doctor, "how should I deal with this skin rash?" They go on to talk about IT people as though they're an otherworldly species who communicate in gibberish and feast on prairie rodents.

But these feelings of unease -- especially among the non-techies -- when working with IT are based mostly on false perceptions of IT. There's nothing secretive or paranormal about them. They have the same concerns that you do: deadlines and deliverables, funding and resources, and all the interpersonal baggage that comes with working on a multi-departmental project.

In a past article, I wrote about how to best work with intranet content owners. It's only fair I do the same with their technical counterparts. So, how do you deal with IT? You don't deal with IT, you work with IT.

Respect the spec

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During development, an intranet's project specs and schedule must be established by both content owners and IT. Once that framework has been set up, resist the urge to make changes to it unless absolutely necessary and agreed upon by both parties. Post-spec additions -- known as feature creep -- have a rippling effect that can wreak havoc with IT's schedule. Nothing will sour IT's mood during development more than constantly changing project specs and then having content owners complain that deliverables are taking too long. This shows a reckless disregard for IT and their priorities. And it's also a sure way to get you a one-way trip to the doghouse.

Establish intranet management boundaries

What's one of the main reasons parents are reluctant to buy a dog for their kids? Because they know full well that they, not their kids, will end up having to take care of it. IT works in cooperation with content owners to develop an intranet, fully expecting them to take the reins of daily content management once the system hits the production environment. But if content owners lose interest, lack time, or whatever the excuse du jour may be, they might be tempted to place this responsibility on IT's shoulders. Big mistake. IT's responsible for the technical side of intranet management, never the content side. Technical staff will resent content owners who think that IT has all the time in the world to take on other people's responsibilities. If content owners let their content duties fall by the wayside, expecting IT to pick up the slack, it will be the system and its users who will suffer in the end.

Learn to speak IT

IT people speak their own language. They use technical jargon in everyday speech -- even when working with non-technical people -- without even knowing it. They do this out of habit because they deal with these concepts everyday. It's their job to immerse themselves in technology, but not everyone does. And sometimes it's easy for IT people to forget this. So, if you work closely with IT, it's a good idea to become bilingual, able to speak both business and technology. You don't need to be fluent in technology or harp on all the nuts and bolts, but you should understand the underlying technologies surrounding your intranet at a conceptual level so that your IT staff doesn't pull their hair out from having to repeatedly explain elementary concepts.

Empathize with IT

Like doctors in an ER ward, there are far too many patients for the available doctors on duty. In other words, don't always expect instant gratification. IT personnel are often overworked and under-appreciated. They work with dozens of departments and hundreds of users -- all with a list of requests that, according to them, must be fulfilled immediately. IT has a triage process and you may think your request is top priority, but it's not always possible for them to drop what they're doing to meet your needs -- especially if they're dealing with something mission critical. Show a little empathy for IT and realize that you're not the only one they work with. You might be in a bind, but IT might be in one as well.

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