"Organizations which design systems (in the broad sense used here) are constrained to produce designs which are copies of the communication structures of these organizations."
— Melvin E. Conway, 1967, in How Do Committees Invent?

#governance #systems #design #webDesign #dev #software #systemDesign #IT #management #workCollectives #workCulture #simplicity #complexity #SystemsThinking

"Once something works, however ungainly it is, the attention moves elsewhere. Security is a business expense that, if it works, has no visible effect whatsoever."

"Unending ransomware attacks are a symptom, not the sickness", writes Rupert Goodwins: https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/12/opinion_column_ransomware/

#policy #ransomware #IT #security #productDev #product #requirements #work #humour #workCulture #cartoons #humor #design #dev #cartoon #productDevelopment #software #WorkChronicles #workCollectives #governance

Unending ransomware attacks are a symptom, not the sickness

Opinion: We need to make taking IT systems 'off the books' a problem for corporate types

The Register

Kellan Elliott-McCrea (then CTO of Etsy): Great women engineers aren't looking for a job, and there is a decent chance your company sucks

http://slideshare.net/kellan/more-women-in-engineering-something-that-actually-worked-14630106 by @kellan

#career #careers #values #workCollectives #workCulture #womenintech #diversity #DEI #software #tech

More women in engineering: Something that ACTUALLY WORKED.

More women in engineering: Something that ACTUALLY WORKED. - Download as a PDF or view online for free

SlideShare

@sociology @socialpsych 🧵

On #organizations:

Here "Sociopaths" is a shorthand for the Protestant-Ethic will-to-power types who drive an organization to function despite itself.

"Among the Sociopaths, status is irrelevant. Table stakes and skill at using them is what matters. Sociopaths pay attention to what you have, and how well you bargain with it. Not who you are."

https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2010/10/14/the-gervais-principle-iv-wonderful-human-beings/

#negotiating #office #merit #management #workCollectives #workCulture #power #tariffs #trade

The Gervais Principle IV: Wonderful Human Beings

"You don’t get what you deserve; you get what you negotiate." 🧵

"What distinguishes #Powertalk is that with every word uttered, the power equation between the two speakers shifts just a little. Sometimes both gain slightly, at the expense of some poor schmuck. Sometimes one yields ground to the other. Powertalk in other words, is a consequential language."

Venkatesh Rao: https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2009/11/11/the-gervais-principle-ii-posturetalk-powertalk-babytalk-and-gametalk/

#office #merit #management #organizations #workCollectives #workCulture #power #negotiating #quotes

The Gervais Principle II: Posturetalk, Powertalk, Babytalk and Gametalk

Say you have an opportunity to do whatever it takes to get something done.
Or you are forced on a dramatic shipping deadline.

"Avoiding hero work not only helps keep your current contributors healthier, but it makes your community a more welcoming place for new contributors." https://duckalignment.academy/avoiding-hero-work-pays-off-in-the-long-run/

#onBoarding #deadlines #delays #workCollectives #selfSacrifice #heroMode #teamWork #work #workCulture #heroes #heroCulture #workPlace #community #unitary #delivery #targets

Avoiding hero work pays off in the long run - Duck Alignment Academy

Avoid burnout and maintain a culture that people want to be a part of by getting rid of hero work. It's an investment in the long term.

Duck Alignment Academy
Bargaining with your Right Brain

"If you want to be a convincing advisor, psychological research tells us that your observations/facts and rational arguments may have relatively little effect. You need to make sure your relation with the person you need to convince is as good as possible and the message is heard as often as possible."
—Gerben Wierda @gctwnl: https://ea.rna.nl/2022/10/24/on-the-psychology-of-architecture-and-the-architecture-of-psychology/ 🧵

#facilitation #complexity #systems #ethics #trust #architects #psychology #psy #workCollectives #teamWork #management #memories #IT #imagination

On the Psychology of Architecture and the Architecture of Psychology

[Sticky] About the role ‘convictions’ play in human intelligence, starting from the practical situations ‘advisors’ — such as IT advisors — find themselves in. Advisors need…

R&A IT Strategy & Architecture
Change the course | everything changes

Use what you’ve got.

everything changes