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Cal Evans . Com - The life, love, code, and bad poetry of Cal Evans.
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Ok, we're all adults here. We've all ready "Mythical Man Month" and "Peoplesoft". We know what we are supposed to do to build great teams. But somehow, we just never find the time to do it. Deadlines creep up, budgets are tight and you just can't afford another person. People call in sick and somebody has to pick up the slack. There are 100 excuses for not treating your developers like they should be treated. But how about coming up with at least one excuse to treat them right.



So here are 3 free or low cost ideas that I've developed over the course of my career. If you like them, take them and make them your own.
  • On their way way out every night, thank each person by name for coming in today. Be sincere. Be honest. Let them know that *you* know that they could work elsewhere if they wanted to and you are truly thankful that they work with you.
  • Make sure you know the name and birthday of each of your people and if possible, their significant other. Send a card. If you have the budget, send a gift certificate for two for dinner somewhere nice.
  • Drop by your local grocery store and pick up a lot of candy. I mean a LOT. Bonus points if you know what kind of candy your people like but anything individually wrapped is good. Then go around (YOU go around, don't send someone around) and drop off a hand-full to each person. Stay and chat for a few minutes.
All these ideas have a single thread in common. You, the manager, do something out of the ordinary for them, the developers. You do something that take the most precious resource you have, time. Giving them your time is worth more than anything else (except for that 100% raise)

Look, the bottom line is that it is all up to you, the manager. You have to be the glue that holds your your team together. You can make excuses all you want for why you don't have time but trust me, it's easier to keep good people than it is to find more.

Like what you are reading? Want more ideas? Want personalized ideas? Let me help.

I offer 3 levels of service and I'm sure one is right for you.

Bronze Level


Email me with your problem. Let me mull it over. I will come up with a solution for you and email it back to you.

Silver Level


A 5 hours phone support package. No, we're not going to sit on the phone for 5 hours together. We'll talk for an hour or so, I'll ask you a lot of questions and then I'll send you an email outlining my thoughts on how you can improve your team and in the process your job. Then I'll call you once a week for a 30 minute checkup. During the week if you run into specific problems, I'm right there to help you through it.

Gold Level


I will come on-site for 3 days to a week depending on the size of your team. I spend time getting to know you, each of your team members and the corporate environment. Then I work with you to identify the major problem areas in your team and we brainstorm to find solutions. After I'm gone, I follow up with you every week for 4 weeks for a 30 minute phone call to make sure things are running smoothly.

Ready to make the leap of faith? Email me and let's setup a time to talk.

Not sure yet? Let me offer you my money back guarantee. Sign up for the Bronze Plan. Send me your problem. If you any reason you are not 100% satisfied with the results I give you, you owe me nothing. The guarantee extends to the other plans as well but it's easier to dip your toe in the water with the small plan than the big one.

None of this helps though unless you take action. You have to want me to help before I can. Drop me an email today. Let's get the ball rolling.


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gunther logo  Last modified: Sat, 7 July 2007 (10:43:44 AM)