Re: A Long Time Ago

[Jay Maechtlen <techwriter -at- covad -dot- net>]

James Barrow wrote:
> In a Tech Pubs department far, far away...
> 
> In my little part of the world there's an IT department (me), and a project
> management office (PMO; them).  The org chart for our entire organization is
> very strange.  Project managers don't really get down in the trenches and
> manager projects.  Instead, they sit in ivory towers and allocate resources,
> create timelines, etc.  IT managers do all of the day to day activities.  
> 
> The IT dept. has a dozen current projects and zero documentation.  Zip.
> Nada.  None.  One of these projects is upgrading a system (legacy app) that
> users have been using for several years.  The new app contains significant
> changes, but is based on the legacy app.  The developers for the new app
> have been hired and are sitting in the cubicle farm...doing nothing.  Why?
> Because they need some sort of documentation for the legacy app before they
> can proceed.
> 

> Enter the PMO.  "Oh no, no, no.  You must document every process and
> procedure, for every module, for every facility."  This increases the doc
> plan to 133 documents...due on April 13.  Doable?  I have no idea any more.
> 

Sounds like those developers doing nothing should be assigned to you to
help figure out the bloody mess, and rough in the docs. You create a
very simple framework, they fill in the blanks.
(yeah, I live in a dreamland, don't I?)
-- 
Jay Maechtlen
techpubs -at- covad -dot- net
626 444-5112 office
626 840-8875 cell

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