Compliance is one of the most interesting elements of any data management plan – it’s a microcosm of evolution in action. When many of the laws that impacted data retention were first enacted, business wasn’t collecting a lot of information. Now, data collection happens everywhere. And, as citizens have come to realize that more and more of the information about their daily lives is recorded, they demand their governments provide privacy and protection from misuse of that data. [READ MORE]
If managing your corporate data for the long term isn’t currently on your mind, it should be, and in several different ways: cost, performance, business continuity, and compliance. [READ MORE]
In this vblog entry on www.SQLServerPedia.com shows SQL Server expert Kevin Kline discussing his views on how to be both efficient and effective in your day to day and career – aimed at the SQL Server professional, but good for anyone.
One thing I really enjoy about the SQL Server community is its vibrancy. I’ll give you details on the SQL Server community’s explosive growth in a moment, but let’s start by comparing Microsoft SQL Server’s user community with those of other significant database platforms. [READ MORE]
If you spend any time at all reading IT trade journals and websites, you’ve no doubt heard about the NoSQL movement. In a nutshell, NoSQL databases (also called post-relational databases) are a variety of loosely grouped means of storing data without requiring the SQL language. Of course, we’ve had non-relational databases far longer than we’ve had actual relational databases. Anyone who’s used products like IBM’s Lotus Notes can point to a popular non-relational database. However, part and parcel of the NoSQL movement is the idea that the data repositories can horizontally scale with ease, since they’re used as the underpinnings of a website. For that reason, NoSQL is strongly associated with web applications, since websites have a history of starting small and going “viral,” exhibiting explosive growth after word gets out. [READ MORE]
In a past post , I talked about the work of Dr. William Cohen, a renowned expert on leadership. In Dr. Cohen’s work, he describes eight frequently recurring characteristics among excellent leaders, one of which is “absolute integrity”.
However, this characteristic got pushback from several readers. The general thread seemed to be “You either have integrity or you don’t. It’s not something that can be learned”. So let’s take a step back and examine the idea of whether integrity can be learned.
I think that some of the pushback that I got about learning integrity comes from people who group integrity into the same set of characteristics as “sense of humor” or “artistic flare”. When we look at most adults, either they have those traits or they don’t. But even with these innate traits, although you can’t just sit down in a classroom and learn to have a sense of humor at 45 years old, can’t they also be learned in some form or another? After all, most children start out with a ready ability to laugh and a happy willingness to smear paint and scribble crayons on a slip of paper. At some point in their lives, they internalize a portion of those experiences into their personalities. I think, by extension, that integrity falls into the same general category. It’s learned at a young age and, if malformed prior to adulthood, is unlikely to change. It is unlikely to change, but that doesn’t mean that it cannot.
In some ways, I think the question of whether integrity can be learned also entails an understanding of what the word “integrity” means. In some cases, we might have an internal definition of a particular word, like integrity, which doesn’t match what other people or even the dictionary says the word means. In this case, according to dictionary.com, integrity is the steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code. My own personal connotation for the word integrity means steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code when no one is watching or holding you to account. In other words, you have integrity when you behave morally whether or not anyone is watching.
The opposite of integrity, in my mind, is “situational ethics”. Situational ethics is the concept that the situation dictates what your ethic parameters should be. I might be trustworthy today with money because I’m not having any money problems, but tomorrow – well, that’s another day.
Many a person entrusted with money has used situational ethics to rationalize lifting a few dollars out of the money drawer when no one was paying attention. “I’m broke and I really need this money to buy medicine,” they might think. In contrast, a person with high integrity could be trusted with that same money drawer when left alone, despite their personal money problems, just as if the boss was standing right beside them. Similarly, a sales person without much integrity might tell a boldfaced lie to get a customer to buy a product, knowing that their product doesn’t do what the customer needs. The sales person thinks to himself “I have to make quota or else I’ll be punished, after all”. On the other hand, a sales person with integrity will honestly tell the customer about the limitations of their product though that might risk losing the sale.
People who do not have a lot of integrity will often remain set in their ways. However, there are two scenarios that can help them learn to exhibit integrity. The first, and much more dramatic way to learn integrity, is the crisis. When we encounter a person without much integrity, it’s pretty common to hear on-lookers say “Oh my, he’s going to have to learn the hard way”. The hard way is usually a very public and painful crisis. There are many examples of people who’ve had to learn integrity the hard way. Two good examples are John Dean and Charles “Chuck” Colson. Dean and Colson were operatives for President Richard Nixon, counted among the most scheming and conniving of Nixon’s Watergate lieutenants. After their exposure and fall, both men have demonstrated complete reversals of their moral compasses. You can read more about their interesting lives on Wikipedia.
The second scenario that people learn to exhibit integrity is to willingly operate in a mode of “transparency”. Of course, many business processes are designed to be transparent so that management can hold individuals responsible for their actions. And as a result, many people without much innate integrity will try to skirt those business processes; for example, all the systems put in place to thwart shoplifting and “shrinkage” in retails sales. However, many leaders intentionally put systems in place so that they’re never even faced with the temptation of compromising their integrity. For example, the famous American evangelist Billy Graham never allowed himself to be alone with any woman besides his wife. This was not because he felt he couldn’t be trusted alone with temptation, but simply because he wanted to insure that he was always able to give a full accounting of his behavior towards women in a positive light.
You could argue that it was because Graham already had high integrity that he put such a process in place – and I would agree with you. However, many leaders, knowing their own limitations and internal struggles, frequently put measures in place to make their actions and behaviors more transparent thereby raising their level of integrity. This helps them uphold their ideal level of integrity through accountability. I once knew a business leader who was terrible about communicating with his team. He was closed-lipped and inscrutable. When he did speak, it was usually in negative tones that frequently demoralized his team. The good news though was that he knew this was not where he wanted to be. So he eventually put a system in place where one of his senior team members essentially became his “speechwriter”, double checking his emails and helping him prepare his public speaking engagements. He wanted to do better, knew his limitations, and put measure in place to closely examine those areas where he might succumb to his natural but counterproductive impulses .
Accountability processes are one reason why businesses publish a lot more information than the
average person cares about. PASS, for example, publishes both their financial information and meeting minutes to demonstrate both the priorities of the organization and that the leadership of the organization is behaving in the best interest of the membership. In a situation like this, transparency – in and of itself – helps cultivate integrity.
So what are your thoughts on integrity? Is it unlearnable? Have any great stories where someone in your experience demonstrated great integrity or had to go through some major ordeals to learn it? I’d like to hear more!
And as always, your comments and thoughts are appreciated.
After the misery that was 2009, most of the SQL Server users I talk to are happy that 2010 started in languid fashion. Not that there isn’t a lot of work to do; on the contrary, there’s more work than ever. However, the long hours and multiple projects of 2009, compounded by freezes in all levels of spending, raised the general stress level to unhealthy heights. With the new year, stress levels dropped significantly, and many IT leaders see signs of improving prospects. What does that bode for 2010? I have a couple of predictions, though I doubt they’ll surprise many people. [READ MORE]
I’m frequently asked the following paraphrased question:
I’d been happily plugging away in my job as a {DBA/Dev/Terminator/Warp Drive Engineer} for several years, when I applied for the manager position. I was surprised and thrilled when I got the job! But now that I’ve been in the job for a while, I find that no one on the team is thrilled with me. I know that I made a lot of changes. But they were all for the good of the team. What should I do to reconnect with my team and rebuild my friendships?
A common theme in this series, “Plays Well With Others”, is that the skills responsible for your success as a database professional have little in common with success as a leader and manager. And this scenario is a classic example. It’s especially important to our situation because the solution to this problem is entirely people-oriented and has nothing to do with all those great SQL Server skills you’ve developed over the years.
It's not always comedy
First of all, if you haven’t already, avail yourself of the excellent and time-tested Blanchard’s Leadership and the One Minute Manager as well as The One Minute Manager, both by Kenneth Blanchard. Management and leadership books churn through the bookstores as quickly late night talk shows on NBC have lately. But this book has proven its worth over the years and its advice still holds up well.
Next, recognize that most management hassles can be defeated or at least deflated by publicly getting in front of them. In a sense, the best way to solve this kind of problem is a bit of proactive damage control. So instead of launching into a bunch of new initiatives and changes for the team (especially the kind that reduce a former teammates’ power or privilege), announce that you’re considering a bunch of changes. You don’t have to be specific about your plans, but don’t be intentionally vague or evasive either. Further explain that some of the changes may be uncomfortable, but you’re convinced they’ll make the team much more productive and return greater value to the enterprise.
Ask everyone on the team for input and ideas of their own within the next X number of weeks while you formulate your plans. It’s very possible that you might 1) get ideas from team members that exactly matches what you’d planned to do, and 2) get new ideas you never thought of but would like to add to the mix or even put higher in priority. Be sure to thank everyone who steps up to the conversation (or email thread).
Now, it’s time to book some one-on-one time across the team and have the “tough talks” well in advance and in private with those who might be on the losing end of your changes. Also, invite suggestions about how to best go forward. You might be surprised by their team spirit. By treating everyone with empathy and dignity, you might turn one of these potential grumblers into a reliable “wingman”. On the other hand, arguments are quite likely so explain that the changes are non-negotiable, but reiterate their contribution and value to the team.
By handling this situation with foresight, you send several messages. The first and strongest message is that you are the leader. This might not be comfortable for your friends or even to you. But it’s extremely important to establish this role early on. And by handling the situation with dignity, you demonstrate that you have credibility, which makes strengthens you in a sort of positive-feedback loop.
If it’s too late to establish your “street cred” and you’ve already fumbled the early stages of the transition to leadership, you can still recover. But as the old saying goes, an ounce of protection is worth a pound of prevention. Usually in a situation like this, you should implement a goal-setting and planning session with the entire team. Explain that the objective is to collaboratively define the goals and objectives of the team and to adjust team responsibilities, processes, and duties to best accomplish those goals. Personally, you should remember the purpose of the meeting is, primarily, to get everyone on the team knows buy-in to your vision of “success” for the team and, secondarily, firmly establish your position as leader. It might take as much as half a day to hammer this down.
Prepare ahead of time. Make sure that your changes mesh with management’s goals for your team. Ensure that you and YOUR boss are on the same page about what characteristics would mark a team as “successful”. If you have some extremely strong willed team members or are expecting outright conflict, you may need to conduct your goal-setting session as a one-on-one series of meetings rather than a single meeting for the entire team. Schedule a conference room (with a white board) and appoint an official scribe to record the details of the meeting. Encourage a lot of brainstorming during the meeting. Make sure to discuss these topics:
What are we here for? A comprehensive list of team goals that characterize the team as “successful”. Be sure to project top management’s view of success to the team since you might be the only one who fully understands what management expects, plus you can contradict any false notions held by team members.
What do we do daily? The bulk of daily duties and processes performed by the team (before your changes) put in place to try to meet the goals in topic 1.
What could we do better? List any changes you put in place, as well as solicit ideas from the team. Accommodate good ideas from the team, but not at the expense of meeting the enterprise goals. Explain to the team that the goals of topic 1, as well as duties and processes of topic 2, are a sort of “contract” with the enterprise. These are the things that the enterprise uses to evaluate whether you’re all successful or not.
What did we decide? Explain that, as the leader, you’re interested in maximizing the contribution of the entire team. This might mean that the best solutions for the team are not always what each individual prefers. Reinforce that everyone on the team has part-ownership in the team contract. Express confidence in the team that they can make the changes especially effect and thank each one for their contribution and efforts.
At the conclusion of the meeting, you should now have buy-in from everyone on the team and a strong consensus on expectations. Going forward, you can use the “contract” agreed to by you and your team as the basis for evaluating performance and, if needed, for correcting underperformance.
So, after all of that, does that mean you’re still the buddy of the guy in the cube next to you? Chances are good that you and your cube-mates can stay buddies, if that’s your main goal. Just be mindful that most peer-to-peer relationships do change when one of the peers is promoted to be the boss of the other. However, you can avoid these relationship issues by clearly and explicitly defining everyone’s role and then getting explicit, verbal (or written) confirmation that you and your workmates are in agreement.
On this vblog entry on www.sqlserverpedia.com I describe and discuss the Microsfot MCP (Master Certification Program). I hope this helps anyone that is interested in this program. Enjoy and I look forward to your feedback!
