Hello All,

Need your views on "What makes a software project to be desirable for employees"

regards

hema

Dear hema,

As I feel it is as per this order:

1. Role in Project: Priority is learning and add value to resume and future prospects. Leader role if leadership is a priority. Assistant if it is only option available.

Documentation and quality is of least interest for a SW programmer. Systems analysis is highest priority. Most of the people are loner - and they prefer independent assignments.

2. Location: Top priority is on-site and in client's location. Near hometown for keeping in touch with familiar people,especially family members or for alternate career options or with existing partners. Overseas in first few years to get exposure, applicable to daring and energetic lots. For people lacking communication and confidence office or off-site location.

3. Business Domain: New and sunrise businesses for risk takers and sharp people. First few years in the comfort zone for fear of failure by low risk takers. moderate risk takers in emerging businesses. Few prefers same domain to become an expert.

4. Technology: Latest technology for sharp and quick learners. For the rest existing and proven technology. For slow learners, technology they already know and extensions to it.

Additional points:

A. The Project team and its leader: Most are attracted to work with a good project leader/manager. The scope of learning and ability to achieve results within budget and schedule is directly proportional to the leadership quality and clout of the leader/manager in the organization or with client.

B. Scope of learning and value addition for next job/assignment: If a SW professional can estimate this accurately, this is the most desirable aspect. However, majority makes a mistake in estimating this aspect and they go by some hunches or attracted by insignificant issues.

As HR person you can focus on these few areas:

Look at the soft skills of the person (mainly communication and managing diversity), then his learning ability, then his interests in learning new concepts and technology; and then inter-personal skills. You will get a combination suitable for packaging an assignment or project for a person. Allow the leader and the person to choose each other.

Beware of the person who is trying to get into a project with a clear intention to increase his market value. You and the organization will be a net loser. Such people will take advantage of taking every training and good project in quick succession and will vanish without giving you time to retain them.

Hope you have received more inputs from others.

shantanuji

You need to check out the following books –

1) “FIRST, BREAK ALL THE RULES”

2) “FISH”

Read in combination, it would give us an idea about what people expect at their jobs and how we could probably manage a more lively workspace.

A paradigm shift - when the development company thinks of itself as a problem solving company and not as a software development company. You are there to solve a problem, not to develop software.

Regards,

Pooja Sharma

Hi,

From my experience in working with software companies, one of the key reasons that employees lose focus and are disturbed during the first few months is the perceived disconnect between what has been promised to them during the interview stage and what is the ground reality once they join. I think managing the employee expectations right at the start will set the ground for more satisfied employees.

Cheers

Sanjay Mewar