5 Things You Should Know About IT People
Sometimes I think designers and programmers couldn’t be more opposite. At Agency Fusion our success depends on bringing these two worlds together but it sometimes feels like we’re trying to mix oil and water.
More than likely you’ve already had an experience dealing with an IT-type person that left you feeling a little frustrated.
Here are a few insights into the mind of the programmer, network admin, or other IT person. Hopefully this might help you the next time you find yourself wondering how to communicate with the IT species.
1. It doesn’t make any sense to me.
IT people live in a world of logic and order. As a creative you thrive on thinking outside the box; everything’s fluid, flexible, and your mind is trained to accept new and unconventional ideas and approaches to things.
For IT people, and especially for programmers, everything is about consistency, methodology, rules, and conventions. Creativity still plays a huge role for great programmers, but it’s a different kind of creativity. More like creating a new mathematical formula than like creating a new logo.
When trying to persuade or convince an IT person, try to start with your objective (what you want to accomplish) and then present an argument that is as logical and formulaic as possible. Probably the least effective argument you can make (although not invalid) will be to say something like, “I want to do this because it will look really cool.”
2. It’s my problem when you’re done.
If you were hired to redesign a company’s website, it was probably the person in charge of marketing that engaged you. Your new client’s IT staff is probably going to get involved at some point during the project and you may feel some initial resistance from them.
One of the main reasons they’ll push back is that after you deliver the shiny new website and move on to another project, they’re the ones left to maintain it.
There are a few helpful steps you can take in this situation.
- Ask for their input even if you’re convinced they aren’t going to add value. They’ll feel better knowing you’re including them and may provide some insights no one else has considered.
- Earn points by showing interest in their world. Programming and networking may seem like fodder for a yawn but they love it and will accept you more readily if you seem somewhat interested. Ask a few genuine questions or mention a Wired article you’ve recently read.
- Build their website with a Content Management System (CMS) which can help by making it possible for the marketing department to make changes directly, rather than bugging the IT department for small text changes.
3. It works, doesn’t that count for anything?
One of the worst things a developer faces is the “unveiling” of a particularly difficult project only to have those who’re looking on respond with disappointment in how the project looks. You know…the whole “judging a book by its cover” thing? A developer may spend hundreds of hours on a complicated project and be so proud that it does some amazing thing but be utterly deflated when no one appreciates the effort.
If a developer ever wants to show you something “really cool” just play along and act excited even if the thing looks like crap. He or she is more passionate about making it work or proving it can be done than the style in which it’s done.
There’ll be time later to discuss the appearance of the thing. Throw out some genuine compliments first to stroke the ego and then talk about improving it later.
4. I know it seems simple, but it was really hard to program.
Somewhat related to the previous point, developers are often tasked with doing complicated things that appear simple when finished. Just because something is easy to use doesn’t mean it is easy to build. As a developer it’s frustrating to hear a designer say, “It’s really simple…you just type in the data and it creates a report.” True, it’s not as hard as building a nuclear reactor, but it will take more time and is more complicated the final result might indicate.
The level of unappreciated complexity increases exponentially when the extras are added in, such as validating data entry, handling system errors gracefully, drag-and-drop style functionality, etc.
5. It’s a nice picture, but it doesn’t do anything.
As a final thought to help give you some perspective on working with IT people, it might help to realize that for some IT folks you are just as much an enigma. Just as you might not understand the programmer’s passion for writing code, some programmers might not see what’s so great about creating graphics. Code might not be visually stimulating, but graphics can’t make data move between systems.
Both disciplines and passions are critical in any successful technology endeavor so I think the goal should be to learn “how the other half lives” to increase the likelihood of a successful partnership.
What do you think? How can designers and developers better relate to one another? Do you have any insights into working with IT people?
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December 20th, 2006 at 3:46 pm
LOL, this article is funny because it’s so true.
January 7th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
Thats soo true! god hit the nail on the head, think this should be required reading for people that annoy us developers!
January 10th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
I think designers and programmers having hard time for IT industry. Because every year new program come out. As programmer we have to update new software and study. I don’t like to study forever.
January 12th, 2007 at 11:47 am
Programmers understand that nobody appreciates what they do. Luckily nobody can do what they do either - and non-programmers are well aware of that fact. I loved the quote from number 4 - “It’s really simple…you just type in the data and it creates a report.†hahaha. That is so right. The mind setting of so many clueless lusers. I would love to hear someone say that - and then immiedietly after get kicked in the groin by a mule.
I have studied both artistic design and software design.
Just as fleunt in photoshop as Visual Studio.
And lets face it - graphic design is child’s play compared to software architecture. Decent designers are literally a dime a dozen compared to decent web developers.
The only thing i don’t like about this article is that it implies developers are all right brained deterministic types. Which is obviously not true.
January 20th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
@nick: You’re right…it does sound like I’m saying all developers are “right brained deterministic types” which is certainly untrue. Thanks for pointing that out. I, for one, think the world needs more people who are both artistic and technical, but it’s an uncommon blend in my experience. Hopefully you have a job where you get to use both talents and are appreciated for it!
January 22nd, 2007 at 7:46 am
It’s funny how many developers have posted replies to this, when they’re not even the intended audience. Perhaps they were drawn to this in the hope it would give them insights on how to be better accepted by others.
Personally I wanted to know how close to my own opinions the author’s views were.
And I have to say that I pretty much agree with everything. I consider myself one of those “both artistic and technical” people… I’m an incredibly good coder, but besides that I do all sorts of other things, music and graphic design among them (I’ll say no more else I’d go on for aeons). I think that fundamentally I am one of those “right brained deterministic types”, but I’ve learned to make good use of that for even the completely left-brain sort of stuff.
Anyway, I’d like to add another thing to the mix…
The graphics designer’s “Does it look good?” and the IT person’s “Will it work?” are roughly parallel questions. But the answer to the first question is based on human impressions, which (practically) everyone unconsciously learns about from the moment they’re born - though the graphics designer typically has a greater understanding of this. It’s just talent, basically. On the other hand, the answer to the second question is based on unbelievably huge (to any non-programmer) stores of consciously-gained knowledge.
Those who have never amassed such a level of knowledge can’t really understand the feeling when all your work pays off, and of course have no idea of how challenging a project is.
On the flipside, the average programmer is rarely aware of how much difficulty the average human has in learning something new, and in particular something new that doesn’t look welcoming. Hence programmers aren’t picky about an interface being intuitive or aesthetic. (Doubly so when this comes at the cost of functionality!)
Now, I’m not suggesting this be the 6th thing you should know about IT people - I’m just trying to explore the ideas raised in the article.
I think the best remedy for all this is communication. Get to know the people you work with, share a few thoughts; value the input of others and give them reasons to value yours. And don’t pay too much attention to first impressions; I’ve known people who on the outside seem to be idiots, and others who seem to be bastards, but a bit of interest or a few kind words revealed a different side.
Thanks for the article.
January 23rd, 2007 at 9:39 am
@Aleks: Great points! I agree that communication is the remedy as well. The design and development worlds are pretty different but any designer who can learn more about the development world, or any developer who can gain some insights into the design world will be much better off. Both are great disciplines and have tremendous intrinsic value, so figuring out how to work together and bridge the disciplines is the key.
I also agree that programmers often misjudge how usable an interface needs to be for non-technical users. I think developers have an incredible ability to “figure out” new things and it serves them well in their profession.
Thanks for the comment.
January 30th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
While working at an ad agency, it was our responsibility as programmers to build an understanding of the business and therefore the creative behind it. The same was true for creatives… thinking of new ways to do things with programs to enhance the user experience. It was a lot of fun working with those dudes (and dudettes)… great looking websites with an understanding of how it was going to be programmed.
February 3rd, 2007 at 4:39 pm
What a wonderful discussion; But it is an insular one without a third participant.
That third party is the project manager who identifies, refines and sustains the need (business case) for the product which is so effectively acted on by the developer and the designer (at least as long as the need remains).
I have heard of conventional wisdom which suggests that 70% of all IT projects fail. If this is true I believe it’s because of a lack of ‘business case due diligence’ for a project. Building or identifying a business case must be an important key to all project success and it is just one essential element of the project manager’s skill.
A competent project manager generalist can effectively add this important skill to the mix and with the other essential skill of communication make everyone look very good. These facts together could eliminate the need for each individual professional to defend his or her special turf or ego. As a project manager I know I cannot do what you do nor function without your service.
The best suggestion that I can make to remedy the IT industry’s propensity for failure and ego bruising is for developers and designers to insist on enlisting the assistance of competent project managers who will sustain the business case for each project and encourage the disciplines of budget, scope, schedule, risk management, quality, and contract completion.
February 3rd, 2007 at 5:54 pm
@Don: You make a great point about the value of a skilled project manager. My own project managers are great examples of this and without their help, I’m sure a large percentage of our projects would fail. Great comment, Don.
July 8th, 2007 at 1:47 am
[...] Brett at Agency Byte tells us the 5 Things We Should Know About IT People. IT people have always aided me out of massive confusion, so I have nothing buy the highest regard for them, but if your aim is to understand them (rather than not even trying), then this is the article for you! [...]
July 8th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
This is so true! On the contrary, coders also need to emphasize with designers, because we designers are also funny in certain ways.
July 9th, 2007 at 7:27 am
@Arun: Glad you liked the article. Coders certainly need to learn more about designers too! I think coders often underestimate the amount of talent and effort it takes to consistently produce great design work.
July 9th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
Arun: Yes, for Designers it’s also devastating to tell them, after they finish that beautiful multi-layer cross-browser floating redesign, you need some place for your supercool input-form to “create that report”.
.. they love that. ghehehe.
Good posting
July 9th, 2007 at 11:17 pm
I couldn’t agree more with your point of view.
I’m very lucky that I’ve been able to combine my two passions, graphic (later web) design and programming. Along the years I’ve emphasized my programming skills (because I think I’m better at it and because -let’s face it, it’s better paid) and I can tell how much my creativity as a designer has suffered. It’s like having two opposite mindsets trying to live together.
IMHO -and based in my experience, I think that if a designer knows enough about usability and about what can be achieved through programming, then it should be up to the designers to sort of dictate the guidelines of a project. It should then be up to the programmers to do a little magic and make the graphic interface work.
In the end it’s all about having a good communication as well as about investing time in learning at least the basic concepts of the other discipline.
For large projects I believe it’s essential to have a project manager proficient in both disciplines, someone that will never lose a clear vision of how the final product should be.