About what bumps I filled. Part two
Hello dear Habrahabr community!
October 10, 2009 I published one, not a big article about my mistakes. Now, January 9, 2011, I am ready to tell the continuation of that story and share thoughts.
As you understood, it took a lot of time, for the final awareness of their mistakes, their understanding and work on them.
I would like to immediately say that in the course of the story I will refer to the previous one several times.
From the very beginning, I understood that the mistake in the manual was entirely mine, so it was decided to try to find a person who would try to lead the studio, to become its leader. Such a person was found quickly enough, this is my former colleague, a fairly experienced manager, a person with a lot of interesting ideas and not standard thinking. In fairness, I will not disclose his person.
So, the person was found, we sat down, talked, came to the conclusion that the joint cooperation will not be worse. We decided that for the first three or four months we will look at each other honestly in business terms, if we are satisfied, I, as the official head, bring the partner into the memorandum of association. Last time, when I wrote the previous article, there were exactly 2 people in my team, myself and an accountant - I asked the rest to leave the team, compensating for the time spent. I knew that the only way out was to chop off the shoulder. So did. And of that, I still have a lot of debt, a complete lack of understanding of what, (or rather, how) to do now, and a legal entity. In general, the set of the young hero was complete, the set was assembled, so to speak, and you can go to the next quest.
Began a new selection team. From zero to 38 in a week, on sites, forums, freelance exchanges, everything possible. And so, the working material was in front of me, and now as a sculptor (sorry for the pathos), I had to make something intelligible and important to work out of it. Ok, let's get started. The first people, probably eight, I eliminated in the second stage, weed out through personal contact. The criteria were different - adequacy, professionalism, level of work and approach to work. Then another 10 people left our team, so in a month we were able to more or less create a team ready to work. At that time, there remained about 20-23 people in the team. Sections were created, leaders were found later (more on this later).
So - the quest is successfully completed. While I was working with a team — a partner — I developed a strategy, a concept, and so on. We finished our tasks at about the same time, along the way pulling up a third manager - an excellent programmer.
Having finished a couple of projects in order to get a hand in working with the team, and the team itself worked together, we realized that, again, something was going wrong. After talking with a partner, they found out that “a ship can have only one captain”. Ok, one so alone. We divided responsibilities like this - I continue to merge in orgasm with documents, pieces of paper and other official figures - a partner to sit on armored cars and lead us to a brighter future. That is, I am a “paper” manager, all contracts and other joys are exclusively my piece of happiness, the partner works with the team and is the leader.
OK. It seems to be all right, but after a couple of projects it became clear again something was not right. We decided to take a time-out, that is, we handed over the projects and decided to think hard and count everything on pieces of paper, they took a month out - in fact there were three. For three months everyone was ignorant of what was happening and how, they were asking themselves questions almost like “after the holidays” questions, like: Where am I? Who am I? Who are all these people? Etc. etc…
My partner just disappeared, well, in the sense of softly retired - how so? Yes, just went and everything, got a job, etc. - I warned you could not sit on two chairs, but no one listened to me. It is understandable, the partner moved to another city not so long ago, and naturally, stability was needed, and everything was just beginning here. Well, ok, they decided to wait and figure out for themselves what and how, and as time went on, days, weeks, months. When about a month and a half later, I decided that I needed to change something, and took the reins again into my own hands. I was guided by the fact that this is my company (in an ephemeral - emotional sense) - the team, in fact, only I know, which means that I myself will sit on an armored car. Having discussed his idea with other leaders, he accepted their approval. Ok, the situation was like this: there are a lot of departments, there is little load - specifically, I am overloaded, it is hard to steer. Hmm, what to do then? And here, the gentlemen of the department head come to the rescue. The departments were the following: outsourcing (repair of computers for the exit for legal entities), system administrators, designers, layout designers, programmers, SEOs (ibid. And copywriters), and desktop programmers, flashers. Managers were not (by the way, they are not present now). I looked at what services we provide most often and what is “going” here? Found out. Unnecessary departments reduced, (outsourcers and dekstopnik). It is worth noting that the guys from these departments were very good pros in their fields. Well, it seems to have put the structure of the company in order,
I left at the head of departments people possessing not only qualifications, but also with potentials (and somewhere else experience) of department heads. Everything is super, and nothing foreshadowed troubles - again, work with the team and projects began to go not quite correctly.
')
Team members began to feil orders found for them with steep motivations “it’s not interesting to me”, “I don’t really want to work for XXXXX” and “I’m busy”.
So, stop the car. What is it then? It seems to have assembled a team, I discussed everything individually with everyone - everything is super. Before taking the project and responding to the client, I consulted on the pricing policy with a specific contractor, and then, when the contract was signed, and the advance payment was on hand — I received it as a slap — not interesting. O_O. Agree, the situevina shock is not much, like I tried, I searched, and then I caught it with my knee under my breath. I solved the problem in the old and kind way - by dismissing specific people and hiring new ones. During our work, we managed to put together a team that is a team that is ready to work and do what is expected of it. Of course, not without problems, there were a couple of precedents with some characters of the collective, but everything was solved well.
In the course of work at first, that there would be an opportunity to breathe, of course, they grabbed at all that is possible and impossible. So you can not work. We tried to find our niche, it turned out to be the middle segment - fairly standard, typical projects, simple but high-quality websites and forums, and all sorts of buns for them (modules for the forum engine vBulletin). The average pricing policy for the region, in general, a simple set. Now we are trying to go higher in various subsegments.
If you haven’t read the first part of the story, let me remind you - I’m a shitty typesetter. That is, a person who works specifically with the layout of sites. Now I am a manager, I don’t think that the worst, I could do a lot. Sales Manager, Project Manager - of course, I have a lot to learn, which I actively try to do. The mutation was in the perception of information in the world, everything was different, just different. The brain began to work on a new vector. That helped.
Probably, it is more correct to say not paradoxes, but unusual, well, or something like that.
1. We as such do not have web designers, that is, those people who impose simple HTML. We have the typesetters imposing (sorry for the pun) for a specific engine. I know that this is not quite the layout in good conscience, but it turned out to be easier for everyone to work with — the layout designer brought out the main modules for the programmer, and simply set up the site so that you could already understand what and how, while the programmer (if He was required) to perform its task. Naturally, the layout designer received a little more than just for the layout.
2. Forums are still alive. Seriously, they are even ordered, and very active.
There was something else, but, alas, I do not remember.
Well, now plunge into the glorious world of technology and statistics.
We chose a certain chocolate set as engines, vBulletin and 1C-Bitrix are included. Both were chosen as one of the most worthy representatives of their species. Both on that and on the other it is possible without special difficulties and overlays for the client, to realize 90% of typical tasks. Honestly, I am pleased with this choice.
In 2010 (actually in half a year) 78 of them were made.
Was experience with gos.kopanii (sorry, I can not say more - NDA.)
The team now has 16 people in it, all are excellent specialists, but if it suddenly became interesting, now we are looking for more people: Designers (of course the web), managers (both in sales and projects), for each of their conditions.
Men in the team - 13
There are -3 women in the team (we really appreciate them and love them), now it should be + 1, from January 10th. New member.
Age "fork" of participants from 18 to 47.
As CRM we use Megaplan.
We are a young team, we are growing, developing, hoping and planning for the best.
The purpose of this story is to share impressions, pitfalls and how we went around them.
Thanks for reading.
October 10, 2009 I published one, not a big article about my mistakes. Now, January 9, 2011, I am ready to tell the continuation of that story and share thoughts.
As you understood, it took a lot of time, for the final awareness of their mistakes, their understanding and work on them.
I would like to immediately say that in the course of the story I will refer to the previous one several times.
Getting started, part two.
From the very beginning, I understood that the mistake in the manual was entirely mine, so it was decided to try to find a person who would try to lead the studio, to become its leader. Such a person was found quickly enough, this is my former colleague, a fairly experienced manager, a person with a lot of interesting ideas and not standard thinking. In fairness, I will not disclose his person.
So, the person was found, we sat down, talked, came to the conclusion that the joint cooperation will not be worse. We decided that for the first three or four months we will look at each other honestly in business terms, if we are satisfied, I, as the official head, bring the partner into the memorandum of association. Last time, when I wrote the previous article, there were exactly 2 people in my team, myself and an accountant - I asked the rest to leave the team, compensating for the time spent. I knew that the only way out was to chop off the shoulder. So did. And of that, I still have a lot of debt, a complete lack of understanding of what, (or rather, how) to do now, and a legal entity. In general, the set of the young hero was complete, the set was assembled, so to speak, and you can go to the next quest.
Began a new selection team. From zero to 38 in a week, on sites, forums, freelance exchanges, everything possible. And so, the working material was in front of me, and now as a sculptor (sorry for the pathos), I had to make something intelligible and important to work out of it. Ok, let's get started. The first people, probably eight, I eliminated in the second stage, weed out through personal contact. The criteria were different - adequacy, professionalism, level of work and approach to work. Then another 10 people left our team, so in a month we were able to more or less create a team ready to work. At that time, there remained about 20-23 people in the team. Sections were created, leaders were found later (more on this later).
So - the quest is successfully completed. While I was working with a team — a partner — I developed a strategy, a concept, and so on. We finished our tasks at about the same time, along the way pulling up a third manager - an excellent programmer.
Stage two, difficulty level - serious.
Having finished a couple of projects in order to get a hand in working with the team, and the team itself worked together, we realized that, again, something was going wrong. After talking with a partner, they found out that “a ship can have only one captain”. Ok, one so alone. We divided responsibilities like this - I continue to merge in orgasm with documents, pieces of paper and other official figures - a partner to sit on armored cars and lead us to a brighter future. That is, I am a “paper” manager, all contracts and other joys are exclusively my piece of happiness, the partner works with the team and is the leader.
OK. It seems to be all right, but after a couple of projects it became clear again something was not right. We decided to take a time-out, that is, we handed over the projects and decided to think hard and count everything on pieces of paper, they took a month out - in fact there were three. For three months everyone was ignorant of what was happening and how, they were asking themselves questions almost like “after the holidays” questions, like: Where am I? Who am I? Who are all these people? Etc. etc…
Stage three: WTF ?!
My partner just disappeared, well, in the sense of softly retired - how so? Yes, just went and everything, got a job, etc. - I warned you could not sit on two chairs, but no one listened to me. It is understandable, the partner moved to another city not so long ago, and naturally, stability was needed, and everything was just beginning here. Well, ok, they decided to wait and figure out for themselves what and how, and as time went on, days, weeks, months. When about a month and a half later, I decided that I needed to change something, and took the reins again into my own hands. I was guided by the fact that this is my company (in an ephemeral - emotional sense) - the team, in fact, only I know, which means that I myself will sit on an armored car. Having discussed his idea with other leaders, he accepted their approval. Ok, the situation was like this: there are a lot of departments, there is little load - specifically, I am overloaded, it is hard to steer. Hmm, what to do then? And here, the gentlemen of the department head come to the rescue. The departments were the following: outsourcing (repair of computers for the exit for legal entities), system administrators, designers, layout designers, programmers, SEOs (ibid. And copywriters), and desktop programmers, flashers. Managers were not (by the way, they are not present now). I looked at what services we provide most often and what is “going” here? Found out. Unnecessary departments reduced, (outsourcers and dekstopnik). It is worth noting that the guys from these departments were very good pros in their fields. Well, it seems to have put the structure of the company in order,
I left at the head of departments people possessing not only qualifications, but also with potentials (and somewhere else experience) of department heads. Everything is super, and nothing foreshadowed troubles - again, work with the team and projects began to go not quite correctly.
')
Stage four: web design is war.
Team members began to feil orders found for them with steep motivations “it’s not interesting to me”, “I don’t really want to work for XXXXX” and “I’m busy”.
So, stop the car. What is it then? It seems to have assembled a team, I discussed everything individually with everyone - everything is super. Before taking the project and responding to the client, I consulted on the pricing policy with a specific contractor, and then, when the contract was signed, and the advance payment was on hand — I received it as a slap — not interesting. O_O. Agree, the situevina shock is not much, like I tried, I searched, and then I caught it with my knee under my breath. I solved the problem in the old and kind way - by dismissing specific people and hiring new ones. During our work, we managed to put together a team that is a team that is ready to work and do what is expected of it. Of course, not without problems, there were a couple of precedents with some characters of the collective, but everything was solved well.
Stage five: Market, mutations, paradoxes ...
Market.
In the course of work at first, that there would be an opportunity to breathe, of course, they grabbed at all that is possible and impossible. So you can not work. We tried to find our niche, it turned out to be the middle segment - fairly standard, typical projects, simple but high-quality websites and forums, and all sorts of buns for them (modules for the forum engine vBulletin). The average pricing policy for the region, in general, a simple set. Now we are trying to go higher in various subsegments.
Mutations.
If you haven’t read the first part of the story, let me remind you - I’m a shitty typesetter. That is, a person who works specifically with the layout of sites. Now I am a manager, I don’t think that the worst, I could do a lot. Sales Manager, Project Manager - of course, I have a lot to learn, which I actively try to do. The mutation was in the perception of information in the world, everything was different, just different. The brain began to work on a new vector. That helped.
Paradoxes.
Probably, it is more correct to say not paradoxes, but unusual, well, or something like that.
1. We as such do not have web designers, that is, those people who impose simple HTML. We have the typesetters imposing (sorry for the pun) for a specific engine. I know that this is not quite the layout in good conscience, but it turned out to be easier for everyone to work with — the layout designer brought out the main modules for the programmer, and simply set up the site so that you could already understand what and how, while the programmer (if He was required) to perform its task. Naturally, the layout designer received a little more than just for the layout.
2. Forums are still alive. Seriously, they are even ordered, and very active.
There was something else, but, alas, I do not remember.
General:
Well, now plunge into the glorious world of technology and statistics.
We chose a certain chocolate set as engines, vBulletin and 1C-Bitrix are included. Both were chosen as one of the most worthy representatives of their species. Both on that and on the other it is possible without special difficulties and overlays for the client, to realize 90% of typical tasks. Honestly, I am pleased with this choice.
Projects
In 2010 (actually in half a year) 78 of them were made.
Was experience with gos.kopanii (sorry, I can not say more - NDA.)
The team now has 16 people in it, all are excellent specialists, but if it suddenly became interesting, now we are looking for more people: Designers (of course the web), managers (both in sales and projects), for each of their conditions.
Men in the team - 13
There are -3 women in the team (we really appreciate them and love them), now it should be + 1, from January 10th. New member.
Age "fork" of participants from 18 to 47.
As CRM we use Megaplan.
As an afterword.
We are a young team, we are growing, developing, hoping and planning for the best.
The purpose of this story is to share impressions, pitfalls and how we went around them.
Thanks for reading.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/111498/
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