The importance of context and collaboration boundaries
I was made aware of two ostensibly unconnected posts today, one by Hilda on Oracle expert and the other on the main Claromentis blog.
Hilda addressed the lack of meaningful change implementation that can result from not giving expert level technical staff the entire problem, and I was discussing the importance of establishing context in intranet projects before an answer can be provided that is meaningful for the company concerned.
These two posts, I believe, fundamentally address the same problem. We need to set the level of discussion to maximize the impact of the debate - and of course subsquent plans - on the business. This requires a fundamental understanding of the maximum level at which the people involved can engage with you.
Don’t dumb it down, don’t anticipate the attendees issues within their own domains - just give them - and ask for - the context at the highest level they can absorb. You can anticipate the benefits from their collaboration across subject matters that otherwise can be too isolated just because of the way the old question was asked.
But if you truly do this, expect to be pushed yourself. It is much easier to do this the old way.