Bullpen to Boardroom: The CIO Perspective on Software Development
Today, I am privileged to interview JT Koffenberger of Delmarva Group and CIO Podcast.
JT is a consulting CIO for my company who is tasked with redesigning IT to more efficiently meet the needs of a rapidly growing business. JT is currently restructuring the IT department to fulfill a larger role in software development as the business responds to growing customer demand.
Because of JT’s significant experience on both sides of the development “fence”, he has valuable knowledge to share with developers who are looking to understand the management point of view.
JT has agreed to answer some questions regarding software development as a career, what it takes to gain the attention of prospective employers, and offer up some insight from someone who has “been there”.
Before we Get Started, Can you tell us about your background in the IT Field?
Well, I started professional software development in 1987. I took a summer position at a small software development company and really never looked back. That company provided me the ability to perform all roles related to software development as well as operations in the day when sneakernet was a popular protocol.
From there I started my corporate career working in a larger organization to create and manage a team dedicated to developing groupware, workflow and knowledge management solutions. That team developed software for companies such as FMC, Marsh McLennan, Johnson and Johnson and The Vanguard Group of Investment Companies. During my tenure there, I performed roles of all levels related to information technology from lead designer to Chief Technology Officer. At one time, I managed a team of about 45 developers specializing in workflow software development.
My career then switched to messaging and large scale project management. We would regularly take on projects of 5, 10 and even 20 thousand email clients. It was primarily a hosting company, so I was involved with all aspects of the organization, from leading implementation and migration projects to designing infrastructures and policies to host enterprise class messaging systems. Yes, I sat through multi-day fault analysis sessions. That is when email (viewed by certain clients as mission critical) crashed, for some reason they wanted to know why it happened and what we, as the vendor, were doing to prevent it. While a hard lesson, this experience was vital to understanding mission critical planning, disaster recover and fault tolerance infrastructure design.
Most recently, I traveled to China to lead a software team developing an anti-counterfeit strategy, methodology and software environment. Additionally, I’ve started my own consulting firm to continue to provide my expertise and experience to the small business community.
1) Did you make any conscious efforts to transition from developer to manager or was it a natural progression?
I guess I grew into it. It’s not an easy thing to do. One mistake I see businesses make all of the time is promoting a great developer into a management position. Being a great developer and being a great leader are rarely related. Some people make the transition well, while others don’t.
Personally, I enjoy people as well as the technology. So I spent a fair amount of time learning the business side of things so communication with CEOs and other business leaders would not be difficult. Being able to communicate technology issues to business leaders is another great issue.
2) Regarding your consulting business: What can a CIO-for-hire offer to a small business that they can’t get from their existing developers?
In general, I try to bring enterprise class thinking to the small business. Most small businesses cannot afford a fortune 1000 type CIO, so they end up hiring someone who knows a thing or two about computers. That’s fine to run the network and keep the computers running, but it falls far short of the planning that even a small business should do. Small businesses need to leverage technology to competitive advantage, not just host the company’s website or keep email systems and such running.
Working with many clients affords the CIO for hire to explore many different technologies to resolve issues and spot new opportunities for their clients. Additionally, the clients are in effect pooling their financial resources to hire expertise they could not otherwise afford. In doing that, they’re getting a resource that’s actively involved in the technology market taking best of breed solutions and strategies to the business.
Corporate CIOs are business leaders as much as they’re technologists. More and more business is conducted via computer technology. A company’s website is it’s only 24 hour salesperson. That website needs to do more than inform about that company’s products. It needs to attract and retain prospects and clients alike.
Additionally, a corporate CIO will help the small business leverage and enter markets that were neglected or even unknown to the small business.
3) Do you have any comments about the differences a budding Software Developer would encounter in a corporate environment versus small business?
There are advantages and disadvantages to both. For the disciplined developer, the small business affords the ability to be involved in all aspects of a development project. From visualizing the idea through customer support, a developer in a small business is likely to be the key person for the life of the project. Additionally, the small business developer needs to have a wider breadth of technology knowledge.
To the contrary, larger organizations offer more strict methodologies and communication structures as without, a large development project would simply fail due to lack of organization. Specialization is often the norm here, contrary to the small business environment. Large businesses often have semi-segregated IT teams that specialize in a technique or a technology suite. So, focus and specialization is rewarded here.
It’s key, however, not to overlook the role of a mentor. Find one, perhaps two, in the areas in which they want to focus. In one of my larger organizations we implemented a dual mentorship. Each senior level IT member (directors) were paired with business level people (vice presidents). It was a great program as the technologists learned a lot about business while the business leaders learned about technology.
There is no right or wrong path. There is no “better” opportunity to achieve financial success. It’s really about the individual’s desire for the type of technology and their perceived comfort level of the organization in which they chose to work.
4) As a CIO, what is the number one skill or trait you look for in a software developer?
General personality is crucial. If I’m in the process of building a team, the personalities need to mesh. People need to get a long. There are movies and other examples of how people bond with dealing with challenges. So looking to create a small team of people who get along well is important.
Beyond that, I look for technical ability. Developing and writing good, bug free code is part art and part science. There is a pure creative part as well as a methodological part. Mastery of both concepts is key in a good programmer or IT person. Working in language A vs. language B concerns me very little. Good developers can move quickly to learn a new toolset and are willing to put the time in to do it.
5) Is there anything developers should know about the process of identifying and fulfilling business requirements?
There is so much to know when developing solutions to business requirements. We could write a book on this very topic.
For starters, it’s important to understand the underlying need that’s being addressed. Often, business leaders have a difficult time translating their requests into something that technologists can readily identify with. That’s where some business expertise will serve you well.
If you’ve ever heard the phrase, “That’s exactly what I asked for, but it’s not what I want”, you know the issue. Having a solid understanding of the business as well as the goals of the senior management team will help prevent that from happening.
On the other hand, process is very important. Sometimes changing a small process item can have a profound impact on the business. It’s very important, therefore, to be sure that you have the best interest of the business in mind. Sometimes the biggest impact takes little effort at all.
CR: I would like to take this opportunity to thank JT for his time. I hope that new developers and aspiring CIOs have found value in his words. Please post any questions and comments for JT, I am sure I have only tapped the surface.
Tags: CIO, employment, JT Koffenberger, tips
