“Whoever made this decision is a dumb ass!” As we looked at the list of applications being used, there were a few that fell outside of what the company classified as standard. They didn’t fit into the standard architecture, data flows didn’t meet expectations and security protocols didn’t meet minimum requirements. Now, as we were moving a data center, the gremlins were coming out and these three applications were giving us a challenge with re-mapping to new locations.
As the developer continued his tirade, one of our operational managers was turning red and finally popped. “Four years ago when I needed these applications, standards didn’t exist and there was no support on what to buy. IT didn’t help. So, we were told to figure it out which we did. I authorized these.”
That awkward silence lasted only a few moments before we continued our work.
I’ve found decisions made years ago can come back to haunt you. However, those decisions were made for a reason. No one intentionally makes a bad decision knowing it will be a pain down the road. There’s a need and someone was accountable for fulfilling it.
Next time you’re asking yourself “Who the hell made this decision?”, take a few minutes to ask questions and understand the history. More than likely someone will tell you, it was a good idea at the time.
Bridge the Gap Consulting, LLC 