
Terms of Reference
In most large organizations, in-house “user-to-IT” relationships are inevitable, especially when creating work applications that the user needs on an ongoing basis. The complexity of these relations can be caused by many factors, but most often it is a misunderstanding arising from the fact that the parties speak different “languages” with different terminology. The user understands what he wants, but cannot formulate it, the IT specialist understands the user, but fears that the result will be different than the first one sees. Most often, the problem starts with the fact that the user is not ready for the dialogue: he requires “to work”, “report with one button,” “so that it displays in a minute,” “so that dates do not come out in Excel,” and so on. However, he is not at all interested in how this is done and what mechanisms work. The user does not respond to statements about the load on the server, requests to draw a diagram of the desired result, or discuss solutions, believing that a true professional can handle everything. The results of such a misunderstanding harm the entire production process: the time taken to solve problems is delayed, errors and gaps occur in the systems that the user needs, the server overloaded with incorrect actions suffers, and the speed decreases.
One of the ways to resolve such a conflict is to write a task for a project - a technical task, which involves a complete and accurate statement of the requirements of an in-house customer and is a kind of instruction for an IT specialist. However, not every user is able to express their thoughts competently and intelligibly.
I’ll give some tips for writing the correct task by the user, on which you can work and which forms the basis of the relationship between the customer of the solution and the specialist.
1. Before making a technical task, the user must understand what exactly he wants to receive . You should determine the purpose of the task, key features of the desired result, draw (write, create a table) for yourself the desired output of the work.
2.Collect documentation according to which you perform work for which an application (program) is required. Read it carefully, with a pencil, noting the features and subtleties.
3. You need to understand what parameters should be set at the input , what is the frequency of work with the desired program (report, application, utility), how much data will be obtained approximately at the output and whether all of them are needed (for example, if you need the amount of sales revenue from five product categories by category without names, do not require the creation of a report in a million lines indicating each sale with detailed characteristics). Not every specialist needs the most detailed information, the processing of which creates a significant load for computing systems.
4.Describe in detail the necessary information , indicate its features, exceptions, the necessary level of detail. You should consider all the little things: the format of numbers, rounding, shares, rates and so on.
5. Get rid of technical specifications from vague descriptions , extra words, parasitic words. Check punctuation - often errors in it distort the meaning of the task. The task for the project is a document and the vocabulary in it should be appropriate. However, you should not try to write everything in a technical language, if you do not know the terminology at the proper level.
6. Discuss the written task with the immediate executor, try to resolve all issues, carefully listening to the opinion of the interlocutor. Do not forget that you know your field of activity better and only you can accurately explain which tool you need to work effectively. An IT specialist knows his job and is not required to know the nuances of the work of each department in the organization.
7. Transfer the task to work within a reasonable time before the final implementation, so that it is possible to test the result and correct possible errors.
8. If your subordinates will also use the created application, try to explain the features of working with the application yourself - this will save the IT specialist from having to explain the same thing a hundred times.
9. Remember that your task will serve as a reference for you - in it you can always see a description of the information, remember a forgotten requirement.
Of course, just the ability to write a technical assignment will not eliminate all the problems, but it will allow relations with the IT department to go into a serious plane of cooperation, allow the user to increase their technical literacy and get the required, and the IT specialist will relieve a number of problems and unnecessary questions.
One of the ways to resolve such a conflict is to write a task for a project - a technical task, which involves a complete and accurate statement of the requirements of an in-house customer and is a kind of instruction for an IT specialist. However, not every user is able to express their thoughts competently and intelligibly.
I’ll give some tips for writing the correct task by the user, on which you can work and which forms the basis of the relationship between the customer of the solution and the specialist.
1. Before making a technical task, the user must understand what exactly he wants to receive . You should determine the purpose of the task, key features of the desired result, draw (write, create a table) for yourself the desired output of the work.
2.Collect documentation according to which you perform work for which an application (program) is required. Read it carefully, with a pencil, noting the features and subtleties.
3. You need to understand what parameters should be set at the input , what is the frequency of work with the desired program (report, application, utility), how much data will be obtained approximately at the output and whether all of them are needed (for example, if you need the amount of sales revenue from five product categories by category without names, do not require the creation of a report in a million lines indicating each sale with detailed characteristics). Not every specialist needs the most detailed information, the processing of which creates a significant load for computing systems.
4.Describe in detail the necessary information , indicate its features, exceptions, the necessary level of detail. You should consider all the little things: the format of numbers, rounding, shares, rates and so on.
5. Get rid of technical specifications from vague descriptions , extra words, parasitic words. Check punctuation - often errors in it distort the meaning of the task. The task for the project is a document and the vocabulary in it should be appropriate. However, you should not try to write everything in a technical language, if you do not know the terminology at the proper level.
6. Discuss the written task with the immediate executor, try to resolve all issues, carefully listening to the opinion of the interlocutor. Do not forget that you know your field of activity better and only you can accurately explain which tool you need to work effectively. An IT specialist knows his job and is not required to know the nuances of the work of each department in the organization.
7. Transfer the task to work within a reasonable time before the final implementation, so that it is possible to test the result and correct possible errors.
8. If your subordinates will also use the created application, try to explain the features of working with the application yourself - this will save the IT specialist from having to explain the same thing a hundred times.
9. Remember that your task will serve as a reference for you - in it you can always see a description of the information, remember a forgotten requirement.
Of course, just the ability to write a technical assignment will not eliminate all the problems, but it will allow relations with the IT department to go into a serious plane of cooperation, allow the user to increase their technical literacy and get the required, and the IT specialist will relieve a number of problems and unnecessary questions.