In this episode, I discuss the subject of overtime. I provide my recommendations based on solid experience and explain the reasoning behind it. During the episode, I also reference Rework by Jason Fried. Please take a moment to subscribe now in iTunes. Provide your own feedback or recommendations by writing to me using [email protected].

All Things Agile - Episode 003 - Use of Overtime

Transcript:

Welcome to the All Things Agile Podcast. Your destinationfor tips and interviews with the leaders in the world of Agile. Don’t forget tosubscribe to this podcast in iTunes and please check out our sponsor:teamxcelerator.com. And now, here’s your host: Ronnie Andrews Jr.

Hello everyone and welcome to the All Things AgilePodcast – Episode 3. Today’s topic will be ‘The Use of Overtime’. Butbefore we begin, a quick reminder that this podcast is for informationalpurposes only and accepts no legal liability. So let’s get started.

As part of the AgileInstructor blog and this podcast, Ilike to cover topics that are often overlooked by traditional Agile books orarticles. So in this case, I want to focus on the application of overtime withinAgile teams. It’s a topic which can certainly illicit strong emotions. Thereare some that advocate that overtime should never be used. In contrast, manyteams engage in overtime occasionally or perhaps even routinely as part oftheir reality.

I would like to take a moment and share some insights frommy hands-on experience which I hope that you will find very helpful. I thinkthere are 3 general viewpoints: the first opinion is that there should never beovertime. That we need to build sustainable teams. The use of overtime violatesthat principle. The second group often believes that we have to do whatever wehave to do in order to deliver the project on time. If that means overtime,then that’s what we have to do. Perhaps you’ve heard that language from one ofyour project managers before. Lastly, there’s another opinion that liessomewhere between the two spectrums – that the use of overtime is not sinful,but should not become a regular habit.

Through my experience, if there’s a need for overtime, it’sbecause there are underlying problems that haven’t been addressed. This is aninsight that 99% of businesses simply do not get. They don’t see overtime as awarning signal to an existing problem. It’s used to overcome issues with estimation, overcommitment, technology, processes, etc. I understand that occasional use ofovertime might be justified for events which are not predictable, such asnational disasters. However, most uses of overtime are related to things whichcould have been predicted. Overtime does not fix the core issue which causedthe team to get behind in the first place. It’s treating the symptom, not theproblem. The biggest source of issues related to overtime is expectations.

Simply put, the team is either over-committed or hasimpediments which are not properly accounted for. Schedules are defined basedon everything working out perfectly. However, most projects have bumps alongthe way. If teams and ‘leadership’ communicate the situation to stakeholders,the difficulties can often be accounted for by either reducing scope or extendthe expected delivery timeframe, etc.

However, that rarely happens in most organizations. Why?Well, because most members of leadership are not truly leaders. It’s brutal,but it’s true. They are individuals focused on their career and theirreputation. They don’t want to lose face and admit that their group is behindschedule. They think that it will tarnish their reputation among their peers.That’s the real truth. Most deadlines given to teams are artificial. A projectmanager somewhere looked at a calendar and picked a date for their release to bedelivered. Stop and think about it. Will someone be physically harmed if therelease is delivered on a Friday instead of a Monday? No! Will the company gobankrupt? No!

Those PMs and other managers may treat the projects as lifeor death, but it’s not. They’re just dates! Let’s not make the dates moresignificant than they truly are. It is often the case that the subject ofovertime comes up due to artificial dates that the team didn’t even influence.This environment often breeds routine overtime. So why is that so wrong?

Well, first – regular overtime exhausts team members,leading to burnout. As a result, morale and ultimately, productivity dropdramatically. This in turn, leads to attrition. I can promise you that yourbest team members will be the first to leave. And, that will devastate the team.A second reason why overtime is a bad idea is margin. If you have someonealready working 12 hour days, there’s little or no margin for them to absorbfuture or further work. If you have someone working 8 hours who needs totemporarily work late, they have the energy and stamina to do so. But, if theteam member is already exhausted, they have no additional energy and reserve tohandle that issue. There’s simply no margin to absorb further bumps in theroad. This adds additional risk to the team and to the project.

Third, the organization is just continuing to treat thesymptom and not the underlying problem, which is just foolish and downright stupid.It takes guts. But true leaders must take a step back and ask ‘How did we getin this situation?’ Then, actually solve those issues to prevent futureoccurrences. Organizations such as Toyota are famous for this principle andenjoy the financial success of their wisdom.

If you’re a business leader, I sincerely hope that you willtake this message to heart and implement itin your organization. If you are a Coach or ScrumMaster, please try to conveythese points. Perhaps you can refer your leadership and team to this podcastepisode. If your ‘leaders’ can’t or won’t change, then you may be forced toadapt. One way is to take action yourself. Do what you can to tackle theunderlying issues behind overtime. Retrospective improvement items are a greatplace to start. If you’re unable to make the changes necessary, perhaps becauseyou’re not empowered or just don’t have the availability, at least you canaccount for it in your initial estimates.

Now, I will say that I will hate adding excessive padding,but it may be necessary if that’s your reality. I sincerely hope that you’re apart of an innovative organization or starting one yourself, that you can makesure to avoid routine overtime by addressing the ‘Why?’ A great book tounderscore this point is Rework by Jason Fried and David Hansson. I highlyrecommend picking it up on Kindle or Audible. It’s a quick read, but veryenlightening. I trust that after reading it, you’ll also come to the conclusionthat conventional wisdom is inherently flawed, and there are better ways.

That summarizes a few quick points about the use ofovertime. I sincerely hope you found them useful. Remember, you can check outmy blog using the website agileinstructor.com. Feel free to contact me using[email protected] and also don’t forget to visit our sponsor:teamxcelerator.com, which makes this podcast possible. It’s a cloud-basedAgile team software package, designed for small and large companies alike.Thank you once again for joining me for this podcast, please join me forEpisode 4 for an exciting product announcement. You don’t want to miss it!Remember, it’s time to Accelerate your team, today!

Thank you for listening to All Things Agile. We look forwardto you subscribing to the podcast on iTunes and leaving a kind review. Thanksand God bless!