“Network administration of Dummies for Dummies”
A guide to guiding the non-technical boss to making the right decision.
As I sit hear fuming having been asked to Install a medical database and the application server that accesses it for the third time on a third different server I realized there has to be better ways to guide a non-technical manager or supervisor into making the right decisions. When I say right decision, I’m saying that from a network admins standpoint, I want stuff to be installed, configured, have the logs updated and checked regularly, and overall run smoothly without incident for sustained periods of time. I, and I imagine most other network admins, abhor band-aid-ad-hoc-get-the- job done for now solutions, because unlike some we can see the big picture and realize down the road those decisions will ultimately lead to man-hours to fix a server or hardware setup that is anything but close to the way it should be properly set up, and more likely than not it will be me doing the fixing.
Strategies:
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1) Make suggestions and recommendations subtlety but with conviction
2) If a product has minimum requirements those are minimum suggested requirements and using anything less in production environment leads to number 8
3) Get other people to back up your recommendations
4) In emails avoid technical wording and if you must provide LINKS to EVERYTHING.
5) In documentation provide directions a monkey could follow and intersperse with screen shots liberally.
6) If you must do something that isn’t the way it should really be done, get it in writing, so when, not if, it goes FUBAR you can drop a number 8
7) Expect no recognition for your work, because ideally if you do your job right most people will ask “What does so-and-so do?”
The proverbial “I told you so”, not always worded as so, but enough to get the point across that you should have listened to someone who knows what they are doing.
2) If a product has minimum requirements those are minimum suggested requirements and using anything less in production environment leads to number 8
3) Get other people to back up your recommendations
4) In emails avoid technical wording and if you must provide LINKS to EVERYTHING.
5) In documentation provide directions a monkey could follow and intersperse with screen shots liberally.
6) If you must do something that isn’t the way it should really be done, get it in writing, so when, not if, it goes FUBAR you can drop a number 8
7) Expect no recognition for your work, because ideally if you do your job right most people will ask “What does so-and-so do?”
The proverbial “I told you so”, not always worded as so, but enough to get the point across that you should have listened to someone who knows what they are doing.
In the event that these strategies fail you, and I include no guarantees or warranty of any kind along with them, so they likely will, just reassure yourself that you have it in writing and can always drop a reason number 8 and pass the e-mail with your directions from number 6 up the chain of command to alleviate all responsibility.