In consulting there are always challenges to be faced around staffing projects and managing the bench. While some are difficult to control (the economy for example), others can be worked on, and in truth do not need to be issues at all. I frequently see the following two scenarios, which fall into the latter category.

Scenario One: One region may be overbooked while another is on the bench. The people in the overbooked region are working 60+ hour weeks, and if things don’t change some folks are in serious danger of burnout. Conversely the people on the bench are bored and looking for a good project.

Scenario Two: A developer is staffed on a project because they are “down the hall” and have availability. While another developer may not be down the hall, but is also available and has the required skill set that the first developer doesn’t. While availability may not be a skill, familiarity is simple and comforting.

Are there multiple factors that go into both of these scenarios? Of course, but please allow me a bit of freedom to focus on what I consider to be a major contributing factor. Fear of the unknown. People don’t want to risk introducing unknown factors into their projects. It’s much more comforting to burn the people you know even hotter. It’s still a risk, but at least you know what those risks are. Besides, chances are the consequences will either be someone else’s problem, or at the very least come after the immediate crisis is over. In my experience people tend to quit after the project burning them out is over. Now I can’t really fault them for this. Fear of the unknown is baked into us, and for good reason. The caveman who ventured over the ridge without knowing what’s on the other side seldom returned.

But let’s take this a little farther. What happened to that caveman? Was he mauled by a tiger? Did he fall into a chasm? Die of hunger? In some cases certainly, but in others I think something extraordinary happened. They found greener pastures and new tribes to join. Sometimes they may have come back to their origins, and sometimes they were simply never heard from again. And what happened to those who stayed behind? Did they persevere as the bravest of them left, or did they wither and die, slaves to their own fears?

Ok, so I’m exaggerating and generalizing to make a point, but that point is valid. We’re taught that you’re better off with the devil you know. Allow me to let you in on a little secret. Sometimes the devil you don’t know is much more fun. I’m not advocating jumping blindly into the maw of the abyss. Go in eyes open and be realistic. If you bring on another resource and expect them to dive into the toughest part of your project, you may be setting them and yourself up for failure. Conversely if you keep them on the edges of the project doing small bits of cleanup work, then you marginalize them, never truly integrating them into the project or the team. While you may not be setting up failure here, you also aren’t allowing for yourself to be surprised and delighted. And please, PLEASE, don’t pull in a resource at the end after, your core team has left the project and expect them to save you. That’s called putting the turd in someone else’s pocket, and will end in bad feelings all around.

So if you find yourself in the situation where you can either trod along in quiet desperation, or welcome a new member to your tribe, take a chance. Walk the road less traveled. Hopefully you’ll be surprised and delighted. At the very least you’ll learn something about yourself and someone else.

So. I didn’t quite end up where I was headed at the start. With this post I start a series of ideas and thoughts I have been gathering about the challenges of working in and across groups. Taking a chance is just the first step. In future posts I’ll be exploring some of the challenges you’ll face once you start working outside of your immediate tribe, and explore some tools to help you navigate the road ahead.