What I've learned working in corporations so far:

1. don't think - escalate.
2. don't do - delegate.

I've noticed I'm using those two lines like my motto or smth of sorts recently. I wonder whether this is for the good or not :think:

I agree on the first but I hate doing the second. I'm only going to have to come an redo that shit anyway.

It's really not, but it is part of the corporate management mantra

Don't commit - deflect
Don't own - defer
Don't do - delegate
Don't promote - relegate
Don't invest - disenfranchise
Don't develop - buy
Don't facilitate - block
Don't hire - outsource
Don't recognize - plagiarize
Don't empower - control
Don't reward - placate
Don't promise - threaten

Not entirely fair, but it is how most middle management operates anymore. You can either do well in management by taking risk and making calculated decisions, or by keeping your head down and not rocking the boat.

@SortOfTested

To be fair, there are some valid points.
- delegate -- a manager is not going to code, is he? Or reboot a server..?
- buy -- in most cases it's a cheaper and faster option. Waste not!
- outsource -- debatable. Depends on the goal.

- escalate -- that's smth I've learned in my first IT job - as a sysadmin. If you can't get your head around that problem within minutes or you even have no idea where to start -- escalate to L2/L3/other teams. "Spread the word" so to say. Someone might have a clue what to do.

[I have to google some of the other words in your list :D ]

@C0D4 see my reasoning above :)

Also, if you define a proper DoD and acceptance criteria -- whatever passes must be a good outcome of your minions' work!

Otherwise, it means you could do a better job defining acceptance criteria ;)

Think first, then escalate. As someone who frequently gets escalations, nothing annoys me more than seeing a ticket that should have been fixed without escalation.

Sure, sometimes you forget things or make mistakes, and that's forgivable, but sometimes I get a ticket that makes me think the person who escalated it is completely incompetent.

@netikras
Glad I could help with that vocab 😘

In regards to buy: you can't buy competitive advantage. If you run the same software as your competition, all it takes is one person innovating to wreck you

Don’t ketchapp – kongregate
Don’t WD – Seagate
Don’t AliExpress – DHGate
Don’t Snap – Chaturbate