A Useless CAD Standard - Part 1

CAD Standards can be a very useful tool for getting all your team on the same page.   Making sure that all users know what to do and how to do it can streamline operations and make things run smoothly.

There are a few things that may make your extensive efforts are defining, refining and writing down you CAD Standard less effective and even useless.

A Useless CAD Standard is…

Not Complete

Holes in the standard force users to “figure it out alone”.  When that happens they chew up time and come up with some interesting solutions.  Differing approaches by users because the standard does not tell people what to do can make the document useless.  Soon users will lose faith that the book has any answers.  They will stop turning to it and just make up guidelines on their own.

The incomplete “blanks” will be “filled in” by your studios, groups and offices in various ways.  They may start sharing methods amongst themselves and not telling you.  They may start calling their friends at other firms.  They may start grabbing ideas off the internet.  There is nothing inherently wrong with any of these, but they defeat your unified process.  Each one takes a different perspective and none of them match.

This “difference of opinion” that creeps into your environment can be a killer.  When divergent methods appear in drawing creation, it makes it harder to share files between users.

Avoiding this trouble:

Find out what users are doing.  Ask around to see how what they think is missing from the standard.  They may not think that anything is missing, so ask them what they have been figuring out on their own.  These are the areas that need expanding.  They may ask questions about missing topics.  These are the areas you need to define.

You can also review your standard for holes.  Think of the entire process of putting together a set of files and what each step would take.  If it matters what the users are doing in each step and they are not doing the same things, then start talking each one of these areas out.  Get consensus on the topic and write it into the standard.

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Intuition

Intuition is the capacity of knowing something without necessarily using a rational processes. It is a gut feeling and a sense that something lies beneath the surface or behind the screen. Knowing what that unspoken “thing” means can be a great advantage to your firm.

It allows you to move past the surface and get to the crux of the situation. No one will escort you there. You have to get there yourself. Some say that you are born with it. Some say it can be learned. I think it is a little of both.

I think the more information you have the better your intuition will become. The more you think about things the better you will be at thinking beyond the obvious. The more you talk to others and get a broader view, the better you will be at knowing what might come next.

Intuition will move you forward if you use it to your advantage and don’t overplay your cards. Intuition gone wild becomes “jumping to conclusions”. By going too far out on a limb or getting to your “gut feeling” too soon, you risk misinterpreting the situation. Then you will actually start harming others.

Intuition should not be overused. You may know what might happen next, but you may not want to share that with others. Try your hunches without telling others what you are doing. That way you can hone your skills before you have troubles by guessing wrong.

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Let’s get moving!!!

Come on - we can do this

Don’t stop now - we are really close

It will get better.

All of these comments above come from the enthusiasm that can be generated by the CAD Manager.

Just being energized and excited about the future can make things happen. Do you generate excitement about the future?  Or do you kind of think it might not be so good?

Enthusiasm is contagious.  People should be catching it from you.  You need to be a positive enfluence within your firm.  This can be hard if you are also the “CAD Cop”.  Balancing a positive attitude with the enforcement of a Standard can be tough. But it is doable.

Bringing positive energy to your firm will encourage others to also have a positive outlook.  Positives make more progress than negatives.

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Often it is sheer determination that allows progress to be made in the area of CAD Management.

The site thefreedictionary.com defines determination as:

a. Firmness of purpose; resolve
b. A fixed intention or resolution

It has also been said that determination is the ability to look past ostacles and not just stare at them.

Winston Churchill put it well when he spoke in 1941… “Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never–in nothing, great or small, large or petty–never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”

Now CAD Management is nothing like war, but determination is involved in both.

Here are the CAD Managers “Never give in’s”:

Never give in:

• To those that say Standards don’t matter.  They do - because they define the boundaries of your CAD environment.
• To the desire to give up.  No one will move CAD forward other than you.  If you stop moving, your firm stops moving.
• To those that ignore your leadership.  You have been put in charge of overseeing the technology of design.
• To those who think you can’t do the job.  Show them that you can.
• To those who don’t think the firm needs a CAD Manager.  Show them why it does.
• To those that who ignore you.  Keep stating your case.
• To those that try to trump your decisions.  Make sure they understand your authority.
• To the software that does not work the way you expect. Figure it out.
• To the hardware that limits your software’s functionality. Buy better or figure out a work around.
• To the reseller that does not call you back.  Keep bugging them.
• To those who think that you are too intense.  Stay focused.  Be cordial but stay determined.
• To the problems that just won’t go away.
• To those who constantly say “No” to your requests for upgrades.

Keep your eyes focused on the goal.  Keep moving and don’t give up.

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I just recieved this file - hot off the presses from Autodesk.  I have permission to post it, but if they want me to take if down or change the link, I may have to do that.

“The Revit platform’s performance depends on the hardware environment provided for the software. The Revit platform team has assembled this collection of hardware requirements as researched by both internal development and our community of dedicated customers.

Many people on the Revit platform team from Quality Assurance, Development, Consulting and Product Management contributed to this document, but a number of recommendations arose from the community of Revit-based application users, who generously contributed their time and expertise to their peers in a number of forums, and urged Autodesk to help share their knowledge with an even wider audience.

As always, our thanks go to our customers, who are part of the team helping to improve the Revit platform with every release through their insightful comments and suggestions.

The Revit Platform Development Team”

Take a look at the PDF

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CAD Managers give structure to CAD processes.

Are you providing the structure that your firm needs?  Structure comes from more than just the CAD Standards.

Here are a few things that provide structure to your firm:

1.  Purchasing processes. I have talked about having an approved software list when I wrote on Preventative CAD Management and how they can provide you with a structure for selecting and purchasing software.  Keep a list of the software that your firm uses and stick to it.

2.   Defined migration plans for upgrades. Thing like When to Upgrade and When others are Jumping. But beyond that - do you provide a well planned out migration process for upgrading.  I wrote on this for AUGI some time back (starting in May 2005) - take a look.

3.   The CAD Standards. You number one way of providing structure.  Here are a few post on that issue.

CAD Standards - Not set in Stone

Written CAD Standards

CAD Standards based on Principles

Or just the whole topic of CAD Standards

4.   Troubleshooting problems. Do you bring a structure to your investigations of troubles.  Systematic approaches to finding out what the root problem is and moving toward an answer.

5.   Training. Do you develop a structured approach and outline to training?  The overarching plan and the outline of each class.

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Creativity is valuable. Not many have it in great quantities. Not many use it to their advantage. CAD Managers can bring value to their firm by being creative in their approach to management, problem solving and decision making.

Creative thinking can take on many flavors. It can come from many places. Tons of input is needed for the creative mind to start generating original ideas. Where does creativity come from? How does it work?

I am no expert on this subject, but I do have some concepts that I have seen work and have helped others to become creative in their thinking.

1. Read everything you can get your hands on. So many times creativity comes from applying one industries ideas to another industry. Ford applied the assembly line concepts that were observed in the meat packing industry for butchering beef. Animal carcasses were “disassembled” as they moved along conveyors. Each person removed the same portion of the beef and so they perfected and sped up the process. Ford just applied it to making cars.

2. Think. I am positive that people just don’t spend enough time thinking. Our lives are too busy and we don’t have time to do it any longer. We rush from one meeting to another. From one task to another. From one sporting event with our kids to another. Who has time to think.

3. Don’t assume you know it all. We are technical people working in a technical environment. We think we have the answers. We confidently stride forward with our plans and assumption without first stopping to see what we do not know. We start “doing” before we have enough information to really create something. We assume that activity = creativity.

4. Experiment and play more. When was the last time you tried something new. Or tried something that you thought might fail? Unless you try things out, you may never know what might work. Remember when you were a kid and you pushed or pulled on something to see if it would break? When was the last time you did that with technology?

5. Don’t stop at “good enough”. When we find an answer we stop looking. It may not be the best answer, but it is an answer. When you figure something out, ask more questions. Is this the best we can do? Is it the most effective? Keep analyzing after others have stopped.

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We have been looking at the nature of the position you fill as CAD Manager and found several spots that may need review before you delve into the value that you may personally bring to the position.  You may want to go back and read the first three installments of this series before you go further.

We started with a simple question…  Is your firm better off because you work there?

We now turn to the actual value that you bring to your firm by filling the position that you have.  By doing this, it is hoped that you will find many things that you bring to the table and maybe a couple that you need to work on.

Let’s dig in…

Are you an Expert?  I have heard that some firms shy away from using the word expert when talking about their staff.  This is because the level of expectations from a legal point of view are higher on “experts” than on those who do not claim that title.  By adding “expert” to marketing docs and org charts, they are concerned that owners could sue them on a higher level if there were some problems in a deliverable.

What is an expert?  I have heard some definitions over the years, but the best one I can remember is from Harvard Business Review (can’t remember the author)

They listed the following (paraphrased here)

It is someone that delivers consistent performance that is superior to their peers, that produces concrete results using knowledge that can be provided on demand.

Expertise is demonstrated by measurable, consistently superior performance.

They also mentioned that Experts are Made – not Born.

Are you adding expert level services to your firm?  Do you perform on a consistent level?  with superior performance?  Should you really strive for anything less?

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More ways of knowing if you firm thinks that the CAD Manager position really is valuable…  Don’t think of the person when reviewing these questions - think of the position itself.  Would the answers be yes to these questions no matter who filled the spot?

Is the CAD Manager accountable for resources like people, technology, and budgets? If the position has to report to someone else that develops or controls these areas, then the position may not have enough clout.  I am not saying that no one else will look over or approve your budget, but that the CAD Manager is the one who develops it.

Does the firm invest in and appreciate the CAD Managers knowledge? Are they willing to  pay for training for the CAD Manager?  Do they see this position as one that is knowledge based?  CAD Managers are knowledge workers in the highest degree.  The level of knowledge they need to get their job done is very high.  The firm should have a track record of investing time and money in the expansion of the CAD Managers know how.

Is the CAD Manager position thought of as a problem solving position? When people have troubles,do they seek out the CAD Manager or others?  When people have problems, do others tell them to go see the CAD Manager?  If they do then this would show that the firm is focusing the problem resolution functions into this position.

Is the CAD Manager position seen as a change agent? or is it just a maintenance position?  Do people look for change to emanate from this position and title?  CAD Managers should be seen as change agents.  They are the ones that create or escort change through a firm.

Is the CAD Manager position interconnected to other managers? Collaboration is the key to getting things done in today’s firms and if the CAD Manager is not involved in the matrix of the firms middle managers, then they will be hampered in their effectiveness and have more trouble adding value.

Is the position viewed with value outside the firm? Do those inside your firm promote your position with those outside the firm?  Do you hear people saying “You need to talk to our CAD Manager” ?  The lack of respect from those inside your firm reflecting toward those outside your firm is a sure sign that the firm may not value the position very much.

Does your firm have a long view of your tasks? Just how long your firm looks a the position is a statement of value.  If they don’t talk about the CAD Manager functions in terms of years instead of months, then there may be a general lack of value invested inthe position by the firm.

So before we begin to ask questions about your personal impact, think through the impact that your position holds.  Does your firm value your job position?  If they do not, then you will have a harder time proving your personal worth.

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