Note from your users:  I don't get no Respect

I think that all employees, coworkers, clients, consultants and just about everyone you come in contact with wants respect.  As a CAD Manager, you achieve your results through others.  You cannot make every CAD file comply with the CAD Standards, you get that done through others.  You cannot move to the next release on your own.  You can install it, configure it, customize it and more, but the end users actually make the move.

So respecting them will get you more than disrespect. 

How do you respect your users?

Treat them as clients.  That is what they are.  They are the reason you have a job.  They are the people who pay your bills.  Always treat them as if they were your only client.

Hold their perspective in high esteem.  Ask her opinion on CAD issues.  Ask him how he would approach a problem.  Ask them what tech tools they think would help the firm.

Let them tell their story.  Don't interrupt them.  Many times I thought I knew what the answer to a question was before they even finished telling me what it was.  Then I found out that my answer did not match their final question.  Let them finish.

Avoid telling them what to do.  What?  Isn't that my job.  Telling people how to use CAD.  Well, most of the time you have to do just that, but sometimes you need to work it out "with" them not "for" them.  Working things out with them, engenders trust and makes them feel respected.

Don't make fun of your users.  Now we all know that a good story about some goofy user doing something so insanely stupid are enjoyable, but avoid making them the butt of a joke at their expense.  Keep the end user jokes contained to private conversations among your team or other CAD Managers.  Don't use names, or avoid making the jokes at all.  Don't say anything in private that you would not repeat to them in public. 

September 2007