The boss asked: How long to finish? Development said 3 days, the test said 2 days, then ...

A friend asked:

The boss asked how long it would take to fix this pile of things: Development said 3 days.  The test says 2 days. Then the boss on the fifth day to ask for goods, the test has raised a bunch of bugs to develop ... Development continues to resolve bugs, tests continue to be measured until the end of recursion ...

Is there any process that can solve this contradiction?

Some of my suggestions:

Does the team (including development and testing) have leader? Not develop and test individual leader, but develop + test leader. To make the team a whole, and then give them the overall requirements, then the boss asked: when the software can be published? Let the team with software delivery as a whole goal and task, rather than let the development oneself think own, test also oneself think oneself.

The important reason for this problem is that we are not in a boat! The measures for this reason are the implementation of collective assessment, collective responsibility system, a wing of a loss of all.

There is also a reason may not dare to assume responsibility, as a leader to release staff vigilance, often blaming staff, employees can not be completed on time on a lot of blame, this will let employees work the way to "do not ask for nothing" and "each home to sweep in front of the snow." The response for this reason is:

1) leadership to encourage employees to make estimates and plan commitments, the leadership to express full support to the plan, the project team has any need to find leadership support, such as: The leadership will allocate more resources, and customer coordination and so on.

2) If you can not finish on time, say it as soon as possible, do not fear, together to find a solution.

3) will not be completed on time as the basis for assessment, assessment based on whether or not to do their best, if the effort or can not be completed on time, is also a good performance!

Develop your own estimation of your own development practices, test yourself to estimate your own test time, but do not take into account the time required to repeatedly toss the bug fixes, because this part of the time is difficult to estimate, so we all pick easy and less to take responsibility to estimate. Think of ways to eliminate this kind of vigilance and psychological prevention, mainly by the leadership and project manager to take care of.

The above share is a recommendation for managers.

If you are a hard-pressed subordinate, and the leader asks you to promise to finish the task, how should you deal with it?

Do not follow the above development and testing practices to do, it seems easy to let you shirk responsibility, this will let you in the leadership of the score into 0 points or even negative points! As a leader, in addition to the hope of getting an accurate date, in fact, he would like to get a competent and capable subordinate.

So suggest your practice is: You take the initiative to find the leader to talk and give out, the courage to estimate a approximate time, and to the leadership "Pat chest" guarantee will go all out. Have any difficulties and possible risks, first and the leadership of the disclosure, seek leadership support and guidance. There are any problems that may affect the progress of the work and can not be solved, the first time feedback to the leadership, and the leadership to discuss ways to deal with.

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The boss asked: How long to finish? Development said 3 days, the test said 2 days, then ...