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> From: Marguerite Krupp [mailto:Marguerite_Krupp -at- BAYNETWORKS -dot- COM]
> As for "Scheduling time" with unavailable people, my favorite
> tactic is to
> "infiltrate." Be a "real" person, which means intruding your physical
> presence into their world. Visit their labs and ask about
> equipment. Set up
> a lunch or coffee time with them. Walk around the parking lot. That's
> "unscheduled" time for most folks. And most of them like to talk about
> their work to a willing listener.
An excellent tactic. They may object to scheduling a lunch or break with you
("hey, it's a BREAK, OK? As in MY TIME! As in BUG OFF!") but take your
breaks and lunch in the same room as they do, and very informative
conversations may break out. If you don't get the information at the time,
at least you may improve your chances of getting it later. There is great
bonding power in eating together, and that can change you from an annoying
corporate unit to be dealt with to an actual person who needs help and who
can help.
---
Office:
mike -dot- huber -at- software -dot- rockwell -dot- com
Home:
nax -at- execpc -dot- com
