GitLab Digital Experience, 24 Mar 2022

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From YouTube: Digital Experience Retro - Mar 24, 2022

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Digital Experience Handbook Page: https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/marketing/inbound-marketing/digital-experience/

A

Hi, everyone uh welcome to the digital experience team uh retro video we'll go over what, while and what to improve on for the last two week period uh today is thursday march 24th, uh so first up for things that won't well nathan has the first point.

B

Yeah um just want to say the the changes just made to slippers and laura for implementing them like it actually looks like it's coming together like the new branding, the new typography, the new colors. It feels good, I will say, like working on the refresh branch and having all that stuff ready there. I don't know like see, I see a possibility.

B

I see hope uh john.

C

Yes, just wanted to say thank you to nathan, um javia antina for the help, uh thanks nathan, for for pushing the changes from to sleep from sleepers to npm, because that didn't block me and also for for for helping me on some other things and enough for the design of the futures. Paris page. It's awesome, I'm blowing it. Thank you guys.

D

I think I'm next um just a general statement. I don't know if everyone's feeling this way, but I'm just feeling that the collaboration on our team has been really good, probably the best I've ever experienced in my entire career um personality, wise um efficiency, wise, I just I'm finding that we found like a good, a good flow and we're working really well together. um I don't just mean inside the ux team. I just mean like engineers, with uh design as well. So thank you everyone I think I was lost.

A

Yeah I agree yeah. I also yeah, I posted in the chat that thank you we're all in this together and now the high school musical song is like stuck in my head. um Sorry, uh so things to improve on. I have the first point um when I moved the homepage over to the new repo, I didn't delete it in the old www repo. For a couple of reasons. I know the release post runs a job.

A

um You can do like a bundle, exact break release and it kind of adds like um increases the release version automatically on a certain page. So I didn't want to mess with any of that, um and I had thoughts about the review, apps um or booting the site up locally would land you on kind of a broken page. Maybe we should have a placeholder page uh side thoughts. I see. Tyler has a couple of comments in response to that. First.

E

One just like leave it for now we should do stuff with it, but like not in the next month um like if ain't broke, don't fix it and like we really don't want to break release post process because it's like very annoying to troubleshoot. So that is a great call. um Sorry and I didn't think about local, so review app, um and this is good for everyone who ever looks at a review app. um The review app in the www repo tries to be clever about.

E

If you click the view app thing, it will like look at the file that has like the most changes or the first changes and it'll like try to take you to the thing that rendered that so sometimes it works great, because people like changed an index.html file. It's like yeah, that's the web page, but sometimes you change like a data file and it's like that's not real, like that, doesn't exist on the like server um so like, but one way or another.

E

It rarely will take you to the homepage unless you have changed like home, slash index right so, like I think, review apps. Let's not worry about too much, because people either don't find what they're looking for anyways and we have to help them or like they get smartly taken to where they're going um local stuff. uh Maybe let's do it to do today? I think placeholder is probably a good idea, even like I would like spend zero time on it and put like a like uh uh p tag. That's like hey!

E

Sorry like this is no longer a thing like good luck, um yeah.

A

Cool um yeah I'll add it to do for that and um yeah, I did add notes in the release post. Like I added documentation for that team. Saying like you can run this command and it says it'll change the thing, but you also have to do it over here, um so hopefully, that's kind of covered for now and yeah uh cool and tyler. You have the next uh point.

E

Yeah, um I I'll admit this because, like there's good points like I don't know, like the thing that I said was like like we got to stop working late, um not because it's like it's immoral or bad to like work, a little extra, which is why maybe it's like? Don't maybe it's not stop working late but like we gotta, not stress ourselves out, like, I think, that's what I that's. What I really mean by this, like sometimes like I don't know most of us here are on salary.

E

I don't know how contractors work if you're hourly or not, um but like you know, I think the deal the general deal in like labor relations with salary is like. Sometimes you work less. Sometimes you work more, but, like you get paid consistently so like cool, we can work a little bit more um and, like you know, sometimes you're, just feeling it like sometimes you're you're in it to win it and you're like hell yeah like. Let me grind this out and it's easier to be done.

E

What I really mean, though, is that, like what I am hearing a bunch is that people are like stressing about stuff that is like broken or like non-existent, or that is like in a bad state and like that. Folks are like overextending themselves to solve these problems which, like I think we should do a better job of letting them be problems because, like the business, will not learn how to do this thing.

E

Well, if we solve all the problems for like the like, if there are problems caused by some root cause and we like go and like bend our backs to like bend over backwards to fix them like there's no feedback loop for, like hey, maybe like, we should consult with the team on like due dates and stuff before we give one like they just like. Oh no, like they'll, always figure it out.

E

So like it's not to say, don't, have a sense of urgency and like don't work hard and like you know, don't see if we can knock this out of the park, because it would be really cool if we could- and I think we can.

E

But it is to say that, like if you are stressed, I hope that you will consider stopping because, like like work hard, but not to not don't push yourself past a certain point, because at that point that's like an organizational failing and like a business failing and like no person there's like some level of like at some point.

E

There is no more that your effort can do to fix the problem because the problem is like from somewhere else. It is not like. Oh, I haven't worked hard enough right like it is like. I have like the parameters for this are incorrect and we need to like readjust. But if you push yourself past that point no learning happens on an organizational side. That's that's what I mean it's like you know I don't know put in a couple extra hours like great, we'll get there faster, but, like don't sweat, it.

A

Yeah and then just adding on to everything, tyler just said it just it both feels like the most focused quarter we've ever had like. I don't feel like I'm getting fire drills all the time yet, um but I also feel like it's the most chaotic. The scope is constantly changing the direction's kind of constantly changing.

A

We do have this kind of arbitrary, due date, um which I think laura also chimed in about I'll just read. My second comment after that, I'm sorry to send it back tour, but I feel like even if we had this arbitrary due date, we still should have been consulted about like what workload we could do within that time as like a base level, and then, if we can do something beyond that great, but we never really were given the chance to even scope out the project.

A

um Hopefully that's why philz is here and I'm hoping like in the future. We can do better, but we definitely need that opportunity to like even see what work is gonna be possible before committing to anything yeah. I I don't know where april 27 came from, it just came and was told to the whole company um before we even had specs or you know, had even seen the workload um and now we have to commit, and it does feel very arbitrary.

A

So that is kind of spooky, because I keep seeing you know messages in slack being like you know what about a b testing and you know answers being like. Don't worry about ap testing, we're razor focused on april 27th, and it's like okay, like.

C

A

Get that there's urgency, but you know I I don't know where april 27 came from um and and why why um yeah, I think, where we are barker, might have the next one.

F

Yeah, I uh I just- I think it's gonna take a little extra from the team for the next two sprints to meet that deadline. um I'm I'm not seeing a way around that, um but it'll be really exciting. It's like a really exciting project that we're working on and it it will be great.

F

um But if you look at like the way the epics were scoped out before we had that deadline, it kind of hinted towards the amount of work that we need to do um so I think we tried to communicate out, but the deadline's still there.

E

Yeah, I guess like that's like, like the thing that I wrote in response to the agenda is, like I don't know like there's still like a level of like at a certain point of like extra work required. The answer is like well, it like isn't going to happen. You know like it would like it like not to resign to that, but I just like like we like, I yeah, I don't know I just like.

E

I don't think like like meeting the due date shouldn't supersede like the good principles of like what makes git lab a good place to work right. I think that's what like there are like great things about this place and like if we do away with them to meet april. 27Th then like that's bad and then like and then like we'll, never get them back again too right, like that's like once, you like, like once it's changed.

E

It is like very hard to change it back the other direction and like this is the whole thing with like software companies like gitlab, where it's like. Well, you know, like there's, always more work to be done than you can get done in any given time frame and like if you do it in such a way that is unsustainable.

E

You will not sustain it so like we must work in a sustainable way and, like sure, maybe that's 45, 50 hours a week for like a couple weeks but like it is not 60 and it is not stressing out right.

F

All right, I want to uh pose, ask a question. So um what can we do in the future so that this doesn't happen again? I actually do quarterly.

A

A

G

A

Legit quarterly planning, where we sit there, we scope out the work. We rank order it. What we can do, what we can, what our stretch goals are. That's a my biggest like complaint for the last year has been. Is we've not been doing quarterly planning actual quarterly planning? It's been just like someone up top saying. This is what we need to do and then we're just accepting it, and we need to actually figure out what's possible.

B

I guess one thing I want to add is, I guess, relates to the deadline. I wish we would have been able to scope out the work before making a deadline like we scoped the deadline before even communicating with jam 3. and I'm sorry, but that doesn't really make sense like what, if in a bad scenario that jam 3 just couldn't come through with what we were expecting, then that deadline is like it's impossible, and so I don't know, I think we need a little more information before we commit to things at least deadlines.

A

Posted in the zoom chat too, but the gantt chart that jam 3 has is like a tool for jam 3. um and I think it's working for them, but I don't think that it's working for our team. um I keep seeing inconsistencies for both of the squad meetings. I was in yesterday. um We saw some weirdness in it and uh it's like even on the best. If everything goes well yeah, we we can maybe follow this timeline, but it does seem like our team's work was kind of like forced in there around.

A

You know the jam jam 3 work um without our consultation um and without again having any mocks or designs. So, like I I've taken, you know, project management courses and I think that gantt charts can work well, but this one did not serve us.

A

B

Yeah, this is more of a like. I said a self call out, because I guess for the last couple: iterations I've been kind of just organizing work, but I'm realizing that I'm like it's just too big like a full page, is way too big.

B

It's too many waypoints like what happens if someone's away what is someone sick like you, can't really take that over, and I think I saw it as well with that with daniel's, mr, um if it was smaller, would have been a lot easier to take on, but miguel pretty much had to like redo the page, um which is not good so at least this iteration and going forward like, for example, we have kind of the first designs for the the new homepage and I'm going to do it in a section.

B

So, like the top section is like one issue. The next section is the next issue and it's way more manageable. That way, we can also do things in parallel. It's just it's way better. um I think megan wants to add on to that.

H

Yeah, I'm glad you said something similar because, as I was working on the customer's page like at first looking at the issue, I'm like all right. I have to make a whole page.

H

I've never really had to do that before it's going to be a big one, but I got this and then, as I was working on it, I'm like oh man, like each section of this page, is like its own component, that, like manipulates data and does stuff, so I think going forward um at least like for my own, like uh just like vocalizing or showing how much work would actually not just like slapping eight points on something but like not really showing what's actually gonna go into those eight points.

H

um Making smaller issues might communicate that better for myself.

C

So I think on the next one, so uh after the prerier was uh implemented in the by experience triple I'm, seeing that uh the formatting is a little hard to read, I don't know if we are using any standard or or that is guildlabs standard, but I I'm not sure if I I'm the only one but I'm having hard times reading the html parts of of the code. I don't know if it's possible to to review some other standards or check if we can apply another standard uh to format the code.

B

I want to add something actually, but pretty here. Maybe it's an action item I noticed stuff that you don't want to commit is getting run through prettier, and so I'm wondering if there's a flag we can put on because there's a couple times. I have like new files that I've been working on and I'll jump from branch to branch on and I'll still have them there, but then they just light up like a christmas tree and I have to either stash them.

B

It's just frustrating, and so maybe there's a way to make it only on stuff. You want to commit or state yeah. I don't know, I don't that's possible.

G

um Yeah just make sure to tag me in an issue or nmr just to make sure that tracking is still in place, because I have a feeling that there's going to be a lot of questions from different stakeholders about performance of like before and after, and we need to make sure that data is still there and collecting um yeah.

G

F

Hey my mine's, a mine's, a fun one. We should work on um our team's having a moment we're doing amazing things, and I just want to call out that discretionary bonus program.

F

um So, if someone's doing something really great and shining, let them know um we should be tossing around this team, all the time so go for it. They got a little slack bot and everything.

E

This is another place where, like my point of value, not working actually like I, I went to like recommend nathan for a discretionary bonus and, like you, you can't because he like worked like at like midnight last night or 3am, whatever the timezone difference is but like you are specifically disqualified from discretionary bonuses for working late. um So like I think that git lab is telling us like don't do it right, um but yeah like we should. We should give more of these out, but it's it's tough when it's like.

E

I want to give it out to everyone for working late, but then gitlab's like nope, doesn't count like don't work late.

H

Someone find the legal loophole.

B

Let's say I'm working in europe.

A

Yeah I'll have to look at it again because I had it up this morning, but I closed it, but uh I think it also talks about how like, if people just do their jobs, you can't give them a discretionary about like if they were assigned a project um and they do that project, even if they knock it out of the park that doesn't count for discretionary bonus, because I also looked into like you know, rewarding people for the work that they've done recently and it's uh a lot of it was just work.

A

That was a sign that we did and apparently that's just like our job. So it is like a little puppet string kind of deal that we have to.

F

Yeah, but just try it submit it, write something that looks great see what happens. You might be surprised. You.

A

F

A

F

A

It's part of our job like technically everything we do is part of our job, but it's like did they go above and beyond. In that thing, that was a part of the job. Maybe that's where it comes in, I don't know yeah. I know it was michael scott. That said, you miss 100 of the shots. You don't take.

D

Cool uh like I have the last point. um I just added it um now, because I realized that filter is here, and uh this is something she probably needs to hear, but um I'm finding it um as a designer on the team difficult to balance work assigned to me or that I've signed for myself for that specific sprint, and also reviewing mrs that are um for issues that I have already closed weeks ago. I'm context switching.

D

I really want to support our team because they're they need us to review them for design, um but then I'm struggling to assign weight points to that, because I never know when those mrs are coming my way and then this particular week was pretty challenging, because I had a lot to review and I had a lot on my sprint board. As you can see, there was like it was full, so I don't have a solution, but it is something that is uh always always happening to me.

F

uh I'll pose another question: can we adjust our sprint plan to accommodate? So I think everyone on the team needs some. Some points waited for reviewing. Mrs.

D

It'd be great, sometimes you just don't know when they're coming your way. That's that's the thing.

A

On that note, I guess uh we've got a couple action items in there um I'll look into a placeholder image, uh placeholder homepage, for what dub uh barker can look at team collaboration, um project planning for setting due dates, and we can look at the prettier implementation um cool. I think that closes us out we're after time. Also, so, thank you so much everyone and we will see you next time.