Measuring chaos

Some IT shops are more chaotic than others. (A statement that can be made about just about every discipline, not just software.)

But how to compare? What measurement do we have for chaos, other than anecdotes and comments made by the inmates?

Here's a metric: The frequency of priority changes.

How frequently does your team (if you're a manager) or your workload (if you're a contributor) change its "number one" task? Do you move gradually from one project to another, on a planned schedule? Or do you change from one "hot" project to the next "hotter" project, at the whim of external forces. (In other words, are you in fire-fighting mode? Or are you starting preventative fires with a plan that lets you control the unexpected ones?)

I call it the "PCF" - the "Priority Change Frequency". The more often you change priorities, the more chaotic your shop.

Organizations with competent managers have lower PCF values. Their managers plan for new assignments and prepare their teams. Organizations with less-than-competent managers have higher PCF values, since they will often be surprised and ill-prepared for the work.

But comparing teams is tricky. Some teams will have higher PCF values, due to the nature of their work. Help desks and support teams must respond to user requests and problems. Operations teams must "keep the joint running" and respond to equipment failures. In these types of organizations, a problem can quickly become the number one priority. Changing priorities is the job.

Other teams should have lower PCFs. A programming team (provided that they are not also the support team) has the luxury of planning their work. Even teams that use Agile methods can plan their work -- their priorities may shift from one cycle to another, but not during the cycle.

Don't be seduced by the illusion of "we're different". Some teams think that they are different, and a high PCF is not an indication of a problem. Unless your work is defined by external sources that change frequently (as with help desks), you have no excuse. If you insist on being different, then the difference is in the manager's skills.