Herding Cats

I’m a Cat Herder!

“At Group L, Stoffel oversees six first-rate programmers, a managerial challenge roughly comparable to herding cats.”

The Washington Post Magazine, 9 June, 1985

EDS made a very entertaining commercial with a Western theme about Herding Cats. As a manager of programmers, the ad leaves me laughing every time I watch it.

Herding cats is a figure of speech that is used to convey that a task is extremely difficult.

We have an image of cats as being individualists that doesn’t cooperate very well. To bring cats together in a herd is therefore a very challenging task.

In some respects creating software is similar to herding cats. Bringing a group of diverse stakeholders together and make them agree upon things can also be a daunting task.

Awareness of these kinds of problems can help us prepare for the tasks and realize that we need to handle that kind of problems in order to create successful software.

So what does herding cats have to do with leading a team of Developers?

Cats are solitary animals

They don’t naturally herd. They shy away from groups. Some of your team may be the same way.

That’s why as a leader you must constantly emphasize the value of collaboration.

You must have a deep-seated conviction that people can do more as a team than they can on their own. You must force yourself to hold meetings and keep communicating about your projects.

Cats are seemingly aloof

Experienced Developers can be snooty, they have been there done that and each member of the team may have a strong view on the right way forward.
As leader it is your job to embrace these personalities to combine them into a synergy that aides the project rather than tear it apart.

Cats are easily distracted

If you throw a shiny ball or drag a colored string in front of them, they almost instantly stop what they are doing and start playing.

People are often like this, too. Let’s face it: we live in a world with lots of distractions. It takes enormous discipline to stay focused and on-task.

As a leader, you must first of all model this behavior. Are you focused? Are you easily distracted? Are you frequently taken off-task? If so, then you are going to create a culture of distraction. You can’t fix this in your team until you fix it in your own head.

The key with cats is showing affection. They love to be stroked. When you do it right, they come alive and purr. They won’t leave you alone and will follow you anywhere.

People are the same way. They need affirmation. They need recognition. They need to be told they are doing a great job.

In a nutshell, that’s the secret to herding cats.

The Book Herding Cats

Hank Rainwater wrote a book titled Herding Cats: A Primer for Programmers Who Lead Programmers.

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