Behind the scenes: Real life Shape Up with Basecamp (+Resources)
Behind the scenes: Real life Shape Up with Basecamp (+Resources)
Dropping in on a real-life Basecamp meeting
This is the sixth and final part of a six-part series on implementing Basecamp’s Shape Up methodology at my company:
Part six: Behind the scenes, real life Shape Up with Basecamp (+Resources)
It's not often you can both learn a methodology and see it in action by the very people who invented it. Yet, this is what Basecamp (and more specifically Jason Fried) have blessed us with in a single tweet:
If watching this gave you an unfinished business aftertaste, don't worry. Jason shared the final design output (live in production by now):
Do you feel like you're getting short-changed? You greedy bugger. Alright, Jason also shared the actual pitch that led to this work.
It doesn't get much more real-life than this!
At the time of recording, they were on the second Monday of a 2-week project. Attending are Jason (CEO), Bryan (PM) and Andy (designer).
Here are a few notes and lessons I took from watching this.
Very small project
They're working on a 2-week project which is a small appetite; so it makes sense that this 'feature' is small. Yet I was still struck by how small it is.
In my experience working at a startup, the scope of this work wouldn't even have registered as more than a 'small' ticket. Quick bish-bash-bosh 2-hour type job for someone to pick up on a Friday afternoon.
And, to be clear, that's the wrong way to do things. As proven by this video, there's a lot that goes into 'small' jobs. Their approach is much better.
Feedback and 'problems' are hard to define
Timestamps: 5min, 6min
Several times during the call, the attendees describe a 'problem' with the current design or 'feedback' they've received on why it's wrong/unclear/not good.
Almost every time, they correct themselves and clarify that most of the feedback came from 'JZ', a non-present member of their team.
It's a good reminder that even the best make a lot of assumptions. As an outsider looking in, it's very easy for us to point them out and therefore dismiss them (or get someone to collect more feedback and pitch again later).
Yet, sometimes, your internal feedback loop is worth listening to. It's clear Basecamp employees are power users of their own tool, so it's less likely they're making the wrong assumptions. It's worth to keep ourselves in check, though: are we working from an assumption here?
'How would we announce this feature?'
Timestamp: 9min20
Probably my favourite takeaway from this call.
Almost ten minutes into the call, Jason blurts out this framework on simplicity. He evaluates the changes made so far and points out which one(s) would be easier to explain to new customers.
If the explanation is simple and makes sense, it's likely elegant and, therefore, down the right path. If he's struggling to announce it to his customers, they might be overcomplicating the project.
Truly excellent.
Around the 17min45 mark, he comes back to it briefly by pointing out that all they had to do was change a couple of classes. He seems to find elegance in this simple solution.
Around the 27min mark, they come back to it again this time from a slightly different angle: the UI teaches the feature. Again, it's a reminder of simplicity and lessened cognitive load for the user which the team seems to take as a sign they're on the right track.
Meeting = work
I've only got a sample of one, so this might be too much of an extrapolation, but I loved that this meeting wasn't just a meeting. It was work.
They didn't just sit around watching a solution. There was a lot of feedback, sure, but also actively trying to tweak the solution on the call.
A good reminder that meetings aren't just for checking in or delivering a final solution. Meetings can (should?) be collaborative work.
Just ship it
Timestamp: 29min
Staying true to their Shape Up philosophy, they end the call on a simple call to action: ship it.
It seems clear (though again I might be reading into it) that the designer and the PM have reservations about shipping straight away. One says "When you say ship it tomorrow, do you mean ship it-ship it or try it out on our accounts?".
Classic shipping nerves!
Jason expertly realigns the goal while also acknowledging the concern. They will ship the version to themselves in one hour, try it, and then ship it to customers tomorrow if all is good.
It's really fun to see this dynamic happen in real life. I have that conversation a million times a week (though it's unfortunately often not my place to make the final call as Jason did here)!
I have so many more notes from this recording. It makes me so happy to see behind-the-scenes footage of how companies actually work.
Resources
For further reading or inspiration, here are a few worthwhile resources:
Shape Up in action:
Hey’s Bubble Up by Michelle (37Signals)
Hey’s Group mentions by Brian (Basecamp)
Wrap up
It's time to wrap up this series on trialling Basecamp's Shape Up methodology. It's been a wild and interesting ride, and I can safely say I'm a convert.
If this series has encouraged you to give Shape Up a try, I'd love to hear from you. What's been your experience? What have you struggled with or enjoyed? Are you going to continue?