Todd Biske: Outside the Box

James asked some of us EA bloggers to try to classify what we do on a daily basis. My breakdown is this, although as I grow in my new job, I would expect this to shift a bit:

• 30% Domain Expert
• 30% Analyst/Strategist
• 30% Technology Expert
• 10% Problem Resolution/Mediation

Note that I used the term “problem resolution/mediation” rather than “troubleshooting.” That was done intentionally to differentiate between troubleshooting operational systems (i.e. production support) versus mediating disagreements between teams, etc. which is far more common for my role. I also added “strategist” after “analyst”, meaning that I’m doing analysis for the purpose of strategic direction. It’s interesting to think about how this will change over time, and the fact that there’s a blurring across these categories. For example, is being an expert in a domain a pre-requisite for being a strategist? It certainly helps, but there are people who simply have a good sense for trends and can easily see where the adoption challenges will typically be, regardless of the domain. I’ll have to make a mental note to revisit this classification a year from now.

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