We need psychologically safe workplaces. Testers, and all other members of development teams, need to feel safe enough to be able to ask questions and express opinions about the project we are working on.
The need for psychological safety is not a new issue. W. Edwards Deming saw it as an important issue. Drive out fear is one of Demings’ 14 Points for Management which he published in 1982[1]. He first spoke about his 14 Points for Management at a conference in Tokyo in 1978[2]. The early versions of his Points for Management, when he spoke in Japan, did not include Drive Out Fear because Japanese managers did not need to be told to Drive Out Fear. [3]
He wrote that “fear takes on many faces. A common denominator is loss from impaired performance and padded figures”[1]. No one can put in their best performance unless they feel secure[4]. Examples of fear include[5]:
- I am afraid I will lose my job
- I am afraid that I may not always have an answer when my boss asks something
- I am afraid to admit a mistake
- My boss believes in fear
Drive out fear is one of Deming’s Points for Management. If you are working in a climate of fear then it is not your fault, it is the responsibility of management. Instead of command and control management, “Deming directed managers to build trust throughout the organisation.” [6]
“Management in authority will struggle over every one of the” 14 Points for Management [7], including Drive Out Fear. Deming wrote that the Plan-Do-Study-Act Cycle will be helpful as a procedure to follow for improvement[8]. Management can use the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle to drive out fear and improve psychological safety. They can plan an initiative to improve psychological safety, such as providing training on how to facilitate meetings. Then “do” the initiative, study its results and then act on what they learned from the study.
Innovation in the twenty-first century is being supported by Deming’s 14 Points for Management, including Drive Out Fear, for example, they are the roots of DevOps.[9]
Psychological safety is important for everyone at work. It has particular importance for testers because we need to be able to ask questions. Drive out fear is a good example of how Deming’s 14 Points for Management provides a framework to create a great place for testers, and everyone else, to work.
References
[1] Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming (1982, p59)
[2] Quality or Else by Lloyd Dobyns and Clare Crawford-Mason(1991, p102)
[3] The Deming Dimension by Henry R. Neave (1990, p37)
[4] Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming (1982, p58)
[5] Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming (1982, p60)
[6] Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming (1982, p88)
[7] Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming (1982, p86)
[8] Deming’s Journey to Profound Knowledge by John “Botchagalupe” Willis with Derek Willis (2023, p200)
[9] Deming’s Journey to Profound Knowledge by John “Botchagalupe” Willis with Derek Willis (2023, p163)
Further Information:
- Deming’s Journey to Profound Knowledge by John “Botchagalupe” Willis with Derek Willis – contains true-to-life contemporary examples of “Drive out Fear”
- DemingNext – eLearning from the Deming Institute with a two-week free trial
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