Using the three cloud method to find the core confict

Several months ago, before I had constructed the communications current reality tree (CCRT) that we've just been looking at, I used the 3 cloud method to create the following core conflict cloud, that you see at the bottom of the CCRT (entities 10, 20, 25, 40, 50).

 

[Now this bit feels like magic … but it works.  I admit that I had my doubts but then when I tried it … it worked!  Give it a go yourself.]

 

1.  I picked, reasonably randomly, these 3 UDEs from the original list, that I had already converted into Clouds.

 

UDE	Actions/Wants/ Demands D	Actions/Wants/ Demands D’	Important Need B	Important Need C	Common Objective A
010 Projects often miss their promised deadline. (Derived from the four conditions given below)	Focus on meeting the content commitment	Focus on meeting the time and budget commitment	Meet the important needs of the sponsor	Deliver on time within budget	Have a successful project
020 Many problems don’t become apparent until late in the project (such as during integration phase)	Wait to find problems during integration and testing	Take steps to find problems early	Ensure that the “whole” system functions correctly	Ensure that the component parts function correctly	Provide a good quality product (One that works)
80 The relationships between various roles and staff is often stressful (e.g. between customer and developer).	Give customers everything they demand	Keep demands  within manageable limits	Deliver the best product.	Maintain control of the project	Have a successful project

 

2.  Then I starred at each column, one by one, and genericised it - this is the bit that mostly feels like magic, but I've just reviewed it here and it still feels right.  This gave me this generic cloud:

 

UDE	Actions/Wants/ Demands D	Actions/Wants/ Demands D’	Important Need B	Important Need C	Common Objective A
Generic	Focus on delivering the best product	Focus on protecting the schedule and budget	Ensure the best product	Deliver on time and budget	Have a successful project

 

3.  Which I then tested against these 2 UDEs:

 

UDE	Actions/Wants/ Demands D	Actions/Wants/ Demands D’	Important Need B	Important Need C	Common Objective A
040 The software produced often misses many high-priority features that weren’t included in the original requirements specification.	Allow changes to the spec as we learn	Don’t allow changes to the spec as we learn	Deliver the best product.   Get the required features	Meet schedule and budget commitments	Have the best value product
030 The software produced contains many features that are never used or rarely used.	Customers include everything they can think of in their requirements.	Development team try’s to minimise requirements	Ensure the product does the job required   contains every feature needed.	Keep the content manageable	Have the best value product

 

4.  And it fit.  So I sent this document to Jim who made a few wording suggestions and I made a few more rewordings over time and I ended up with this:

 

 

5.  Then I went through lots and lots and lots of frustration trying to link the top of the tree that I'd been developing with this new cloud at the bottom.  More about that next.

 

Clarke