Business Skills…..Donn need them!

A few days back I read a blog post commenting on the so-called artificially created need for business skills in the IT sector. The topic itself is one that gets people charged. To top it, the post was against the motion in this debate. I too put in my comments.

The author’s premise was that the repeated stress on business skills for technology people is unnecessary and its importance is falsely overrated. He is of the opinion that the people with business skills actually contribute to more confusion and less productivity.

In my opinion, it is wrong to generalise things and a very unhealthy practise to berate those with good business skill but medium level technical proficiency. In manner of the San Fransisco bridge, these people act like a bridge between the the totally technical people and the hardcore business guys. They ensure that both parties actually understand what the other person is talking about.

Importantly, these people do not necessarily sit in a particular designation to play a role like this. By virtue of their understanding of the underlying technology and the overarching business concerns, he is able to understand the product eco-system better than a person whose understanding of his work is restricted (though not always) to design of a window or a button.