Working in Information Technology (IT) is analogous to juggling balls. There are many balls of many different colors and sizes. Its important that certain color balls never touch the ground. Success depends on juggling all the balls until balls of specifics sizes can be deposited in to designated bins. The bins for the different sized balls are rarely conveniently located next to each other. It’s only possible for one person to juggle so many balls at a time. The colors of the balls are constantly changing. While juggling the balls, new balls are being randomly shot from cannons, at you, with unpredictable frequency, color and size. On occasion a ball will unexplainably blow up in your face. Needless to say balls get dropped.
In successful IT teams, members have learned how to coordinate ball juggling expertise and strategies such that the balls of important colors never touch the ground before they can be delivered to their bins. New team members can easily be rotated into the team to take over juggling so that other team members can occasionally take a break. And rarely ever does any ball touch the ground. But when it does, everyone works quickly to pick it back up and get it to it’s bin.
— John Haverlack