It Depends. On What?! - Improving Knowledge Sharing Through Better Communication

When I was in school studying business intelligence, almost every question I posed was answered with some variation of "it depends". I wanted to punch the responder in the face. Of course there might not be a straight answer, but WHAT that answer depends on might be helpful for me to understand. In essence - trying to figure out the reasoning behind when (and why) to choose a specific solution in favor of another. The problem was that I was asking the wrong questions, and the seniors answered my questions as they perceived them - a surefire way to maximize frustration. This session will explore why "it depends" is such a go-to answer, give examples of how to avoid "it depends" in favor of explaining reasoning and concepts, and provide ideas for how to shift the conversation away from "it depends" to something useable - all while keeping the amount of facepunching to a minimum.