Arsalan Zaidi

Jul 27, 2026

1

Decisions

0

Active Todos

4

Patterns

Categories

strategy (1)

Decisions (1)

Definitive no to LG U+ cross-distro package support - the test is whether we would ship it down the middle for everyone

LG U+ wants to run DNF update on RHEL servers pointed only at CIQ/Rocky repos, which touches bootloader packages and breaks the system on reboot. They rejected the exclude-packages workaround. In the LG - Next Steps meeting Peter refused to let the discussion be about whether the ask is a bug or whether it closes the deal, and reframed it to a single question for Justin: is this something we would do down the middle for everybody, or is it one-off work for LG. Justin answered we cannot support it. Peter then gave the definitive verdict: no, this is not something CIQ Engineering is going to support. He posted the same conclusion in the temp-lg channel after aligning with Bjorn, and handed customer messaging to Bjorn with Tommy and Art.

Jul 27
strategy

Related Patterns (4)

Executive Sponsorship for Strategic Partnerships

Strategic cross-company initiatives and major client partnerships require executive-level accountability to move at the right pace and ensure proper prioritization.

172 occurrences78% success

Small Circle for Sensitive Operations

When executing sensitive strategic operations, keep the circle of informed people as small as possible to prevent leaks that could accelerate hostile action or undermine the initiative.

169 occurrences78% success

Protect Engineering Capacity

When external demands threaten to overload engineering capacity, protect capacity by either requiring the demand to come with additional resources, or forcing hard prioritization choices upstream.

161 occurrences79% success

Reclassify to Route - Decide Who Owns It, Then Give a Criterion Not a Verdict

When a question arrives at Peter framed in one domain, he often does not answer it in that framing. He reclassifies it into the domain that actually governs the outcome, which relocates ownership to whoever owns that lane, and then hands down a decision criterion rather than a verdict. The reclassification IS the decision - it determines who decides. He does this rather than adjudicating on the merits himself, even when he was explicitly cc-ed and even when a direct report challenges him on the substance.

42 occurrences80% success