Consulting Journal: Writing - Describing levels

Writing: Describing levels

by David Blakey

Is there a better way of describing levels than 'high', 'medium' and 'low'?

[Monday 15 March 2004]

In computer programming, there are three levels of 'errors'. These are reported by the software that compiles or interprets the code within a program.

Errors

There are real errors. An error will prevent a computer program from working. The programmer will have to fix the error before the program will work at all.

Warnings

There are warnings. A warning tells the programmer that there is something wrong, although the program will run. The results may not be what the programmer expected. Using judgment, the programmer must decide whether the warning reports a real risk to the proper working of the program or whether the warning can be ignored. While it is usually best to fix the problem that caused the warning to be reported, there are some situations in which the warning can be ignored.

Notices

There are notices. These tell the programmer that the coding in the program is not correct, although the program should function properly. Usually, because the compiler has noted the problem, it can perform correctly the actions that the programmer wants, even though the coding for these actions is not correct. Programmers can often ignore a notice entirely, although, again, it is better to fix the problem.

Examples

Here are some examples of these three levels in dates.

Error

If a date is given as 02xx04. The xx is meaningless in a date, and causes an error, because the correct date cannot be determined. If the program is meant to calculate the difference that date and today's date, to determine if an account is overdue for payment, it cannot do so.

Warning

If the date is given as 020304, then in America that date would be February 3, 2004. That may be correct. In Britain, 020304 may be 2 March 2004. Faced with this, the compiler may select a default method of representing this date. This may be as February 3, 2004. The warning indicates that the complier has determined a valid date, although this may not be desired date. If the date is correct and the programmer had intended it to be February 3, 2004, then the warning can be ignored. If the date was meant to be 2 March 2004, then the programmer will have to correct the program.

Notice

If the date is given as Feb 3, the compiler can reasonably assume that this is intended to be February 3 of the current year. This format is actually used extensively by several popular desktop products, so it is usually safe to assume that the current year is meant. The compiler issues a notice so that the programmer can confirm this.

Beyond programming

These three levels can be taken beyond programming and into many other areas, especially in management consulting. You can, for instance, apply it to risk analysis and management. Each risk can be described in terms of those three levels. This is particularly true in describing the remaining risk exposure after immediate risk management procedures have been applied. So, if after risk elimination or reduction or mitigation measures have been applied, the residual risk exposure can be described as being at the level of error if further measures need to be applied to a high residual risk exposure, of warning if contingency planning is still needed for a relatively small exposure, and of notice if the residual risk exposure can be accepted.

These three levels would usually be called high, medium and low. There are two advantages in using different names, such as error, warning and notice.

The advantages

Division

Let us describe risk impacts as critical, significant and trivial instead of as high, medium and low. These adjectives provide a clear division between the three levels of impact, like the red-amber-green of traffic-lights. There is no implication of a transition between each, like the colours of a rainbow, merging from red to orange to yellow to green.

Relationship

The high-medium-low spectrum also implies fairly equal proportions, with high occupying the top third, and so on. With critical-significant-trivial there is no such assumption. Indeed, there may be a hope that critical would occupy a very small proportion of the risk impacts.

Appearance

It is really a matter of appearance. You can convey different messages by using different words. Consider the impressions that the following sets of words create.

high / medium / low risk impacts
critical / significant / trivial risk impacts

high / medium / low event proximity
imminent / approaching / distant event proximity

high / medium / low pricing
expensive / reasonable / cheap pricing

This last example shows the differences that can occur between what consultants write in their reports and what people usually say. In general conversation, we would describe an item as expensive or reasonable or cheap. It does not make sense to me to translate these into high or medium or low pricing.

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