Knowledge shared by our community

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.

Rational Agile

This article discusses the author's experience with the Agile methodology, which they adopted early on in their career. They found it to be a great way to shorten release cycles and create a sense of ownership in the work. However, they have since seen it become a buzzword and watered down to a light framework, leading to engineers being bogged down in bureaucracy and having less time to code. The author believes that Agile is great and works, and that the Scrum Master is an ordinary engineer who is more extroverted, people-oriented, and organized. The goal of Agile is to optimize communication and create a JIRA dashboard that allows people to know what's going on instantly.

Being the Only Woman In the Room

This article discusses the challenges that women face in the workplace and offers advice on how to overcome them. It suggests that women should focus on doing things that are smart and be themselves, rather than trying to prove themselves. It also encourages women to be transparent and direct with their colleagues, and to remain calm if something unfair or embarrassing happens. Finally, it suggests that women should give people the benefit of the doubt and not let emotions influence their decisions.

Balancing Empathy with Discipline

The director of product and user experience at a company has to manage a team of top performers while maintaining an emotional connection with each one. To do this, they must prioritize the well-being of their people, have regular one-on-ones, and create a two-way conversation. They should also be aware that each team member may have unique challenges and should be given the attention and support they need.

Developing Emotional Intelligence as a Manager

When transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, it is important to recognize the emotional aspects of management and develop a unique leadership style. It is also important to come to terms with the fact that not everyone will agree with every decision and to have the courage to communicate with tact. Trust is essential to a functional team and embodying confidence is key. It is important to have a clear vision of who you are and to take time for intention-setting. Meditation can help to purify the environment and clear the head.

Making Information Security a Company-Wide Priority

Information security is an increasingly important issue for companies, and Fin-Tech businesses must be aware of the different levels of data sensitivity. As a CTO, you must be aware of the legal penalties that come with not following regulations. To build a strong culture of information security, you must bring in the right people, educate your team, and keep track of metrics. Additionally, you must ask security-focused questions when hiring engineers and make sure that all departments are aware of security risks.

Delivering an Effective Performance Review

This article discusses the importance of performance reviews for managers and their teams. It outlines the process of conducting a review, including the use of metrics, examples, and checklists. It also highlights the importance of being transparent in communication and taking the time to prepare for the review. Finally, it emphasizes the need to understand how a person's performance can positively or negatively impact the team and the company.

The First Three Phases of a Company

As a small business grows, it is important to consider the structure of the engineering organization and be flexible with timelines. It is also important to be aware of changes in the organization and to be proactive in building the team to solve upcoming problems. Learning by experience alone can be slow, so it is important to also rely on literature, mentors, and peers.

Transitioning From Vice President of Engineering to CTO

When the pandemic hit, the author had to take on the role of CTO remotely. To make the transition successful, they reached out to mentors and peers for advice, and took the time to understand the role internally and externally. They also built feedback loops and used video chats to make up for lost time with team members. In the end, they were able to prove themselves and build trust with their peers.

Having Impact on ICs as a Manager

This is a reflection on the experience of a manager at a start-up, starting as an IC and moving up to managing managers. The manager realized the impact they had on a junior developer who reported to one of the managers they managed. They developed a routine for one-on-ones and learned to assess ICs to figure out what motivates them. As a manager, they learned that there is always more work to be done, and as they move higher, they need to juggle more people and focus on soft skills like team composition and product expertise.

Giving Juniors an Opportunity to Grow

A junior-level backend developer expressed interest in taking on more ownership of the projects they were working on. The manager took this as a challenge and, with the help of senior-level mentors, gave the junior-level developer ownership of the backend development of a full stack project. The junior-level developer was able to take ownership and gain confidence, and eventually became the team's go-to trainee when more help was needed. The manager learned that it is important to give people what they are looking for professionally, but to do so safely, and to lean into the senior-level managers for insight. Young people have lots of energy and, with the right opportunity and support, can quickly develop into senior-level employees.

Structuring Cross-Functional Teams

In a previous role, the team was divided into two smaller teams in order to increase visibility and retain knowledge. A hybrid model was adopted, with one team focusing on a certain product area and the other team picking up where the first left off. Lessons learned included the importance of people-driven solutions, the need to support non-engineers, and the potential for companies to move away from this model as they mature.

Navigating Through a Meandering Career

This article outlines a model for people considering a career change. It suggests that people should start by analyzing what is making them happy and unhappy in their current job/role, and then explore the realm of possibilities. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the knowledge gaps and the need for support from friends, sponsors, and ex-teammates. Finally, it encourages patience and the ability to re-invent oneself in the current role while waiting for the right opportunity.

Building a Fully Cross-Functional Team

Cross-functional teams are becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness. This article discusses the experience of building a cross-functional team, which included convincing managers to give up team members, identifying all functions that should contribute, creating a common space for collaboration, and arranging socializing activities. The article also highlights the importance of including everyone that needs to be included, explaining the common goal, and maintaining good relationships with managers.

Mastering Delegation: A First-Time Manager’s Perspective

This story is about a new manager who had difficulty delegating tasks to their team. With the help of their manager and a training program, they were able to identify the reasons behind their reluctance to delegate and develop strategies to overcome them. Through self-reflection and externalizing their self-sabotaging beliefs, they were able to become more comfortable with delegating and empower their team to grow in their roles. The lessons learned from this experience are that training and asking for help are important for new managers, and delegation is a two-way street that requires a mindset shift.

Navigating Freelance Work

This article outlines the lessons learned from the author's experience with freelance work. The author suggests researching potential clients, studying job descriptions, and managing expectations to ensure a successful freelance experience. They also advise caution when reading job descriptions and transparency when dealing with clients.

Creating My First Product From Scratch

This is a story of the journey of creating a hotel inventory management system integrated with search and booking engines. It began with one developer and one product manager, and grew to a team of ten within a year. Through interviews, market discovery, and product analysis, the team was able to create a product that was used by 20,000 hotels and handled 100,000 booking requests per minute. Lessons learned include delegating tasks, building a team from scratch, focusing on direct users, and collecting data.

Software Development Life Cycle: A Product Guy’s Perspective

The author joined a new company in a product role and found that the software development life cycle was not being followed. To address this, the author implemented changes to the software development life cycle, including explicit instructions to stakeholders, project tracking with Jira, and workflows for design. These changes resulted in increased productivity and output quality, and other PMs followed the author's initiative. The author also learned lessons about the importance of following a software development life cycle and the difficulty of changing people's habits.

Problems With Prioritization: A Glass Jar Metaphor

Superhuman was faced with the challenge of working on two large projects in parallel. To maximize their capacity, they decided to add a self-contained customer-facing feature of less priority to the mix, allowing the new engineer to become familiar with the codebase. This decision taught them that prioritization is not just about following a stack ranked list, but also requires appropriate balancing of resources and managing dependencies. It requires creativity and flexibility, and the product backlog should include items of various sizes to enable the team to work efficiently.

Why Establishing Long-Term Relationship With Your Manager Can Benefit You

In 2008, Mike was hired as a front-end developer and eventually moved into a management role. Over the years, the author and Mike developed a mentor-mentee relationship that allowed them to trust each other and have honest conversations. This relationship enabled them to move up in their respective roles and eventually Mike took over a more significant scope than the author. The author learned that the best way to build a team is by trusting people and that the relationships you establish are more important than any other work. It is also beneficial to have a mentor who can help you learn in a more efficient way.

How and Why You Should Hire “Boomerang” Employees

A CTO took over a team and found that one of the senior engineers, Joe, was not enjoying his role as a manager. Joe left the team for another role, but eventually returned after the CTO identified a senior technical role that better suited Joe's skills and motivations. The CTO learned the importance of understanding team members' motivations and providing them with career opportunities that align with their goals.