Knowledge shared by our community

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.

Engaging Contractors: A Framework to Minimize the Risks and Maximize the Outcome

When considering hiring contractors, it is important to approach the engagement in a structured, documented, and shared way. This includes outlining the problem, assessing risk factors, defining success metrics, and outlining a plan B. Additionally, it is important to get buy-in from the team and manager, and to remember that the manager is still responsible for the deliverables and their quality.

Next Level Support Engineering (a.k.a. Incidents Management Engineering)

A year ago, the author was tasked to restructure the existing Support Engineering function in their company, which had experienced rapid growth due to the emergence of Covid-19. To do this, they had to redefine what Support Engineering was, and what it should do to address the new set of problems. This included establishing incident management protocols, a program management team, interception software, and building the team. Through this process, the author learned that Support Engineering should be established earlier, and that it should be a top horizontal function that liaises Engineering and Operations while shielding product teams.

Managing vs. Contributing as an IC: The Train/Canoe Mindset

A former manager shared their thoughts on the differences between working as an individual contributor (IC) and a manager. They used the analogy of train work and canoe work to explain the differences. Train work requires a lot of work to get the train moving, but it can take people far. Canoe work is done alone and can get going quickly, but will never reach the same speed as the train. When considering a career in management, it is important to remember that the day-to-day will be different and to consider one's motivation. Canoe work is energizing and allows for craftsmanship, while train work requires a more deliberate way of thinking and takes longer to see the results.

Creating a Metric to Measure Progress in an Area of Ambiguity

This case study looks at the challenge of determining how many appointments made by customers would lead to an actual sale, and how many were less serious in their intentions. The company reached out to their agents to define a quality customer, and discovered that part of their job was helping people to try to get to that point in the first place. They then pulled data on customers who scheduled a tour and compared it to property records to see if they bought a home. The lesson learned was that it was important to gain qualitative insights from agents in the field, and to combine this with customer data to identify the issues that were taking the greatest toll on the organization.

Learning to Speak the Languages of Many Types of Reports

As a manager, the author initially thought that the same methods of management that worked for them would work for their team. However, they soon realized that different people require different approaches. They now focus on getting the most out of their team's strengths, rather than correcting their weaknesses. They also think more specifically when assigning roles and tasks, and have learned to prioritize their involvement in areas that are not their primary focus.

Dealing With the Catastrophic Failure of an Important Product

This article discusses the experience of a person in the EdTech industry who had to mediate with customers when a mission-critical system was not working properly. The customer was not receiving the funding they were owed and teachers were missing entries. The person was able to resolve the technical issues and also mediate with customers to buy time and repair the relationship. They learned that it is important to be honest and transparent with customers, take responsibility for errors, and seek out professional advice.

Shrinking the Ego and Becoming Receptive to Others

The speaker emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and collaboration for successful leadership. They discuss the importance of mentorship and of developing an openness to feedback and criticism. They also emphasize the importance of focusing on people and quality of work, and of having the ability to have one's mind changed. Finally, they encourage reports to bring feedback to the leader personally.

“Right-Sizing” Your Team With Empathy

A new job overseeing a software technology division required difficult managerial decisions, including layoffs. A three-month process was undertaken to identify who to keep and who to let go, while also rebuilding the culture of the organization. After twelve months, the organization was breaking even. Lessons learned included the need to have a strong business-related need to justify layoffs, to modulate emotions, to remain transparent, and to invest in whoever is left after restructuring.

The Early Days of Agility

After forty years in software development, the author found himself in a chaotic environment with a development team of thirty people. The team was utilizing the waterfall style of working, which was becoming outdated, and their deliveries were one to two years behind. The author then introduced the Agile Manifesto and Extreme Programming to the team, which included changes to the process, programming languages, office policies, and payment structure. The release that followed was late, but of a higher quality than before, and subsequent releases hit their mark. The author learned that producing quality does not require large sums of money, that agile processes are necessary to keep up with changing markets, and that integrated teams and testing will increase the potency of troubleshooting efforts.

Driving Freestyle Innovation Inside Large Organizations

This article discusses a problem faced by a large team at a larger organization: lack of innovation due to too many highly visible projects. To address this, the team leader proposed and made the case to their Engineering Leader to budget for innovation plans. This resulted in the formation of a three-person tiger team, the hiring of two more people, and an extended hackathon. Through this, the team was able to develop machine learning technologies, create an amazing prototype, and receive positive feedback from customers. The article also highlights the importance of budgeting for innovation and giving engineers autonomy to work on their own ideas.

Becoming the Type of Leader That You Would Want to Follow

This article is about the lessons learned by an introverted IT professional who was unexpectedly placed in a leadership role. Through research, mentors, and data-monitoring software, the individual was able to learn how to build a team, manage people, and resolve conflicts. They also learned the importance of transparency and the value of reading industry blogs for problem-solving.

Upgrading Old Processes to Meet the Goals of the Future

This company is a legacy company that has been operating for decades and many of the people have never owned a smartphone. To address the communication gap between the higher-level managers and the developers, a digital transformation was implemented to convert physical paperwork into the digital realm. This increased the pace of the workflow, visibility, and transparency. A digitally-produced framework was also instated to show each team what projects look like from end-to-end. Automating the paper trail has provided insights into where bottlenecks in the organization tend to happen, allowing the company to administer the appropriate training and improve the structure of the organization.

The Antidote to Being Too Thinly Spread

A couple of years ago, a team of two engineers inherited a production website that was being treated as a web property instead of an engineering product. This resulted in poor morale, frequent downtimes, and a lack of ability to enhance the system. The manager took control and worked to align the team's thoughts and ideas with the company's values, while also ramping up staffing and delineating roles and responsibilities. Through active listening and taking control of operability costs, the manager was able to bring the project back to life and improve the financial health of the company.

Implementing a Process of Standardization for a Large Company

This article discusses the process of digitally transforming a large company's hiring process. The goal was to create a single system for HR teams to post job listings and evaluate potential candidates. This included a database to store resumes, a job board, and a preliminary questionnaire for candidates. The process was successful due to the organization of the information, making it easier to understand and interpret. This improved the hiring outcomes and increased visibility and transparency across the organization.

Becoming a Part of the Ecosystem of Your Industry

In this article, the author discusses their experience in the construction management sector where they developed a suite of digital tools to provide a cross-functional platform for construction project managers. The author then explains how they developed a platform-oriented approach to integrate with other established systems in order to create a cohesive experience for users across the entire construction cycle. The article concludes with the lesson that in order to progress from tactics to a bird’s-eye perspective, it is important to take a pause to look at the market and opportunities, and to have an underlying theme that is served through the product portfolio.

Meeting the Needs of Your Product’s Core Demographic

A company in the construction-project management space was having difficulty with its product, so a new hire was tasked with turning it around. After listening to customer feedback, the hire realized that the product needed to be versatile enough to accommodate different workflows and that the data model needed to be overhauled. The product was eventually standardized and optimized for the real-world challenges of the construction management industry. The lessons learned were to always listen to the market and to have an insider's perspective on what makes a product useful. Additionally, it is important to make sure the current product is solid before moving on to the next step.

Negotiating Your Way Out of a Hard Product Commitment

Four new product managers were struggling to prioritize their work due to a rigid company roadmap with hard product commitments. To gain autonomy, they worked to educate internally and externally, and to get product a seat at the pre-sale discussions. They also learned to say no more often and to phrase it as a "not yet" to customers. The lessons learned were to be aware of competing commitments, to have control over product development, and to strive to be a long-term strategic partner.

Leveraging Professional Strengths to Overcome Personality Differences

A team of four developers was given one week to develop a brand-new public-facing API. After two and a half days of little progress, the team leader created a draft specification to focus the discussions and the team was able to deliver the project. The team was able to leverage each other's strengths and weaknesses to create a successful product.

Play to Their Strengths: Effectively Utilizing Offshore Resources in the Face of Deep-Rooted Prejudice

A developer on a team with offshore resources in Hyderabad was tasked with salvaging the situation before the resources were dropped due to poor output and utilization. After careful evaluation, the developer identified the core of the problem as a combination of poor communication, excessive "blockers", and racial bias. The developer took steps to address the time zone difference, identified an individual with exceptional intelligence, and made him the technical lead. This resulted in improved code quality, increased confidence, and better job satisfaction. The developer learned lessons about recognizing racial bias, evaluating dysfunctional team dynamics, and making changes to solve problems.

The Ambiguous Role of a CTO

The role of a CTO is often difficult to understand, as it can involve managing people, technology, or customers. It is important to understand the distinct approach to the role that is context-dependent and varies from company to company. It is possible to be good at all three, but it is impossible to be great. It is important to find an alignment between what you like and what you are good at, and to hire people to fill in the other positions or allocate those responsibilities to other managers. Introspection and understanding what kind of CTO you are/should be is key, and multitasking is never a good idea.