Knowledge shared by our community

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.

Knowing When the Right Time to Move On Is Upon You

This article reflects on the author's experience of staying in a job for three years too long for the wrong reasons. It discusses the fear of stepping out into the unknown, the relationships left behind, and the need to grow and move on. It also provides advice on how to identify when it is time to move on, such as when growth opportunities within the company are not in alignment with desired career trajectory, when one is no longer learning in the role, and when bad management needs to be addressed. It emphasizes the importance of doing one's homework when considering a new job and taking a leap of faith when necessary.

How to Lead a Tech Team Without a Formal Tech Degree

A non-technical degree holder shares his experience of working in the tech industry, emphasizing the importance of self-belief, passion, and motivation. He encourages people to keep learning, build up trust, and present ideas in order to succeed in the tech industry.

Common Pitfalls of New Engineering Managers

This article discusses the challenges faced by engineers and engineering managers when speaking up in the presence of senior management. It provides examples of how to overcome these challenges, such as by reminding oneself that even the smartest people make mistakes, and by considering saying “yes” before saying “no” to ideas. It also provides lessons learned from these experiences, such as to sustain one’s confidence and to consider the potential of the craziest ideas.

Delivering Impactful Product Changes

Product people often overcomplicate things, struggle to justify decisions, and focus on incremental improvements that don't drive revenue. Smart product people know how to make tradeoffs, involve customers for validation, and understand the competitive landscape. When considering “small,” incremental features, it is important to ask if they will make a difference and if they will eliminate a major pain point. Impactful features may not be created in a single product cycle and customers may not know what they want until it is shown to them. Taking risks to achieve goals requires courage and it is important to not overthink or over-complicate product roadmaps. Little details should not be dismissed as they can make a big difference.

When a New Manager Falters Under the Burden of Leadership

When transitioning an individual contributor to a manager role, it is important to remember that it is a career change and not a promotion. It is also important to keep a close eye on the development of the team and to intervene quickly if there are signs of trouble. If it is not a good fit, it is possible to transition them back to an individual contributor role without losing them.

Providing an Adequate System of Support for a New Manager

As a new manager, it can be overwhelming to take on the role and all the responsibilities that come with it. It is important to create templates and processes to help the new manager, and to establish a trusting relationship that allows for failure. Ultimately, the goal is to have a manager who is independent and trustworthy enough to take on more responsibility.

Joining a Pre-Existing Team as a Senior-Level Leader

When transitioning to a new company as an Engineering Manager, Director, or similar role, one must throw away the crutches of their past knowledge and start anew. This requires getting to know the new team, understanding the culture, and forming an initial impression. Additionally, one must understand the expectations of the new company and choose their first initiative to contribute.

Helping Juniors Level Up

When managing junior engineers, it is important to set clear expectations from the start and commit to their growth. This should be tailored to each individual's background and experience, with the goal of helping them become self-sufficient. Regular check-ins should be done to ensure they are on the right track, and expectations should be time-bound with consequences if they are not met. This investment of time and energy is necessary for the team's health and the junior's growth.

How to Develop an Engineering Working Agreement

At a previous job, the team was experiencing frustration due to lack of clarity and documentation of processes. To address this, the manager created an engineering working agreement to level set expectations and ensure everyone was on the same page. The agreement was created through a participative process, with the manager providing an outline and allowing the team to add their input. This resulted in increased engagement and ownership of the process, and the team met quarterly to review and iterate on the document. The manager learned the importance of encouraging people to take ownership and providing guidelines and context to help them make sound judgments.

Making Recruiting Everyone’s Job

In order to quickly build a team of 20 engineers in a year, Lever established a Toronto office from scratch and taught everyone how to source and promote the company. Sourcing training was introduced to the organization, and sourcing parties were held to bring in new people. As a result, six senior engineers were hired in three months, and the team of 16 engineers was built in less than nine months. Lessons learned included getting people to think beyond referrals, having people think about DE&I, understanding that experienced people don't apply, and collaborating with recruiters.

Scaling Onboarding Iteratively

This article discusses the onboarding process for a small engineering team, and the actions taken to improve it. These included leveraging the existing buddy system, recording onboarding sessions, introducing new content, and updating templates. It was found that most people didn't miss the live sessions, and that mentorship and pair/group programming was essential. The article also suggests inviting current engineers to revisit content if it could benefit them. Iterative improvements were easy to do and led to further improvements.

How To Make One-on-Ones More Exciting

This article discusses the importance of structuring and standardizing one-on-ones to make them more beneficial to different people on a team with different personality types. It outlines three parts of the conversation: planning for personal growth, preparing for performance reviews, and tracking quarterly goals. It also provides lessons learned such as delivering regular feedback, developing a personalized career ladder, and calling out people on their goals.

Blameless Incident Management

This article outlines the steps taken by the author to create a culture of incident management that encourages acknowledging mistakes without focusing on a person but on the conditions that caused an incident. The author introduced a structured on-call process, a weekly on-call hand-off process, and an incident review for the whole company. The author also emphasizes the importance of prevention, streamlining the focus on mitigation and actions, and running simulation sessions to prepare the team to handle stressful situations.

Building a Culture of Ownership and User Empathy

After taking over a marketplace engineering team of 45 people in Singapore, the author noticed a lack of ownership and user empathy, as well as an acrimonious tension between the engineering team and the data analytics and business operations team. To address this, the author conducted an immersion followed by a hackathon, pairing members of all non-tech cross-functional teams with members of the engineering team. Through this, the team developed empathy towards users and each other, and became more vocal and passionate about their ideas. The author also learned the importance of developing ownership around key marketplace challenges, having a clearly defined team charter, and empowering people on the team to make decisions.

Transitioning From a Fortune 20 Company to a Start-Up Just Finding Its Place

After fourteen years at a large company, the author decided to take a leap of faith and join a start-up. They found the transition to be refreshing, but it was a drastic change. The author encourages others to explore different opportunities and to follow their passions, as well as to build their network and to never regret any experiences.

Workshopping a Team and Clearing the Way for Success

This story is about a leader who was called to lead a remote team that was struggling with engagement and satisfaction. The leader used metrics to design a plan to improve engagement, connecting the team to the organization's goals and matching challenging projects with the team's skills. The leader also worked to build trust, bridge any existing friction, and create new opportunities. After a few months, the team reported more favorable conditions and many of the reports were promoted. The leader's lessons learned were to level the team up, make the project and personal interests compatible, and to always put people first.

Building Software in a Hardware Company

Working at a hardware company presents unique challenges, such as longer lead times and limited testing devices. To address these issues, it is important to bring hardware and software engineers together early to brainstorm and document risks and solutions, create a virtual testing platform, create resource calendars to book hardware devices, and document a common understanding of shared APIs. Communication and collaboration between hardware and software engineers is key to success.

Improving Diversity Initiatives

Companies should create an environment that supports and recognizes contributions with greater equity, diversify their hiring process, and support the community and promote a genuine commitment to mentorship in order to promote diversity in the workplace. These steps are necessary for a fair and welcoming workplace and should not be treated as a PR move or a box to check, but as a fundamental change to company culture and practices.

How NOT to Introduce a New Revenue Model

In the early days of his career, the author was tasked with creating a new revenue stream through existing products. He proposed a pay-as-you-use model, but failed to consider the impact it would have on customers and internal teams. He learned that introducing a new form of payment should be done iteratively and without binding contracts. He should have proposed a solution that was not binding for customers, and listened more closely to their needs.

Breaking Out of a Feature Factory

A startup team was struggling to acquire multiple customers due to a lack of strategic direction. To overcome this, they identified tangible hypotheses based on market and customer research to help them build features that would serve many customers. To get people on board, they had to create a compelling product story and convince internal stakeholders. They also had to manage emotions and point to solid facts and research to help customers overcome emotional attachment.