https://blog.turboawesome.win/tags/management/ Recent content in Management on Bits, Trades & Systems Hugo en-us Wed, 16 Aug 2023 11:20:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2023/08/navigating-org-change-as-an-engineer/ Wed, 16 Aug 2023 11:20:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2023/08/navigating-org-change-as-an-engineer/ Reorganisations, leadership changes, and strategy shifts are facts of life in growing companies. The engineers who navigate them well share some common practices — and some common misconceptions about what's actually changing. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/10/postmortems-as-a-learning-tool-structure-culture-and-follow-through/ Wed, 05 Oct 2022 11:27:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/10/postmortems-as-a-learning-tool-structure-culture-and-follow-through/ A postmortem that concludes with 'be more careful' has failed. The structure and culture of blameless postmortems, and why follow-through is where most teams fall short. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/07/on-call-culture-that-doesnt-burn-out-your-team/ Wed, 06 Jul 2022 09:55:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/07/on-call-culture-that-doesnt-burn-out-your-team/ On-call is a forcing function for reliability — when engineers are paged for their own systems, the feedback loop on quality is immediate. Done badly, it burns out your team. The practices that keep it sustainable. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/02/engineering-roadmaps-planning-for-uncertainty/ Wed, 16 Feb 2022 09:30:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2022/02/engineering-roadmaps-planning-for-uncertainty/ Engineering roadmaps are commitments made under uncertainty. The planning practices that keep them honest — time horizon discipline, explicit uncertainty, and the difference between a roadmap and a plan. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/10/technical-debt-is-a-balance-sheet-item-not-a-moral-failing/ Wed, 06 Oct 2021 10:18:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/10/technical-debt-is-a-balance-sheet-item-not-a-moral-failing/ The language around technical debt is usually moral: 'bad code', 'dirty shortcuts', 'cutting corners'. The financial metaphor it's named after is actually more useful. Debt is a tool. Manage it like one. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/07/hiring-senior-engineers-what-the-interview-loop-cant-tell-you/ Wed, 07 Jul 2021 14:02:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/07/hiring-senior-engineers-what-the-interview-loop-cant-tell-you/ After running hiring loops for senior engineers at the European fintech firm, the pattern was clear: the things that determined whether a hire was successful were almost never well-measured by our interview process. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/03/after-the-startup-joining-a-larger-organisation-without-losing-your-mind/ Wed, 17 Mar 2021 09:11:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2021/03/after-the-startup-joining-a-larger-organisation-without-losing-your-mind/ Two years into a fast-moving startup, I joined a larger, more structured European financial technology firm. The culture delta was significant in both directions. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2020/05/from-ic-to-lead-the-first-90-days-managing-a-technical-team/ Wed, 13 May 2020 13:44:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2020/05/from-ic-to-lead-the-first-90-days-managing-a-technical-team/ The transition from individual contributor to technical lead is the career move that most engineers underestimate. The skills that made you good at the IC role don't automatically transfer — here's what the first 90 days actually taught me. https://blog.turboawesome.win/2019/01/why-i-left-on-risk-pace-and-ownership/ Wed, 09 Jan 2019 09:04:00 +0000 https://blog.turboawesome.win/2019/01/why-i-left-on-risk-pace-and-ownership/ After three years at a large financial institution, why I took a significant pay cut to join a tiny startup. The reasoning, the fears, and whether it was the right call.