Inspired by (and partially blatantly ripped off from) Developer First "Engineering Management 101", which itself was inspired by Chuck Groom's post.
This document will always be a work in progress.
Last updated: 7/6/2021
- It helps me identify and refine my values, strengths, and opportunities as your leader
- It will help you understand me better right off the bat, which will help us work better together in the future
| Improve Customer Product & Service Attachment Experience | Lead Happy and Productive People |
|---|---|
| Accountable for the functionality, quality, and performance of Attach components | Attract and retain a culture of learning, innovation, trust, and collaboration |
| Represent the engineering team and platform in organizational discussions and decisions | Serve team members by removing blockers that prevent them from making progress towards professional and personal goals |
| Manage cross team priorities and ensure we have the right skills on each | Provide context to connect the dots and maximize team member impact |
| Share credit and provide recognition for successes and wins, be accountable when components fall short of expectations | Allow the team to drive decisions, thus gaining buy-in at the individual level |
Important: If you feel I am not meeting any of these responsibilities, please let me know as soon as possible.
There are very few things that are more important to me than talking to you.
Heard a rumor? Need context or clarification on something urgent? Please reach out as soon as possible - do not wait for our next scheduled 1:1. I aim to be approachable. Your comfort, happiness, and growth at work are literally in my job description.
For ad hoc (non-urgent) questions - ping me on Slack to reduce the amount of context switching.
Otherwise, in person/video chat is my preferred method of communication for longer conversations. There are far too many nonverbal factors at play that can be missed without visually seeing each other.
If you will miss one of our normal team meetings or 1:1s, please alert me/the team.
As mentioned above, the time I spend with you is the most important aspect of my role. Due to the large number of individuals I meet with on a recurring basis, I have adjusted my 1:1s to 1x per 2 weeks. I would love to meet with you more frequently if you are interested. If so, please let me know.
I believe that 1:1 agenda topics should be driven by the team member.
If you do not have any specific topics, I would suggest we talk about:
- What work you are enjoying / excited about
- What work you find most challenging
- How your work aligns to the overall team/org strategy
- What can I help you with?
We will also use this time to discuss performance. If I am worried about your performance, I will let you know. Additionally, I admire when high performing individuals seek additional feedback on their performance - please challenge me/you to think of 'stretch goals' for you to continue growing!
I'm not interested in our 1:1 meetings becoming status updates. I'll get project status from stand-up meetings.
I am a firm believer that every individual drives his/her own career. You set your goals. You set your priorities. Let me know how I can help you achieve them.
It is very important to me to be self aware of my strengths and weaknesses. Here are a couple that I am aware of:
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Logic and reasoning -- explain your problems to me, and I can usually get on the same page and help you sort it out if needed.
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Finding the fun -- we're not saving lives here. Let's keep that in mind.
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Communication -- I'd like to think my verbal and written communication skills are fairly solid. If I can be more clear, please let me know.
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Delegation. I've been working on this for a while, and have been improving, but still have trouble not making decisions. I believe decisions should be made from the lowest possible level in order to drive individual ownership and engagement. My job is to ask questions and support you, not to tell you how to do your job. If I step on your toes, please let me know.
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Patience. If you've worked with me, you've probably seen me get more stressed than I need to when things go poorly. Be aware that this is a me thing, not a you thing, and that I'm working on it. If you have suggestions that might help, I'm always listening!