I'm Si Jobling. This is my readme. It tries to summarise my role as an Engineering Manager and what it might mean to you.
This README is intended to explain who I am, what I do and what you can expect from me as a team lead in tech.
It includes a brief overview of my profile, responsibilities, my principles and values, 121’s and anything else I deem necessary to share. (Warning: I do tend to suffer from TMI at times).
The expected audience are people I've recently met but not exclusively - it can be referred to by direct reports, peers and seniors to hold me accountable.
In the true nature of transparency and sharing, I’ve open-sourced this in Github with some geeky Markdown. This way all the change history is available along with the ability for shared modifications. Plus I get to stretch my tech skills beyond Yet-Another-Office-Doc. You might also notice I like lists.
- I’m Si Jobling (aka Si wherever possible) and I work in the Orders, Delivery & Returns + Stock & Fulfillment (FORDS) platform at ASOS.
- My official title is Engineering Manager, which roughly equates to
(isLineManager && isAgileCoach && isCommunityEnthusiast) && !isDeliveryManager - I started ASOS as a UI Engineer back in 2013 when there were just a handful of us. I tend to understand mostly what’s going on with all the tech applications but my coding skills are dwindling (see above example).
- I've been "around" having worked previously on Content Platform, Checkout, Optimisation Testing (aka MVT), Web & Apps and Saved Items so I know quite a few people. Feel free to ask me for pointers.
- I spent about 1 year at WorldFirst (part of Alibaba's Ant Group) as Delivery Lead. This role allowed me to explore alternative ways of working across different cultures and discover how project management can be done in other ways. It wasn't for me but I learned so much in the process.
- I’m normally called a “Northerner” or “Brummie” as I travel from above the M25 and originate from the Birmingham office. I am neither (yet now based back in the Birmingham office)
- I’m an early bird and tend to start work around 8.15am. I try to drop my daughter at our local primary and tend to get hungry before 1pm so take an hour break. Late afternoon meetings are not ideal as I like to wrap up about 5pm.
- I’m a little bit OCD (it’s hereditary). I’m quick to highlight typos and grammar - don’t hate me, just embrace it. I also like to have accurate data - make sure our project trackers and calendars are up-to-date!
- Similarly, I hate unread counters. I try to find zen with Inbox Zero and always read team channel messages. If I’ve missed your comms, you have the right to poke me with a reminder.
- I like to use emoji where appropriate (maybe too much). Don't be surprised by calendar invites and official docs with them sporadically thrown in for good measure - it's my way of trying to add some visual fun to quite dry topics.
- I’m often seen as the “good cop”. I tend to focus on people’s strengths or try to understand their areas of improvement. Please don’t abuse this.
- I have a history of being the social committee, often organising group and community events to create opportunities for speaking and sharing. I will probably encourage you to take part.
As an Engineering Manager, I have a specific role to play at ASOS which I believe combines the following:
- 👤 Engineer level - Coaching direct reports to continuously improve in their skills and wellbeing
- 👥 Team level - Encourage strong partnerships and collaboration between engineers to storm as a team
- 👨👩👧👦 Organisation level - Bring teams and individuals together to share challenges and knowledge in a safe constructive model
Despite the silos we all work in, I always encourage people to work across teams and platforms. I’m not a hero-worshipper (even though I will recognise and appreciate the occasional moment of individual effort).
Don’t rely on emails, instant messaging or any other digital form of communication to get an answer; get off your chair and find people to speak to them directly. It always yields a more useful and quicker response which can be followed up by some form of confirmation.
COVID Update: 🦠 Obviously this is impossible during lockdown/remote working but I still encourage video call (camera enabled + screenshare) to have a more productive personable discussion rather than depend on synschronous digtal comms.
Endeavour to deliver sooner rather than gold-plate your solution. The faster you get something live, the quicker you can iterate. That doesn’t mean to ship bugs though; follow the rule books to make sure you have covered all the known scenarios and work with others to ensure you're confident (see above).
As much as I love a process, I’m always open to suggestions for improvement. Same goes for documentation. I rarely print anything out (why waste a tree?) so it’s completely plausible to make changes. In fact, if there are any living documents, make sure they’re reviewed on a regular basis to ensure accuracy. Hitting the delete button is OK.
Whilst we all love a bit of positive affirmation, it’s also human nature to focus on the negatives. If doing this, try to be constructive and offer a suggestion or open the discussion to coach out some options with clear actions.
This is your chance to talk to me about anything you want to highlight. Please don’t be shy - apparently I’m a good listener (I’m a Cancerian if you’re into that astrology stuff). Everything you tell me is confidential unless we agree otherwise so it’s a safe environment for us to talk.
I like to focus on your personal development and wellbeing. We will often refer to your objectives. Make sure you’re familiar with yours and regularly reflecting.
Occasionally, we’ll “talk shop” such as projects, teams and deliveries. This will only be short though and an opportunity for me to encourage you to push yourself.
Be prepared for our chats. Make a note of things you want to bring to the table. However, if it’s urgent, don’t wait; just ask me for a quick chat (a quick message is an easy prompt) and I’ll find 15 minutes for us.
I can arrange these for us in our calendars – typically 25 minutes every 2 weeks, weekly if you're new or require more frequent checkpoints – but don't feel tied to the times booked. Propose better times to fit around your needs (message me if struggling as I will fill gaps with "focus time" I can move around).
As mentioned previously, I’m a fan of constructive feedback. If I’m doing something you’re not happy with or think I could improve on, please tell me. Face to face might be difficult for some situations so send me a message but I’d obviously prefer a chat if possible. If you're uncomfortable telling me directly, you can always touch base with my line manager or peers who can relay confidentially.
With this open transparent readme, feel free to raise a pull-request or add a comment to understand it further. Even challenge it - if it’s not clear or contentious, I’d like to address it.