great management of technical leads

Great Management of Technical Leads

Mike Acton@mike_acton

[email protected]

• What do to when things are going RIGHT• What do to when things are going WRONG

TODAY

What do to when things are going RIGHT• Beginner Level: NOTHING• Intermediate Level: NOTHING• Advanced Level: Discuss another day… No rush.

TODAY

What do to when things are going WRONG• 2015: High-level RESPONSIBILITIES of a lead.• 2016: CONCRETE day-to-day issues that could go wrong.

TODAY

Agenda• Introduce your team• Evaluate situations (8)

TODAY

What makes it about Technical Leads? • Tech = Provide systems and services for others• Code is not the job; The job is to solve problems.

TODAY

• Introductions…

Your Team

Hillary• Senior • Top performer• Long personal history• Friends

Your Team

Bernie• Senior• New to team• Struggling with cultural

issues

Your Team

Donald• Junior• Thinks he has all the answers

Your Team

Ted• Mid-level• Long history with team• Struggling to become

Senior

Your Team

Marco• Senior• Solid performer• Struggles with finding his place

and self-worth issues

Your Team

• Initial challenges…

Your Team

Hillary• Long personal history• Friends• Accused of favoritism?• Obviously, don’t. But…• It is about trust.

Your Team

Bernie• New to team• Help figure out how to fit

in.• Should know you have

faith in him.

Your Team

Donald• Junior• Thinks he has all the answers• First goal is training…• NOT “trial by fire”• Unlearning bad habits

Your Team

Ted• Long history with team• Struggling to become

Senior• Make expectations clear• Already doing Sr work?• But not all questions have

good answers…• E.g. “What problems

should I anticipate?”

Your Team

Marco• Solid performer• Struggles with finding his place

and self-worth issues• Quick to accept blame.• Remember: Praise flows down;

Blame flows up.• Gets in his own way.• Coaching can be less tech and

more therapy.

Your Team

You• Your personality, tendencies and

biases matter too.• E.g. ME?• Not very “warm”• Don’t need or want much

“encouragement”• “Thank you” too much makes me

cringe• Not very social• Not super sympathetic

Your Team

Situation #1

Situation #1

Ted (Mid-level, Struggling to become Senior) • BEHAVIOR• Resisting code maintenance• Only minimum support• Small fixes, not substantial

Situation #1What’s the SITUATION?• Always working on the next version• Living in the perpetual future (architecturenaut)

Situation #1

“This will solve all our problems!”

Situation #1What’s the IMPACT?• Production• Frustrated• Trying to use tech• Dealing with real production issues• Feel Ted is disconnected from IMPORTANCE and URGENCY

Situation #1Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Exhausted! Justify every item.• “Just do it, already!”

Situation #1Where’s the LIE?• FUTURE PROOF!• “We need to handle all the things production could want to do…”

Situation #1What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Ted: Help understand Cost/Value (ROI) for studio• Ted: Help give historical perspective• Production: Help give long-term perspective• Lead: Be voice of reason.• Q: Build it or not?• Q: Situation changed?

Situation #1What DATA can you collect?• Ted: Transparent view of real issues. Do not hide!• Ted: Review of accomplishments in terms of value• Ted: Participate in UX testing. #TheStruggleIsReal

Situation #1How do PERSONALITIES impact situation?

• Struggling to become Senior• Hard time taking criticism• Focus on Ted’s BUY-IN

Situation #1What’s success look like, IDEALLY?

• “Oh Yes! I get it! …I’ll take an Iterative approach toward our long-term goal and provide value along the way!”

Situation #1What’s a more LIKELY REACTION?

• “We’re not investing enough in the future!”• “We’re too short-sighted!”

Situation #1What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Series of half-finished features• Unpredictable systems• Slow iteration times• Low quality issues

Failures of leadership.

Situation #1Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Ted: See impact of work; UX testing• Ted: Formulate practical schedule. • Reaction against scheduling?• Show can be flexible• Is 2yr plan really 8yr plan?

Situation #1How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead: Step back from problem. Day-to-day can get in way.• Lead: Focus on value. Draw clear cost/value lines.• Ted: Work with production continuously. Get sign-off.

As a LEAD you need to…Decide what’s worth gambling on.• RESPONSIBILITY… Appropriate risk• CHALLENGE… Opportunity cost• WRONG… Perpetual promises• RIGHT… Know when to stop

Situation #2

Situation #2

Bernie (Senior, new to team, culture) • BEHAVIOR• Avoiding commitments• Blame others for stress and perceived failures

Situation #2What’s the SITUATION?• Can’t plan everything, so can’t plan anything.• Previous experience with unrealistic expectations?• Not wanting to be responsible?

Situation #2

“I don’t believe in schedules!”

Situation #2What’s the IMPACT?• Production: Can’t rely on Bernie’s plans• Contributions not reflecting seniority

Situation #2Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• “Do your job!”• “Take responsibility!”• “Need to be accountable!”• “Childish!”

Situation #2Where’s the LIE?• Process is substitute for leadership• Our process is not cargo culted

Situation #2What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Bernie: Feels has control over things that affect self.• Lead: Build trust.• Lead: Assume Bernie can Adult• Lead: Set problem and constraints. Set clear expectations.

Situation #2What DATA can you collect?• Examples from life. Lots of things on others’ schedules.• Creative on other people’s schedule? See: Kids• Bernie: Perspective budget exercises: How much would you pay?• Bernie: Share concrete knock-on effects, while fresh.


• Struggling with cultural issues• Avoiding responsibility because doesn’t want

to look bad or get it wrong?• Nervous about complexity?• Doesn’t know yet how to fight for direction?


• “OK, let’s fix this! I understand schedules are really about trust and confidence and are never written in stone. We’ll make the best decisions we can now with the best information have. If that changes, we’ll change together!”


• “Meh. Why bother? They won’t listen to me anyway!”• “You don’t get it! You can’t predict creative

work that you haven’t done before!”

Situation #2What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• No one believes in schedules…?• De-values good leadership. Who knows where the ship is going?!• Too short-sighted. No real progress, can’t compete.

• Nothing getting done…?• React with onerous processes.• Process is a poor substitute for good leadership.


Situation #2Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Bernie: What can you plan?• Bernie: What can you predict (statistically)?

Situation #2How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead + Bernie: Takes time to build trust.• Lead: Focus on the problem.• Lead: Don’t over-commit.• Bernie: Start with some early, easy wins.• Bernie: (Search) How long until you’re very confident? 1wk? 1yr?• Bernie: (Search) What do you need to get there?• Lead: Focus clearly on value of project (not time to implement)

As a LEAD you need to…Balance important vs. easy wins• RESPONSIBILITY… • Production: Feels needs are being addressed (now)• PR: Help yourself. (Sell the value)• Bernie: Feel part of the team (Integrate)

• CHALLENGE…• “We need to focus on the most important/risky things first!”

• WRONG…• Only urgent issues address. No forward movement.

• RIGHT…• No one notices anything.

Situation #3

Situation #3Donald (Junior, Thinks he has all the answers)

• BEHAVIOR• Latest articles about other studios’ practices• Other architectures “would be way better”• Vaguely referencing all the problems

Situation #3What’s the SITUATION?• Points to best examples of each thing from everywhere else• Wants everything now• Wants everyone to change priorities to match his• How is it presented? (Curiosity vs. Complaining)

Situation #3

“We’re doing it all wrong! I can’t believe you aren’t willing to change this now! Rust is good enough for Dropbox, why aren’t we using it?!”

Situation #3What’s the IMPACT?• Mild annoyance?• Toxic? (Everything is always terrible!)

Situation #3Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Underappreciated. “Nothing is ever good enough!”• Self-righteous. “Entitled Millennial!”

Situation #3Where’s the LIE?• He just can’t understand real cost issues.• He’s just inexperienced and doesn’t know WTF he’s talking about.

Situation #3What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Lead: Assume Donald can do basic Adulting• Donald: Freedom to explore ideas, where sufficiently motivated• Donald: Help coach, Make sure has tools to communicate.• Donald: Encourage curiosity (Important!)

Situation #3What DATA can you collect?• Real-life data on value of proposal(s)• Communicate cases where change happened from pitch


• Junior • Still new. Do you know how to read him yet?• Still junior. Has learnt ability to communicate

clearly intent?• Stubborn, already decided…• Help him OWN the problem


• “I’ll make the best use of what I have and if I need something I’ll let you know!”• “I’ll work up a pitch with the best evidence I

can gather cheaply for my idea!”


• “Meh. Why bother? You won’t listen to me anyway!”• “It’s so obvious. It’s a waste of time to put

together a pitch.”• “You say you value curiosity, but when I make

a suggestion you shut me down!”

Situation #3What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Poisons the well. Make everyone else miserable.• Leaves for “better” deal. • Similar challenges with pay.


Situation #3Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Donald: Pitch: demonstrate value, cheaply.• Lead: Opportunity to champion idea to team?• Own the problem• Integrate with team.• (But don’t hang him out to dry.)

• Lead: “What happens if it happens? What’s the next step?”• (But without any sarcasm.)

Situation #3How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead: Set pattern for pitching / proof• Donald: Learn how to do something with idea (and can)

As a LEAD you need to…Articulate principles and experience• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Be predictable• Have a route to accept radical changes• Tip: Even just for yourself.

• CHALLENGE…• Familiarity breeds contempt

• WRONG…• “Everyone already knows what’s important!”• “Waste of time!”

• RIGHT…• Team can out create you• Team can anticipate your responses and plan

Situation #4

Situation #4

Bernie and Hillary• BEHAVIOR• Confronts you because Hillary rewrote his code…• Again.

• BEHAVIOR• Rewrote Bernie’s code• Not the first time.• It’s usually way better.

Situation #4What’s the SITUATION?• Bernie • Angry• Frustrated• Defensive• Feels bad• Questions personal worth

• Hillary• Doesn’t even notice

Situation #4

• “Stay out of my code!”

• “I wouldn’t have to get in your code if you didn’t write such shitty code!”

Situation #4What’s the IMPACT?• Bernie: Starts caring less and less…• Hillary: Rewrites even more code.• Vicious cycle!

Situation #4Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Dismissive. (Not realizing emotional impact)• Frustrated. (“Can’t we all just get along?”)• Parental or condescending. (“Ok kids… let’s play nice now.”)

Situation #4Where’s the LIE?• “We’re a meritocracy here!”• The right answer at any cost?• Long-term, a lot less right answers.• Unattractive (red flag) to a lot of potential hires.

Situation #4What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Bernie: Feels worth is valued• Bernie: Others’ decisions not negatively impacting work.• Hillary: Decisions not negatively impacting others’ work.• Hillary + Bernie: Better together as team• Hillary: Has say in decisions that affect her.• Hillary: Not abusing “power” as more experienced dev• Hillary: Help ensure has good, practical methods to communicate

Situation #4What DATA can you collect?• How often does this happen?• What was actually wrong? Was it discussed before?• Reflect on culture: Do we have an attachment to code?


• Always ready for a fight.• Danger of hostile response.

• Generally quiet. Not confrontational (directly)• Danger of unknown, passive-aggressive response.


• “I respect your opinion. Let’s worth together!”

• “You’re right, I’m sorry! That would be great!”


• “Her version isn’t any better!”• “Are you saying this is my fault? I’m just wasting

my time here!”• Won’t review code with Hillary.

• “If Bernie didn’t write such shitty code,…”• “Fine! Whiner!” /Ignore• Won’t sign of on any of Bernie’s code.

Situation #4What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Everything gets worse.• Solutions worse, less contributions from Hillary.• Reinforcing poor practices with rest of the team.• Bernie not learning from potential mentor.


Situation #4Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Bernie: Who would be interested in this?• Hillary: What changes would be important for you to be part of?• Hillary: What changes don’t matter as much?• Lead: Create process for code reviews and rewrites?• Lead: Set example. Have Hillary review (and rewrite?) your work.

Situation #4How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead: Set high standards for solutions• Hillary: Aware of impact beyond technical• Bernie: Separate self from code. • Critical feedback is not indictment of person.

As a LEAD you need to…Manage emotions when deprecating systems• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Make sure people feel valued. Not here because specific code or skill.

• CHALLENGE…• Passion and attachment go hand-in-hand.

• WRONG…• Damaged self worth. Feel like not contributing.

• RIGHT…• Focus on solving problems• Different problem = different solution; Situation changed.• Own the post-life (e.g. open source)• Understand business decision (what’s the impact of keeping or removing)

Situation #5

Situation #5Marco (Senior. Solid performer. Self-worth issues.)

• BEHAVIOR• Listless• Less enthusiasm for current work

Situation #5What’s the SITUATION?• He’s having a hard time seeing value he brings• Motivation comes in waves• Spends a lot of time assisting others• Touch of Impostor Syndrome?

Situation #5

“I don’t feel like I’m accomplishing a damn thing.”

Situation #5What’s the IMPACT?• Sets tone for team• Self-reinforcing. Hard to dig out of.• Becomes less ambitious.• Trusts self less.

Situation #5Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Dismissive. “You’re fine!”• Angry. “Not everything is going to be fun!”• Looking for quick fix. E.g. Take over or micro-manage.• Too positively biased? Maybe Marco is right?

Situation #5Where’s the LIE?• “He knows he’s good. I’m sure he’ll figure it out and snap out of it.”

Situation #5What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Marco: Help motivate to come into work each day.• Marco: Recognition and praise in a way that can be understood.• Marco: Understanding the source of the struggle• Marco: Not feel alone. Not the first person to struggle with this.

Situation #5What DATA can you collect?• Non-obvious contributions.• Things that could have happened, but didn’t.

• Walk through impact of recent work. Step-by-step.• Collect feedback and appreciation from others.


• Solid performer. Self-worth issues.• Sets incredibly high bar for himself (good)• Crushing when he can’t reach it (bad)• Wants best of himself, all the time.


• “You’re right. I can always do better. But I know I’ve brought a lot of value.”• “I’ll make sure to track and reflect on my

accomplishments when I feel this way in the future.”


• “Yes, but…” (understand but not internalize)• “I know it’s not rational, but…”• “I can’t help the way I feel.”

Situation #5What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Demotivated.• Unhappy.• Turn-over. Repeat somewhere else.


Situation #5Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Help find sources of recharge. E.g. other devs• Focus on cost/value exercises. (Not comparing to ideal.)• Focus on value over time. (Not instantaneous value sample.)

Situation #5How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead: Present non-individual contributions are real issues to solve.• E.g. Complex culture issues• Plan and review, as with the technical.

• Marco: Find methods of measuring results. • Play the map for a while.• Find some objectivity. (Or fake objectivity)

As a LEAD you need to…Manage ours and others’ waves of productivity• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Motivate and inspire• Set realistic expectations• Anticipate issues• Help understand and internalize expectations

• CHALLENGE…• Cultural and personal history differences

• WRONG…• “You should be able to keep your personal issues from affecting your work!”

• RIGHT…• Plan for it. E.g. Checklists• Accept the feelings, modify the behavior.

Situation #6

Situation #6

Hillary (Senior. Top performer.) • BEHAVIOR• Fire and forget systems and features• Gathers requirements at the beginning…

Situation #6What’s the SITUATION?• Features meet expectations on paper. But…• Not getting the results in reality.

Situation #6

• “They just don’t know how to use it!”• “Why don’t they just RTFM?”• “That part’s not my job.”• “The tests are green, so it’s done.”

Situation #6What’s the IMPACT?• Production not able to accomplish what they need• Working at cross-purposes (waste)• Reinforcing divide among teams• Real problems remain unsolved

Situation #6Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Defensive. • Excuse/spin. “I know it wasn’t the plan, but how can we adjust to use

this?”• Blame planning. “Those requirements really should have been

clearer!”

Situation #6Where’s the LIE?• “We just need to plan better in advance.”• It’s the tech that matters.

Situation #6What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Define (ever evolving) problem and constraints• Ensure work is valued (and actually valuable)• Understand the real problem• Solutions can fit in cultural landscape

Situation #6What DATA can you collect?• Regular UX testing• One-sided conversations (production)• Shared targets


• Quiet. Uncomfortable evangelizing.• Selling tech is (large!) part of the work.• But how to evangelize is more open…• One-on-ones with people that will use• More time providing examples• Work together on first use case.


• “I get it. I was totally caught up in the tech itself and those interesting problems, and didn’t realize I didn’t understand what the real problem we all are trying to solve was.”


• “Idiots”• “They just don’t know how to use it!”• “I built exactly what they asked for.”• “I can’t be expected to include them in every

decision!”• Build it and they will come.

Situation #6What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Production will find another workaround..• …that you’ll like even less. #LifeWillFindAWay


Situation #6Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Dogfood work• Find ways to evangelize

Situation #6How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Don’t schedule tech, schedule solutions• 50/80 checkpoints

As a LEAD you need to…Manage “Us vs. Them” issues• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Move in the same direction• Minimize wasted effort• Minimize unnecessary stressors

• CHALLENGE…• Assumptions. “They know what’s important.”

• WRONG…• Bottleneck decisions• Not resolving issues• Duplicate effort• Not our problem

• RIGHT…• Co-development• Personal relationships• Don’t need to be involved in everything

Situation #7

Situation #7Donald (Junior, Thinks he has all the answers)

• BEHAVIOR• Underestimating everything• Not including significant parts of development in

planning

Situation #7What’s the SITUATION?• Not giving realistic status updates• Radio silence• Important issues being dropped until they become urgent.

Situation #7

“Hold on… almost done! Just one more thing!”

Situation #7What’s the IMPACT?• Chain reaction on production schedule• Breed mistrust; Can’t trust the plan.• Production fear if Donald on anything critical• Very hard to undo this perception!

Situation #7Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Frustrated, Angry. Too much time fighting unnecessary fires.• Frustrated with self. Saw pattern, but didn’t make seriousness and

expectations clear enough.

Situation #7Where’s the LIE?• “We need to protect our team from the realities of the schedule.”• “Failure is part of our creative process!”• “We already handle this really well!”

Situation #7What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Donald: Work does not impact others’ ability to work• Donald: Address underlying fear (of failure? Not doing good enough?)• Cultural advantage to behavior? Reinforcing the wrong things?• Donald: Help be honest with self. How to self-evaluate.

Situation #7What DATA can you collect?• Examples of individual production people impacted by issue.• Examples of recent problems averted by others on team• Understanding cost break-downs.


• Junior • May not have seen how out of control

schedules and or poor communication impacts stress and leads to crunch.• May not feel a sense of personal responsiblity


• “I’ll make absolutely sure there will be no surprises.”


• Defensive excuses.• “Lots of things came up I didn’t have control over!”• “I didn’t realize I was behind until the last minute!”

• Over-reacting• Schedules ridiculously long.• “Can’t do anything big if it doesn’t fit in a

quarter/sprint/etc.!”• “Meeting schedules is more important than the

quality of the work!”

Situation #7What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• Stress• Low quality work• Crunches


Situation #7Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Donald: Timebox issues; Cancel or stop when over.• Donald: Start with Plan D and acceptance test.• Make expectation for time clear, expect notice if will not happen.• Donald: Track time to review, QA, etc. Build statistical model.

Situation #7How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Lead: Reinforce change is okay and expected.• Donald: Plan to get ahead of each issue. • What would happen if fails?• How will you know when it’s not working?

• Donald: Include cost/value for all parts of problem…• Initial development• QA• Code reviews• Maintenance• Release

As a LEAD you need to…“Performance Manage”• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Set clear expectations• Hold accountable• Care about team as people

• CHALLENGE…• Knowing when there’s a real chance to recover, and when there’s not.• Throwing good money after bad.

• WRONG…• Blaming. Not about fault.• Hanging on too long. Know when to end.• “We’re like family around here.”

• RIGHT…• Best choices for everyone.• Get a second opinion.

Situation #8

Situation #8

Hillary (Senior. Top performer.) • BEHAVIOR• Short, snippy responses to issues• Passive-aggressive responses• Inconsiderate of feelings outside group

Situation #8What’s the SITUATION?• People asking Hillary for help…• …getting dismissed;• …getting unhelpful responses;• …getting ignored.

Situation #8

• “It’s so obvious!”• “Why don’t they just RTFM?”• “You don’t need to know that.”

Situation #8What’s the IMPACT?• Production not able to accomplish what they need• Hurt feelings. Effort to repair.• Less individuals willing to work directly with Hillary.• More time spent in-between.

• Risk of going too far into “hostile” territory

Situation #8Are you EMOTIONALLY reacting?• Throw her under the bus.• Dismissive. “Are you kidding me?”

Situation #8Where’s the LIE?• “She’s so good, it doesn’t matter.”

Situation #8What are your RESPONSIBILITIES?• Everyone is treated with respect, as a professional.• Talk about progress.• Encourage personal development

Situation #8What DATA can you collect?• Track examples.• Written history.• Look for patterns. Who? When?


• “We’ve worked together. They know how I am. I don’t need to change my personality!”• It’s not about changing your personality. It’s

about being conscious of your impact.


• “Damn! I see I’m responding poorly. I’ll go sit down with them in person and make sure they feel like they’ve been heard.”


• “They’re adults.”• “They’re professionals. Can’t they figure it

out?”

Situation #8What happens if it remains UNADDRESSED?• People stop asking for help.• Production more costly and slower. • More mistakes.


Situation #8Where’s the opportunity for PRACTICE?• Less likely if not objectifying people. • Ask Hillary to explain to you.

Situation #8How will each BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY in future?• Jump on issue immediately.• Offer suggestions• Private feedback• Hillary: Cool down, don’t respond to anything hot immediately.• Hillary: Never, ever deliver negative in email or cc anyone.

As a LEAD you need to…Know when to amplify or suppress personality traits, biases and tendencies.• RESPONSIBILITY…

• Help see how perceived• As lead, have less flexibility. (Perceived super powers)

• CHALLENGE…• Hard not to take personally• Hard to recover from previous relationship damage

• WRONG…• Politics, hurt feelings getting in the way• Even more cost to network effect

• RIGHT…• You’re still you; just more in control.

The map is not the territory• The examples were just examples.• YMMV• But understanding digging into important details doesn’t change.

TODAY

Some things that go wrong… your fault!• Production frustrated• Toxic environments• High turn-over• Team disconnected from their work• Unhappy team• Unambitious team• Onerous processes• Teams working at cross purposes• Unpredictable schedules• Team mistrust

TODAY

great management of technical leads

Leadership & Management