Reflecting upon my experiences with process management and process improvement initiatives, I’ve recently come to notice a glaring problem that I and many others have been guilty of perpetuating – we often have a lack of regard for what we consider a tool and what is considered a deliverable. These are two different things but…
Category: Engineering Management
Why Human Connection Matters in Management
To many, this might not be news. But in light of the current coronavirus pandemic, one thing has become even clearer than it was – we need human connection to work effectively. We take this for granted when we’re all working on site – connecting with each other just happens organically as we go about…
Can Data Replace Intuition?
I’ve recently been listening to an audiobook called “Blitzscaling” by LinkedIn founder and Paypal executive Reid Hoffman. (Stay tuned for my review of this book later on.) One of the chapters of the book covers “key transitions” you need to make as a company as you start to scale. One of the key transitions discussed…
Five Lessons I’ve Learned About Managing Remote Teams
In light of the recent coronavirus outbreaks, more and more companies are seriously considering setting up work-from-home arrangements for their employees. Even further, many are considering going fully remote, at least for the time being. I’ve had the privilege of managing both on-site and remote teams at Synacy. We’re quite fortunate to already have the…
Can We Measure Software Developer Productivity?
Short answer: I don’t know. Before you move on though, I’d like to say that “I don’t know” here means that I know from personal experience that trying to measure a software developer’s productivity rarely (or never) ends well. However, I also acknowledge that, historically, there have been valiant efforts that worked to some extent,…
The Endless Tension Between “Possible” and “Necessary”
Making schedules is boring. Making roadmaps, just a little bit more exciting (extra points for being actually a part of “making something”, as opposed to just predicting how “making something” happens). In management, however, there’s a huge sense of fulfillment when you’re able to elevate these into an artform. I came across this great article…