Managing Humans: Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager

by Michael Lopp

Well, what I really want is your high-level assessment of the week. Three things that are working, three things that aren’t, and what we’re going to do about it.

Are you reacting or are you thinking?

Panic is the mother of the path of least resistance.

You won’t be a successful manager without well-developed react instincts.

Your first job when faced with ignorance is information acquisition,

understand absolutely everything you need to know about the current state of the disaster—you are developing a mental model.

first step is data collection, not problem solving and not judgment.

undirected action is not progress,

We’re going to empower the most qualified people to make their own decisions regarding their local problems because they have local knowledge and can make the best decisions using this knowledge.

What, precisely, are you trying to do?

Unfucking the situation is a bandage. Understanding what you’re truly trying to fix is a cure.

One of the easiest ways to screw up the landing of project managers on a team is not to be painfully aware of what you need out of the role.

If your nerd is hell-bent on building it instead of buying it, fine, ask him to prove it. Make the Problem the explanation of why building new is a more logical and strategic approach than pulling a working solution off the shelf.

appear to suffer no consequences for not following these rules.

they think “the system” is a bit of a joke.

The free electron is the single most productive engineer that you’re ever going to meet.

electrons, senior electrons and junior electrons . Both have similar productivity yields, but the senior versions have become politically and socially

aware.

“I hired you because you’ve got enough skill and enough will to have my job one day . . . whether you want it or not.”