An Elegant Puzzle: Systems of Engineering Management

by Will Larson

Maintain a document with this information, which you keep updated and share with your manager. For some managers, this will be enough! Mission accomplished. Sprinkle this information into your one-on-ones, focusing on information gaps (you’re not seeing support around a growth area, you’re too busy, or not busy enough, and so on). Success is filling in information gaps, not reciting a mantra. At some regular point, maybe quarterly, write up a self-reflection that covers each of those aspects. (I’ve been experimenting with a “career narrative” format that is essentially a stack of quarterly self-reflections.) Share that with your manager, and maybe with your peers too! A