Tactics for Tech Leadership (TTL) – Details, episodes & analysis

Andy and Mon-Chaio explore the concept of growth and improvement, focusing on technical leadership. They learn about deliberate practice and discuss its role in enhancing skills for leaders. Scrabble players help them identify practices that lead to skill improvements and contrasting methods that don't, such as casual reading or working. The discussion wanders to how these findings relate to NBA coaching and engineering leadership. By the end, listeners will understand why deliberate practice, reflection, and handling high-stakes situations are essential for leaders aiming to improve their skills.

Transcript: https://thettlpodcast.com/2024/10/13/sxey-2/

References

• The impact of multiple measures of leader experience on leader effectiveness: New insights for leader selection - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0148296301003125
• Developing Strategic Leadership Competencies - https://joams.com/uploadfile/2014/1008/20141008051224975.pdf
• What Makes an Exemplary Engineering Leader? In the Words of Engineers - https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/PCEEA/article/download/15941/10441
• Given that the detailed original criteria for deliberate practice have not changed, could the understanding of this complex concept have improved over time? A response to Macnamara and Hambrick (2020) - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00426-020-01368-3
• Gender differences in SCRABBLE performance and associated engagement in purposeful practice activities - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00426-017-0905-3

What is technical strategy? Is it a document explaining how to extend your data platform? A set of wiki articles on how you're tackling technical debt? A forward-looking treatise on how you will integrate generative AI into your tech stack?

In this episode, Mon-Chaio and Andy dive into the intricacies of creating a tech strategy for engineering leaders. They explore why having a guiding doctrine is crucial for decision-making processes in tech organizations. By discussing concepts like Wardley Mapping and the distinctions between strategy and operational effectiveness, they offer insight into establishing a unique value proposition, integrating choices across value chains, and maintaining a long-term strategy even amidst distractions.

Tune in to learn how to formulate a technical strategy that aligns with your business goals and propels your organization toward sustained success.

References

• The Role of the Chief Technology Officer in Strategic Innovation, Project Execution, and Mentoring
• Strategy: Creating and Sustaining Competitive Advantage
• Corporate Strategy: Past, Present, and Future
• Business Strategy and Organizational Performance
• Strategy Mapping with Simon Wardley - Define Tomorrow 2018
• Wardley Mapping Part 1: How and why to map your business

 With Mon-Chaio travelling from Taiwan to Seattle, Andy provides an overview of the podcast's stats. He shares insights into listener demographics, reveals the most popular episodes, and discusses the community engagement they've experienced. Tune in for some interesting statistics and a heartfelt thank you to the audience.

References

• Analysing a team situation using BART - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/8JfI8SL7MLb
• Method and Madness in Storytelling - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/I1cNIUN7MLb
• Team Topologies - Interactions and Triggers - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/LUgO4RQ7MLb

 In this episode of the TTL podcast, the hosts, Andy and Mon Chiao, discuss the concept of 'Management Experience' and its distinction from 'Employee Experience.' They explore the importance of management surveys, the challenges of delegation, and ethical implications in a hierarchical setting. They debate the effectiveness of the proposed four pillars for Management Experience and propose their own set of principles. Listeners will learn about the roles of ethical leadership, alignment of work with organizational goals, and the importance of recognizing employees as individuals.

References

• Introducing MX - Management Experience (TM)   - https://yanivpreiss.com/2024/06/29/introducing-mx-management-experience/
• Manager Tools - https://www.manager-tools.com/manager-tools-basics

One way of categorizing problems faced by engineering organizations is Keith Grint’s framework of wicked, tame, and critical problems. These problem types, each with their unique characteristics and challenges, require distinct approaches to effectively address them.

Join Andy and Mon-Chaio as they provide practical insights and real-world examples to illustrate how engineering leaders can effectively switch between leadership, management, and command roles depending on the nature of the problem at hand. They also share strategies for developing the flexibility and discernment needed to identify the type of problem and apply the appropriate approach.

Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of Grint’s problem-solving framework and enhance your ability to lead your engineering team through any challenge. Whether you’re dealing with a wicked, tame, or critical problem, this episode equips you with the tools to tackle it head-on.

References

•  Wicked Problems and Clumsy Solutions: the Role of Leadership
•  Jargon File
• Cynefin framework

 In this episode of the TTL podcast, the hosts welcome Ed Morgan, founder of Gordian Knot, to discuss enhancing the hiring process for software engineers. Ed highlights the concept of 'sensemaking' and its impact on interview outcomes, stressing the importance of structured versus unstructured interviews. The trio touches on creating effective rubrics, the surprising resistance to change in hiring practices despite evidence, and the role of psychometrics. Listeners will learn practical steps to improve hiring accuracy and discover why structured interviews are statistically superior.

Edward Morgan is the founder of Gordian Knot, a consulting firm that helps companies build high performance teams by improving their hiring processes and developing custom technical assessments. Visit www.gordianknot.company to learn more.

References:

• Stubborn Reliance on Intuition and Subjectivity in Employee Selection - https://www.cs.jhu.edu/~misha/DIReadingSeminar/Papers/Highhouse08.pdf
• Belief in the unstructured interview: The persistence of an illusion - https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/judgment-and-decision-making/article/belief-in-the-unstructured-interview-the-persistence-of-an-illusion/5BBA77932EF22EBEAA1E8020126A1925
• A Meta-Analysis of Interrater and Internal Consistency Reliability of Selection Interviews - https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/judgment-and-decision-making/article/belief-in-the-unstructured-interview-the-persistence-of-an-illusion/5BBA77932EF22EBEAA1E8020126A1925
• Factors affecting employee performance: a systematic literature review - https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JAMR-06-2018-0052/full/html
• Telling stories to communicate the value of the pre-employment structured job interview - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335762542_Telling_stories_to_communicate_the_value_of_the_pre-employment_structured_job_interview
• Myers-Briggs Type Inventory - https://www.themyersbriggs.com/en-US/Products-and-Services/Myers-Briggs
• DiSC - https://www.discprofile.com/what-is-disc/disc-styles
• Big 5 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

It's something that all companies do and yet it's still a very misunderstood topic: evaluating the performance of people managers. The majority of methods regularly used for measuring managers rely heavily on superficial metrics and outdated practices that fail to capture the true essence of effective leadership.

Join Andy and Mon-Chaio as they explore the complexities of leadership evaluation, shedding light on the nuanced and multifaceted nature of managerial success. They discuss the pitfalls of traditional assessment techniques and introduce evidence-based approaches that provide a more accurate and holistic view of a manager’s impact on their team and organization.

Whether you’re an engineering leader, a people manager, or simply interested in the dynamics of leadership, this episode offers valuable insights and practical strategies to enhance your understanding of what makes a great leader.

References:

• Software Project Managers' Perceptions of Productivity Factors: Findings from a Qualitative Study
• Group maturity, team efficiency, and team effectiveness in software development: A case study in a CMMI-DEV Level 5 organization
• Linking Transformational Leadership to Self-Efficacy, Extra-Role Behaviors, and Turnover Intentions in Public Agencies: The Mediating Role of Goal Clarity
• Transformational Leadership Questionnaire (TLQ)
• A Short Measure of Transformational Leadership

 In this episode of the Tactics for Tech Leadership podcast, hosts Andy and Mon-Chaio explore where leaders should spend their time, touching on the importance of signaling dedication, performance, identity, and power through time management. They discuss the contrast between crisis, wartime leadership, and peacetime stability, emphasizing the Eisenhower Matrix as a tool to prioritize urgent and important tasks. The hosts share insights from their experiences, including how leaders often misidentify crises and the impact of time use on organizational culture. Listeners will also learn about the surprising benefits of sometimes letting things fail to improve overall system resilience.

References

• Eisenhower Matrix - https://www.mindtools.com/al1e0k5/eisenhowers-urgentimportant-principle
• Signs of Our Time: Time-Use as Dedication, Performance, Identity, and Power in Contemporary Workplaces - https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2018.0148
• Peacetime CEO/Wartime CEO - https://a16z.com/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/

While Andy is away, Mon-Chaio shares anecdotes and stories from his time at the Plato Elevate conference, snippets that didn't make their way into the prevous episode.

 In this episode of the TTL podcast, Mon-Chaio and Andy review the recent Plato Elevate Conference in San Francisco. As a unique gathering focused on engineering leadership, Mon-Chaio shares his key takeaways from sessions on effective reorgs, experiments in culture engineering, and the innovative EngOS. The duo also explores the broader value of conferences, particularly the networking opportunities and on-the-ground experiences that often eclipse formal talks. Mon-Chaio highlights the significance of continuous learning for leaders and the practical applications discussed in various roundtable sessions.

References

• Plato Elevate - https://www.platohq.com/events/elevate-2024
• LeadDev - https://leaddev.com/
• How to Create an Engineering OS for your Organization - https://refactoring.fm/p/how-to-create-an-engineering-os-for
• PSP and TSP - https://insights.sei.cmu.edu/library/team-software-process-tsp-and-personal-software-process-psp-materials/
• SEI - https://www.sei.cmu.edu/
• Rational Unified Process - https://public.dhe.ibm.com/software/rational/web/datasheets/RUP_DS.pdf
• CITCON - https://citconf.com/