Six lessons from my first six(ish) months of engineering management
I made a significant career change last March: I switched into engineering management. I’d been an individual contributor for seven years and needed a new challenge. I soon realized, though, that there was a significant gap between my assumptions for the role and reality. Here are some of the major lessons I’ve learned. I hope you’ll find them useful if you decide to transition into management.
ReadWhat's old is new again: adapting Agile / XP to work for remote teams
With the pandemic, our social patterns have shifted overnight. Video calls have become the norm for both social and work engagements. Adapting to a long-term remote work lifestyle is challenging, but after some experimentation, I've discovered practices that have made me much more productive. I realized many of these ideas have already been introduced to the programming community for decades -- but they were unfairly written off as impractical, despite making more sense NOW than ever before. Let's dig in.
ReadA sane and fair process for conducting Senior Software Engineering interviews
Despite the numerous problems, we still use LeetCode style interviews almost exclusively in our hiring process. Is there a better way? Read on to find out.
ReadEvaluating the common alternatives to the LeetCode Style Interview
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to interviewing, but at least we have some common criteria now. Let's look at some alternative approaches to interviewing and highlight the aspects in which they address the problems caused by LC interviews. Let's also determine where they still fall short, and why they aren't adopted by more companies.
ReadSenior Software Engineering Interviews are F*cking Broken
Let's address the elephant in the room: Interviewing for senior software engineers is a terrible process that everyone admits is broken. Because of the lack of alternatives presented to us, we are forced to use LeetCode style interviews. But does it have to stay this way?
ReadHow to adjust to remote work for engineers who work better in close proximity to others
Here are 5 tips I've collected for transitioning into remote work after spending 6 months experimenting with this work style. If you're a programmer who thrives in social environments, this article is for you.
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