career vectors for technical leaders
TRANSCRIPT
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
CAREER VECTORS FOR TECHNICAL LEADERS
Session 7: Personal DevelopmentLeadDev Together November 2020
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kodomut/3667608102/
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
MY CAREER JOURNEY & HORIZONS• “It’s all about code”• “It’s all about systems”• ”It’s all about architecture and how things fit together”• “It’s all about processes and how things get done”• “Oh shit. It’s all about people!”• “Hang on, it only really matters if people in healthy
teams deliver tech that actually meets business needs”• “It’s all about systems of systems!"
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
THERE IS NO SINGLE FLAVOUR OF TECHNICAL LEADER …
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
ON THE ONE HAND THIS IS FREEING … ON THE OTHER
HAND IT’S A BIT SCARY
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
SO HOW TO MAKE SENSE OF THINGS?
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
1) LOOK FOR EXAMPLES
2) SPOT PATTERNS
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
FLAVOURS OF TECHNICAL LEADERS• Hands-on, deep technical expert• Tech leads, delivery projects & products of
increasing complexity• Architect type roles – working at a different
level of abstraction on systems & tech• Combo manager/leader roles – developing
and enabling individuals & teams• Organisational leaders – managers of
managers (of managers…)
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
THIS LEADS US TO WHAT I CALL CAREER VECTORS
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
1. HANDS-ON IN-DEPTH TECH
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
2. TECH STRATEGY
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
3. DELIVERY / GSD
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
4. ORGANISATIONAL LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
5. COMMERCIAL UNDERSTANDING
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
6. DOMAIN DEPTH
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
Skills I Have Job I Have
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
Engineer Architect
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
MAP YOUR CURRENT SKILL & KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE
STATUS
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
ASSESS YOUR GAPS AGAINST THE ROLE(S) YOU WANT IN FUTURE
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
REMEMBER: THIS IS NOT POKEMON!
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
ONLY FOCUS ON A GAP OR WEAKNESS IF IT IS A
CONTROLLING WEAKNESS
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
[A CONTROLLING WEAKNESS IS SOMETHING YOU AREN’T GOOD
AT THAT IS ESSENTIAL TO PERFORM WELL IN YOUR ROLE]
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
ZOOMING OUT FOR A MOMENT, THINK ABOUT WHETHER IT’S CLEAR TO EVERYONE AT YOUR ORG
WHICH OF THESE VECTORS MATTER FOR WHICH ROLES
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
WHAT KINDS OF SHAPES DO YOU REQUIRE?
WHAT KINDS OF GROWTH DO YOU ENABLE?
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
SDM EM
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
Architect Principal Engineer
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
COMMON TENSIONS…• How much are managers expected to focus on
developing & enabling individuals & teams versus ensuring delivery?
• Is Tech Lead role more about technical depth or leading the team to deliver a solution? How much business understanding is needed?
• At what point does budget and commercial understanding becoming essential?
• Which elements of tech strategy require in-depth hands-on expertise?
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
DON’T TRY TO MAKE EVERYONE EQUALLY GENERALIST – YOU
END UP LEVELLING PEOPLE OUT TOWARDS MEDIOCRITY.
EMBRACE DIFFERENCE!
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
Hands-OnTech
Tech Strategy
Delivery
Org Mgmt
Commercial
DomainDepth
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
IN SUMMARY…• There is no single career path for technical leaders• Think instead in terms of the career vectors you might
develop along:– Hands-on in-depth tech– Tech strategy– Delivery / getting shit done– Organisational leadership– Commercial – Domain expertise
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager
IN SUMMARY…• Map your current state of these vectors• Understand what future roles you might be interested
in require
• And remember to zoom out and consider what is and isn’t clear in your career path in your company, for your peers, managers and broader team!
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Meri Williams, ChromeRose@Geek_Manager