A Seat At The Table

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1972

Abstract

e “Tony Robbins” method. I asked before applying if they’d consider a Junior Developer for the role considering the career track for Manager branched off from Senior Software Engineer.</p><p id="7dbb">The interviews were fair, reasonable, and stressful! There were 3 1:1 interviews and one with a couple PM VPs, spread out over 6 weeks. They didn’t make it stressful for me, but I think I put stress on myself to give my best answers and show the proper energy and enthusiasm for the opportunity.</p><p id="cac2">Looking back, I think they were happy to hire an internal candidate and someone they knew already and had vetted. Even though I was on an agile development team I found opportunities to speak up during bigger ceremonies like Inspect & Adapt and the ceremony where you talk about your 3-month multi-team plan and discuss concerns and risks.</p><h1 id="5410">The questions</h1><p id="5ec5">One big suggestion I have before starting the interview process is imagine yourself in the role. You’ve seen your manager in action. You’ve probably had many 1:1 conversations with them. You’ve seen them in most of the different meetings and ceremonies. Knowing this, you could reverse engineer these experiences into possible questions. I’ll highlight a few you might see in your interview.</p><ol><li>Why do you want this position? It’s not a trick question. This gives them real insight into your motivations. Is it money? Is it power? Do you understand what this position entails? Can you handle all the meetings, the uncomfortable conversations, keeping confidential info until you’re allowed to release it? This is definitely a position where you have to look forward to something every day, so what is that something for you? How will you find your fun?</li><li>What is the first thing you’d change when you took over your team(s)? Again, not a trick question. One tip is be realistic but think big. What is the one big thing your team/unit/company struggles w

Options

ith and is this a problem you want to solve?</li><li>What is your management style? This is #1 in priority for me. How are you going to handle everyday situations? How will you work now that you’re in a different position? How will you communicate, delegate, but not frustrate?</li><li>How are you going to develop your team(s)? What is your philosophy on team building, team structure, onboarding, and pair programming?</li><li>How would you deal with an underperformer or someone working against the team?</li><li>How do you manage your priorities? No secret here. Engineering Management is all about time management and prioritizing your time so you can make the most impact.</li><li>What will you look for when you hire someone? I knew if I got the gig I’d get to hire my replacement and maybe more. What qualities am I going to emphasize? I don’t do coding interviews. For me, it’s aptitude and attitude. Can you learn? Do people want to work with you?</li></ol><h1 id="4352">Be Yourself</h1><p id="5c41">I know. Not front-page news. As an interviewer and former QA engineer, I can spot patterns. “I don’t know” are perfectly acceptable words as long as that’s not your answer to every question. Instead of trying to imagine the answer they want, rephrase the question. Fully understand the scenario they’re putting in front of you. Many questions I got were based on that manager’s previous experiences. They’re trying to imagine how I’d handle something in their shoes. What’s better than honesty? “Given what you’ve told me about the situation, I’d approach it this way… “ . “I’d probably get my manager’s input, but here’s my instinct”.</p><h1 id="09ae">Good luck!</h1><p id="f8ce">If you’ve decided this is the path for you and you’re applying and/or interviewing, I wish you the best of luck. Management isn’t for everyone, but for those called to serve, it can be very rewarding and a way to really make a positive change in people’s lives.</p></article></body>

My Journey from Software Engineer to Engineering Manager

At some point in our lives, many of us reach a crossroads. Mine came around Exit 50. That’s what I called my 50th birthday.

I was a longtime QA guy who was volunteered into Software Engineering. It’s a nice way to say QA was no longer a department at my company.

I got into it having never written a line of Object Oriented code. I wrote a couple ASP pages about 20 years ago, that’s about it. I dropped my Data Structures course in College.

I would describe myself as a brute force developer. Trial and error. There are marks on my forehead but it was a huge personal achievement to get to mid-level. That said, I knew I wanted a change.

I looked inward and realized I wanted to focus more on people and process. As a developer, I was a big picture guy in a minute detail world. I knew I didn’t want so sling code for the next 15 years. Now what?

I talked to Product Management to explore possibilities there. I liked what they had to say and thought there could be a fit there. I sat back and waited for vacation. The Agile Development Manager I was reporting to left the company as I started my break. The mind started churning. I started visualizing myself in that position.

The Interview Process

I formally applied for the Agile Development Manager. It probably wasn’t the “Tony Robbins” method. I asked before applying if they’d consider a Junior Developer for the role considering the career track for Manager branched off from Senior Software Engineer.

The interviews were fair, reasonable, and stressful! There were 3 1:1 interviews and one with a couple PM VPs, spread out over 6 weeks. They didn’t make it stressful for me, but I think I put stress on myself to give my best answers and show the proper energy and enthusiasm for the opportunity.

Looking back, I think they were happy to hire an internal candidate and someone they knew already and had vetted. Even though I was on an agile development team I found opportunities to speak up during bigger ceremonies like Inspect & Adapt and the ceremony where you talk about your 3-month multi-team plan and discuss concerns and risks.

The questions

One big suggestion I have before starting the interview process is imagine yourself in the role. You’ve seen your manager in action. You’ve probably had many 1:1 conversations with them. You’ve seen them in most of the different meetings and ceremonies. Knowing this, you could reverse engineer these experiences into possible questions. I’ll highlight a few you might see in your interview.

Why do you want this position? It’s not a trick question. This gives them real insight into your motivations. Is it money? Is it power? Do you understand what this position entails? Can you handle all the meetings, the uncomfortable conversations, keeping confidential info until you’re allowed to release it? This is definitely a position where you have to look forward to something every day, so what is that something for you? How will you find your fun?

What is the first thing you’d change when you took over your team(s)? Again, not a trick question. One tip is be realistic but think big. What is the one big thing your team/unit/company struggles with and is this a problem you want to solve?

What is your management style? This is #1 in priority for me. How are you going to handle everyday situations? How will you work now that you’re in a different position? How will you communicate, delegate, but not frustrate?

How are you going to develop your team(s)? What is your philosophy on team building, team structure, onboarding, and pair programming?

How would you deal with an underperformer or someone working against the team?

How do you manage your priorities? No secret here. Engineering Management is all about time management and prioritizing your time so you can make the most impact.

What will you look for when you hire someone? I knew if I got the gig I’d get to hire my replacement and maybe more. What qualities am I going to emphasize? I don’t do coding interviews. For me, it’s aptitude and attitude. Can you learn? Do people want to work with you?

Be Yourself

I know. Not front-page news. As an interviewer and former QA engineer, I can spot patterns. “I don’t know” are perfectly acceptable words as long as that’s not your answer to every question. Instead of trying to imagine the answer they want, rephrase the question. Fully understand the scenario they’re putting in front of you. Many questions I got were based on that manager’s previous experiences. They’re trying to imagine how I’d handle something in their shoes. What’s better than honesty? “Given what you’ve told me about the situation, I’d approach it this way… “ . “I’d probably get my manager’s input, but here’s my instinct”.