Lead Dev 2016 London: Leading leads: lessons from growing a team

• Monika Piotrowicz @monsika
• shopify
• slides: http://fr.slideshare.net/mpiotrowicz/leading-leads-lessons-from-a-growing-team

Developping leads

It is difficult to have feedback. The danger is to be too reactive over strategic.

• What is a tech lead ?
  • tech skills, knowledge
  • understand business
  • understand the product
  • trust from the team
  • makes their team better
• Ask on 1 on 1: “have you considered leading a team some day ?”. Show that you care.
• Tell people about what you do (they have no idea what it’s like), what is your productivity. Leadership is another type of problem solving.
• Create opportunities, let them practice, delegate (stand ups, sprint planning).
• Take a step back, make space.

Your measure of success: is your team getting better ?

Expectations and performance

Between micro managing and directionless (laisser-faire)

Exercise:

• the most impactfull thing I can do today is…
• right now I’m not great at…
• in a few months, I want to try…

What changes for you ?

Your new role is becoming a multiplier of talents.

• trust people: give them authority, don’t be too prescriptive
• become a coach: asking insightful questions. Give tools and context needed to succeed.
• make space
• take new space
• own your growth