It depends. It depends on whether the manager adds value. When I stay with my programmers it's because sometimes I can: + be a cardboard programmer + actual

It depends. It depends on whether the manager adds value. When I stay with my programmers it's because sometimes I can: + be a cardboard programmer + actually help with the code + make a decision about things to leave out + order pizza (or other food/sustainence) + clarify priorities + be someone to check weird noises in the building And I want to make it clear that I trust them to do the work, and will be there to support them. What I don't do is drop in every hour to make a witty comment.