A 1st layer of management doesn't need to be heavy handed manager types if the employees hired are "managers of one" and can self-direct their work. The "manage

A 1st layer of management doesn't need to be heavy handed manager types if the employees hired are "managers of one" and can self-direct their work. The "manager of one" wording comes from 37 Signals, read up on how they manage. Software cannot make sure careers are on track and goals are met. Yes software can track a todo list but career goals are a human activity to coach employees. Imagine someone that is purely working on say mobile apps part of the product set but wants to get some experience on the backend. Thats a conversation since they may not feel comfortable (e.g. an introvert) jumping on backend tasks since that might introduce some conflict with the team. Finding out what motivates a person is a conversation, not a web form. If you have a small group of people that are self-motivated (aka manager of one) working together on various software projects, what would status reports or time tracking be used for?