4 ms·

Let me guess: Non-Technical manager (as in, couldn't FizzBuzz)? If so, that's the first takeaway here: A non-technical manager is a red flag that should not be

Let me guess: Non-Technical manager (as in, couldn't FizzBuzz)? If so, that's the first takeaway here: A non-technical manager is a red flag that should not be ignored.

I_AM_A_SMURF 6y ago
As long as the manager is not the one making technical decision, then there's nothing wrong with a non-technical manager. That's why you need IC tracks with Principal and above engineers, so that the person that _knows_ stuff is in charge of technical decision and the manager can be in charge of people problems / communications / strategy / scheduling, none of which strong technical people are particularly known to be good at. Think about this, what good does having a SVP of a big company be an engineer that hasn't coded a line of code in 20+ years? These people probably don't even remember what it means to be a programmer. I would much rather have a manager that is good at being a manager and doesn't know anything about coding, rather than a mediocre manager that also knows coding but they are not in the loop and think they knows better than me.
reificator 6y ago
I have had non technical managers that delegated and trusted their team, and I have had "technical" managers that hadn't learned new skills since the 90s. Between those two: I'll take the non skilled every time.
- noisy_boy 6y ago
  Having dealt with micro-managing/overly-exacting technical managers, me too.
jeffbee 6y ago
It really depends on the organization. I've been in places where the job of the manager really is to just "manage": make sure everyone has a desk and a computer and takes their vacation sometimes but not too much and so forth. Performance was based on peer review, work was planned from the bottom up. Obviously a non-technical manager is fine in this role and a technical person would be wasted.
Viliam1234 6y ago
Not all coders are good coders. If your manager was the opposite of what you strive to be, your work probably won't make a good impression in their eyes.
arbitrary_name 6y ago
Yeah, no. I have run tech teams as a non technical lead. It just forced me to trust my team, listen to them and fight for them. Meanwhile the technical leads lacked the people skills to display empathy, provide feedback in a way that was respectful, and many other shortcomings that hurt productivity and morale. Bad managers are the red flag - update your heuristic accordingly.

Let me guess: Non-Technical manager (as in, couldn't FizzBuzz)? If so, that's the first takeaway here: A non-technical manager is a red flag that should not be ignored.

I_AM_A_SMURF 6y ago

As long as the manager is not the one making technical decision, then there's nothing wrong with a non-technical manager. That's why you need IC tracks with Principal and above engineers, so that the person that _knows_ stuff is in charge of technical decision and the manager can be in charge of people problems / communications / strategy / scheduling, none of which strong technical people are particularly known to be good at. Think about this, what good does having a SVP of a big company be an engineer that hasn't coded a line of code in 20+ years? These people probably don't even remember what it means to be a programmer. I would much rather have a manager that is good at being a manager and doesn't know anything about coding, rather than a mediocre manager that also knows coding but they are not in the loop and think they knows better than me.

reificator 6y ago

I have had non technical managers that delegated and trusted their team, and I have had "technical" managers that hadn't learned new skills since the 90s. Between those two: I'll take the non skilled every time.

noisy_boy 6y ago
Having dealt with micro-managing/overly-exacting technical managers, me too.

jeffbee 6y ago

It really depends on the organization. I've been in places where the job of the manager really is to just "manage": make sure everyone has a desk and a computer and takes their vacation sometimes but not too much and so forth. Performance was based on peer review, work was planned from the bottom up. Obviously a non-technical manager is fine in this role and a technical person would be wasted.

Viliam1234 6y ago

Not all coders are good coders. If your manager was the opposite of what you strive to be, your work probably won't make a good impression in their eyes.

arbitrary_name 6y ago

Yeah, no. I have run tech teams as a non technical lead. It just forced me to trust my team, listen to them and fight for them. Meanwhile the technical leads lacked the people skills to display empathy, provide feedback in a way that was respectful, and many other shortcomings that hurt productivity and morale. Bad managers are the red flag - update your heuristic accordingly.