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I've had good software engineering managers who couldn't code anything beyond simple shell scripts. It's possible to be a great developer manager without havin
by PragmaticPulp 4y ago
I've had good software engineering managers who couldn't code anything beyond simple shell scripts.
It's possible to be a great developer manager without having been a developer yourself, but it's much harder and much less common.
In my experience, the managers who excel despite not having an engineering background usually get promoted through the ranks quickly, so you may not see them much anyway. Being able to effectively manage people without completely understanding their work is a valuable (and rare) skill.
- superfrank 4y agoCan you go into a little more detail about what they did that made them good?
- bryceacc 4y agoin my experience, good managers of any kind will be there to push on issues that block me or help communicate/coordinate across the company whenever my work needs. Everything else should be hands off
- simonw 4y ago"couldn't code anything beyond simple shell scripts" is very different from not being able to code at all.
- rednerrus 4y agoIsn't the thing that non-technical managers lack, perspective? Like how long is it going to take and what is the LOE? You don't get that by being able to write a shell script. You don't always get it from being technical either. I was in a technical role for 5 years before I started managing a team and I still lack perspective sometimes. I don't always see the big picture. I don't always understand the LOE on my asks. I try to be clear with my team that this is one of my limitations and to please call me out on it if I'm missing the mark, etc.