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The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

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11 Essential Elements to Build High-Performing Engineering Teams

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Reading Time: 7 minutes

Being able to build high-performing engineering teams is a non-negotiable skill for engineering leaders. It is the difference between successful and failing technology companies.

I have been thinking about this topic for many years, studying and decoding what exceptional leaders do to create great teams. During this time, I refined a list of what I believe are 11 must-have elements. I kept it in one the many thousands of Evernote notes that organize my life, and I finally decided to share it.

First, let me give you the summary of the elements in the form of a MindMap infographic. I debated between publishing this view at the beginning and at the end of the article. I decided to go for the beginning, as I hope it will spark your curiosity for the many details that you’ll find in the rest of this post. ... 

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Visualizing Company Culture And Cultural Change

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Reading Time: 10 minutes

Company culture is an important parameter in the success of a business, especially in the tech space. It represents the environment and character where employees generate ideas and produce value. It is the personality of a company and it regulates the heartbeat of a functioning organization.

Despite our desire to be in control of our environment, we are often unable to do so. Many things occur naturally, pushed by forces governed by the result of a myriad of factors that are too complex to study, understand and predict. ... 

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How Google Leadership Failed Women in Tech

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Reading Time: 5 minutes

Google loves a good pedigree.

James Damore, the developer at the center of the huge anti-diversity manifesto controversy that got him fired from Google, is an educated person with a solid academic pedigree. According to his LinkedIn profile, he holds a BS in Molecular Biology, Physics and Chemistry from the University of Illinois and a Master in System Biology from Harvard.

After a couple of short internship with Princeton and Harvard, he spent over one year as Research Scientist at MIT. Google likes academic backgrounds like James’, and he landed a four months internship with the company. I am not sure where James learned computer science fundamentals, but he knew enough to get a Software Engineer job a few months after his internship ended. He stayed employed for three years and nine months until he got fired for his anti-diversity manifesto. Or, more accurately, for offending a significant part of Google employees at creating chaos. ... 

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15 Best Ways to Achieve Flow

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Reading Time: 8 minutes

That Amazing Feeling

Imagine that you are immersed in a task, completely absorbed by the process of executing it. Your mind is one with what you are doing. Complexities of the task are clear and all aspects seem connected in well-understood ways. Your body appears to be floating and only exists to support your mind. You are only vaguely aware of a broad sense of aroused serenity. Hours pass by in minutes, and you are in full control of your thoughts and emotions.

What is Flow?

I am not describing the effects of some illegal drug or wild mushroom. I am representing a state of mental flow. Programmers live for it and work at their peak potential when they are in it. Also known as “the zone,” Flow is the mental state of operation in which a programmer is immersed in a feeling of energized focus, complete involvement, and enjoyment in the process of coding. Flow is not a concept unique to computer programming, but software developers are very familiar with it. ... 

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Anti-Diversity, Google, and Lack of Good Judgment

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Reading Time: 8 minutes

[This post was featured on the Huffington Post]

Many people who are successful show lack of good sense or judgment. There are many examples. A recent one is Travis Kalanick, the ex-CEO of Uber. His list of actions showing a lack of good judgment is impressive. You can find a version of the list here. It was painful to watch him wreck his career. Now he is no longer the CEO. That is a demonstration that behaving the way he did was not smart for himself or the business.

Definition of stupid.

The definition of “stupid” is: ... 

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