A reading guide for new engineering managers or teach leads
When I joined Bokio as a Startup of about 15 employees there was to a big extent up to me to understand how to do my new role well. Later in our journey I had the privilege of being coach of a great Head of Engineering helping me grow further. But the books I’ve read and newsletters I’ve subscribed to help me a lot in in speeding up learning process.
Below is a collection of books and resources that helped me kickstart the learn about leadership and engineering management.
Books
Radical candor – Kim Scott
Understanding “Care personally, challenge directly” and always strive to approach leadership this way.
An Elegant Puzzle – Will Larson
My first choice for reading about engineering management.
The Manager’s Path – Camille Fournier
Also a great book on engineering management. But a larger focus on management at different levels in the hierarchy.
Managing Humans – Michael Lopp
Maybe not the first books to read but if your like me (an example-based learner) this can help you see real-life situations.
Talking with tech leads – Pat Kua
Like previous books this is also a great one if you are an example-based learner. This books contains a large set of interviews with tech leads and gives good insight into how different tech leads have talked common challenges.
Other resources
LeadDev
Organization with conferences and community around engineering leadership. On Youtube you can find many great talks from previous conferences.
Pat Kua’s newsletter
Weekly newsletter that I’ve have learned a lot from. Also I thinks Pat is able to adapt the newsletter to time of year or what is happening in the world which makes you get relevant content when you need it.