Managing Humans: More Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager

Managing Humans: More Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager

by Michael Lopp
Released January 2022
Publisher(s): Apress
ISBN: 9781484271162

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Book description

In this fourth edition of the bestselling business book Managing Humans, author Michael Lopp continues to draw leadership advice from some of the most important software companies of our modern age. Educational stories from companies such as Apple, Slack, and Pinterest detail the experiences of bright software engineers in an ever-changing industry.

This revised edition of Managing Humans expands on the previous editions’ explorations of management essentials including handling stress, building diverse teams, running inclusive meetings, and how to lead in times of crisis. The education of a great leader never stops, and Lopp applies crucial insights to help continue your never-ending leadership education. Whether it is approaching a myriad of engineering personalities or handling unexpected conflict, you will come away with the wisdom to handle any team situation.

The engineering culture of a company can determine the difference between a product’s ultimate success or failure. Managing Humans is here to guide managers and aspiring managers into the intimidating world of people and their vastly different personalities. Handle conflict, infuse innovation into your approach, and be the most confident manager you can be after reading this book.

“It is so satisfying to read the work of an author who articulates something we know, but can’t put our finger on, and then answers the excitement of fresh revelation with useful solutions or a frame to think about what we’ve just learned—all done in a breezy, knowing prose, that invites you to constantly write margin notes to capture the new thinking it invites.”

John Dickerson, author, CBS News correspondent

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Front Matter
  3. Part I. The Management Quiver
    1. 1. Don’t Be a Prick
    2. 2. Managers Are Not Evil
    3. 3. Stables and Volatiles
    4. 4. The Rands Test
    5. 5. How to Run a Meeting
    6. 6. The Twinge
    7. 7. The Update, the Vent, and the Disaster
    8. 8. Lost in Translation
    9. 9. Agenda Detection
    10. 10. Management via Worry and Crisis
    11. 11. Dissecting the Mandate
    12. 12. Information Starvation
    13. 13. Subtlety, Subterfuge, and Silence
    14. 14. Your Mid-Year Leadership Check-in
    15. 15. Managementese
    16. 16. You’re Not Listening
    17. 17. The Hotel Giraffe
    18. 18. Fred Hates the Off-Site
    19. 19. A Different Kind of DNA
    20. 20. An Engineering Mindset
    21. 21. Tear It Down
    22. 22. Titles Are Toxic
    23. 23. Saying No
  4. Part II. The Process Is the Product
    1. 24. 1.0
    2. 25. The Process Myth
    3. 26. How to Start
    4. 27. Taking Time to Think
    5. 28. Meetings Are Not for You
    6. 29. The Value of the Soak
    7. 30. Capturing Context
    8. 31. Trickle Theory
    9. 32. When the Sky Falls
    10. 33. Hacking Is Important
    11. 34. WFH
    12. 35. Entropy Crushers
    13. 36. Your Culture Is Rotting
    14. 37. The Metronome
  5. Part III. Versions of You
    1. 38. Bored People Quit
    2. 39. Bellwethers
    3. 40. The Ninety-Day Interview
    4. 41. Managing Nerds
    5. 42. Incrementalists and Completionists
    6. 43. NADD
    7. 44. A Nerd in a Cave
    8. 45. Meeting Creatures
    9. 46. Organics and Mechanics
    10. 47. Inwards, Outwards, and Holistics
    11. 48. The Wolf
    12. 49. Free Electrons
    13. 50. The Old Guard
    14. 51. Rules for the Reorg
    15. 52. An Unexpected Connection
    16. 53. You Are Going on a Quest
    17. 54. A Glimpse and a Hook
    18. 55. Nailing the Phone Screen
    19. 56. Your Resignation Checklist
    20. 57. Shields Down
    21. 58. Chaotic, Beautiful Snowflakes
    22. 59. Epilogue: Fear Is a Liar
  6. Back Matter

Product information

  • Title: Managing Humans: More Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager
  • Author(s): Michael Lopp
  • Release date: January 2022
  • Publisher(s): Apress
  • ISBN: 9781484271162