Tech Lead Journal

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#150 - How to Think Like a CTO - Alan Williamson

Tech Lead Journal

“A CTO gives the business the technology it needs to drive success by delivering a roadmap to grow and scale at a level and speed where technology never holds up their growth." Alan Williamson is the author of “Think Like a CTO”. In this episode, we discussed in-depth how to become a great CTO. Alan first described what a CTO role is, how the role differs at different company stages, and the attributes of a good CTO. Alan then explained the importance of a CTO coming up with a vision and how we can improve ourselves in visionary thinking. He then touched on how a CTO should work together and understand the expectations of the CEO. Alan also gave his tips on how to build engineering teams that can produce high-quality results. Towards the end, Alan gave his personal advice on how a CTO can deal with imposter syndrome and the importance of a CTO doing a personal review.   Listen out for: Career Journey - [00:03:28] The CTO Role - [00:07:47] Different Flavors of CTO Role - [00:12:47] CTO at Different Company Stage - [00:13:42] What Makes a Good CTO - [00:17:04] Visionary Planning - [00:19:40] Learning How to Create a Vision - [00:23:40] Working with the CEO - [00:30:54] Building Engineering Teams - [00:36:47] Building Quality In - [00:39:58] Dealing with Imposter Syndrome - [00:45:36] Reviewing Yourself - [00:52:11] 3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:59:09] _____ Alan Williamson’s Bio Alan was the first U.K. Java Champion and has contributed much to open source, including OpenBD, a Java based CFML runtime engine, that once powered MySpace.com, as well as many other blue-chip CFML sites. Alan has published a number of books in the Java space covering Enterprise Java, Servlets, JavaMail and database access. He also served in the role of Editor-in-Chief for Java Developers Journal. His recent book, ‘ Think like a CTO ’ aimed at the new and upcoming CTO. Filled with real-world actionable items, including case studies and interviews. Alan is currently a partner with New Harbor Capital, heading up their Portfolio Operations Group, providing interim and executive CTO services to New Harbor’s portfolios, advising on all levels on how to maximize technology for the growth of the business. Follow Alan: Website – alan.is LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/a1anw2/ _____ Our Sponsors Miro is your team's visual workspace to connect, collaborate, and create innovations together, from anywhere. Sign up today at miro.com/podcast and get your first 3 Miro boards free forever. Like this episode? Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/150 Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

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#149 - Dynamic Reteaming: The Art and Wisdom of Changing Teams - Heidi Helfand

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“A lot of the traditional wisdom said the best teams are the ones that stay stable or the same; you need long-lived stable teams. The fact is, team change is inevitable. So let’s get better at it." Heidi Helfand is the author of “Dynamic Reteaming”. In this episode, we discussed dynamic reteaming concept, or team changes in simple words. Heidi explained how her experience working in various startups and scaleups led to her coming up with the dynamic reteaming idea. She also explained how dynamic reteaming differs from the common advice of having long-lived teams. We then discussed the five patterns of dynamic reteaming as outlined by Heidi in her book. Our discussion also covered various other topics, such as onboarding, offboarding, maintaining company culture, ideal team size, and leadership role in dynamic teams.   Listen out for: Career Journey - [00:03:34] How Dynamic Reteaming Idea Came About - [00:08:30] Dynamic Reteaming - [00:12:08] Social Dynamics - [00:13:51] Dynamic Reteaming vs Long-Lived - [00:18:14] One by One - [00:26:19] Onboarding New Joiners - [00:27:42] People Leaving - [00:30:54] Maintaining Culture - [00:37:18] Grow & Split And Merging Patterns - [00:42:42] Ideal Team Size - [00:45:51] Isolation Pattern - [00:51:43] Role of Leader/Manager - [00:54:56] 3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:57:47] _____ Heidi Helfand’s Bio Heidi Helfand is author of the book Dynamic Reteaming and SVP of Strategy & Innovation at Artium. She’s passionate about helping companies build great products and high-performing teams, and she’s particularly interested in the people side of engineering. With over 20 years of experience in the tech industry, including roles at AppFolio, Procore and Expertcity/GoToMeeting, Heidi has gained a deep understanding of how to help organizations successfully navigate change and scale their teams. She lives in Southern California, where she enjoys spending time with her family and exploring the outdoors. Follow Heidi: Website – heidihelfand.com LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/heidihelfand/ X – @heidihelfand Mastodon – @[email protected] Artium – thisisartium.com Email – [email protected] _____ Our Sponsors Miro is your team's visual workspace to connect, collaborate, and create innovations together, from anywhere. Sign up today at miro.com/podcast and get your first 3 Miro boards free forever. Like this episode? Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/149 Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

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#148 - Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) Essentials - Jan Molak & John Ferguson Smart

Tech Lead Journal

“BDD is about helping you collaborate with the different parties involved in software delivery to understand what’s actually required of your system, why you need to deliver it, and then find the best possible way to automate your requirements." John Smart and Jan Molak are the co-authors of “BDD in Action: Second Edition”. In this episode, we discussed in-depth behavior-driven development (BDD) and its essentials. Jan and John first began by introducing what BDD is, the benefits of using BDD, and the Gherkin language with its given-when-then syntax. They gave advice on how to introduce and apply BDD, especially for legacy software, and how to manage the BDD specifications effectively. Jan and John then shared several BDD techniques, such as feature mapping, example mapping, impact mapping; and went deep into the screenplay pattern and the Serenity projects they both create to implement screenplay pattern. Towards the end, Jan and John shared their insights on which testing layers we should apply BDD and some anti-patterns we should avoid.   Listen out for: Career Journey - [00:04:49] Challenges Before BDD - [00:11:30] Behavior Driven Development (BDD) - [00:15:24] Benefits of BDD - [00:22:33] Gherkin - [00:27:39] Introducing BDD - [00:32:24] BDD for Legacy Software - [00:38:41] Managing BDD Specifications - [00:43:15] Screenplay Pattern - [00:47:09] Serenity Project - [00:58:42] Other BDD Techniques - [01:11:33] Testing Layers to Apply BDD - [01:14:13] BDD Anti-Patterns - [01:18:28] 4 Tech Lead Wisdom - [01:23:01] _____ Jan Molak’s Bio Jan Molak is a consulting software engineer and trainer who specialises in enhancing team collaboration and optimising software development processes for global organisations. Jan is the author of the Serenity/JS acceptance testing framework, a contributor to the Screenplay Pattern, and a co-author of a renowned book “BDD in Action, Second Edition”. John Ferguson Smart’s Bio John Ferguson Smart is a specialist in BDD, automated testing, and software lifecycle development optimization. He is the founder of the Serenity Dojo, an online training platform for testers who want to become world-class Agile Test Automation Engineers, and the creator of the Serenity BDD test automation framework. Follow Jan: LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/janmolak X – @JanMolak Follow John: LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/john-ferguson-smart X – @wakaleo Serenity Dojo – serenity-dojo.com _____ Our Sponsors Miro is your team's visual workspace to connect, collaborate, and create innovations together, from anywhere. Sign up today at miro.com/podcast and get your first 3 Miro boards free forever. Like this episode? Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/148 Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

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#147 - Collaborative Software Design: How to Facilitate Domain Modeling Decisions - Evelyn Van Kelle & Gien Verschatse

Tech Lead Journal

“Collaborative modeling is getting the relevant people into a room to solve a problem or get on the same page about what it is you’re solving and getting some directions for that solution." Evelyn and Gien are the co-authors of “Collaborative Software Design: How to Facilitate Domain Modeling Decisions”. In this episode, we discussed collaborative software design and why we need it in software development. Evelyn and Gien started by explaining the Cynefin framework in software development and the importance of having heuristics for making quick decisions. We then dived deep into discussing what collaborative modeling is, how to get people involved to collaborate, and the important role of a facilitator. We also talked about the socio-technical aspects and skills required in collaborative modeling, in particular, understanding the influence of cognitive bias and ranking. Towards the end, we discussed when we should do a collaborative modeling exercise, how to structure it, and tips for doing it remotely.   Listen out for: Career Journey - [00:06:53] Collaborative Software Design - [00:09:28] Complicated vs Complex Problems - [00:12:24] Heuristics - [00:15:07] Collaborating Modeling - [00:19:03] The Facilitator Role - [00:24:55] Socio Technical Skills - [00:30:10] Cognitive Bias - [00:33:10] The Influence of Ranking - [00:38:51] Collaborative Modelling Structure - [00:47:00] When to do Collaborative Modeling - [00:51:38] Remote Collaborative Modeling - [00:55:34] 3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:58:45] _____ Evelyn van Kelle’s Bio Evelyn van Kelle is a strategic software delivery consultant, with experience in coaching, advising, facilitating, and guiding organizations and teams in designing and maintaining socio-technical systems. She blends different techniques, tools and approaches from behavioral and social sciences, collaborative modeling and Domain-Driven Design, to help leadership teams achieve sustainable transformations. Evelyn loves to share her knowledge by speaking at international conferences and meetups. Gien Verschatse’s Bio Gien Verschatse is an experienced consultant and software engineer that specializes in domain modelling and software architecture. As a Domain-Driven Design practitioner, she always looks to bridge the gaps between experts, users, and engineers. As a side interest, she’s researching the science of decision-making strategies, to help teams improve how they make technical and organizational decisions. She shares her knowledge by speaking and teaching at international conferences. When she is not doing all that, you’ll find her on the sofa, reading a book and sipping coffee. Follow Evelyn: LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/evelynvankell X – @EvelynvanKell Follow Gien: LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/gien-verschatse X – @selketjah _____ Our Sponsors Miro is your team's visual workspace to connect, collaborate, and create innovations together, from anywhere. Sign up today at miro.com/podcast and get your first 3 Miro boards free forever. Like this episode? Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/147 Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. Buy me a coffee or become a patron.