Leader's Digest #4 - How to Be a Great Software Development Manager

This is an archived issue of the now-discontinued Leader’s Digest newsletter. See the archive for an overview of all issues

Hi everyone & Welcome to Leader’s Digest #4!

How to Be a Great Software Development Manager
https://flowchainsensei.wordpress.com/2012/10/10/how-to-be-a-great-software-development-manager/

This time I present you a rather “old” link. But whoever knows or has come across Bob Marshall aka @flowchainsensei before, probably knows that when it comes to the future of work and how it works (sic!), Bob is way ahead of the curve.

And this week’s post is a real gem with a lot to chew on.

Bob starts the post with deconstructing the “manager” part of the job title, stating that “managing” something like software is already a dysfunction and shows that your organisation is stuck in what he calls the Analytical mindset.

Personally I find it very interesting, that Bob states that it might be a mistake to aspire being a great software development manager. Wat? Yes, because some organisations can’t cope with great software development managers actually being catalysts for change. Change towards highly effective organisations and systems where managers are not necessary (and not in the structureless-Holacracy kind of way but in the not-command-and-control kind of way, at least that’s what I want to read into that part of the post).

Bob’s theses can come across as extreme if you haven’t read what he usually writes, and I can imagine in some other circumstances too. However that makes it more long-lasting. And this week’s post is a nice case in point, in my opinion.

In any case, I hope you can draw something out of this very inspiring post, that furthers your understanding of your own role, and how software development, as one example of knowledge work, can be made better not by technology abc or process xyz. Take your time to also follow the links he has strewn into the post. Almost each one is a rabbit hole of it’s own.

Happy reading!

And if you enjoyed this short burst of inspiration, let others know by sharing this mail or http://leaders-dige.st.

Cheers, Benjamin