How to Manage Testy Programmers

November 6, 2012

There’s tons of training to become a developer but developers who become managers often have little or no training. That’s a big problem. Software people are notoriously difficult to corral.

Ron Lichty is an expert on the subject and co-authored the book, “Managing the Unmanageable: Rules, Tools, and Insights for Managing Software People and Teams.” I spoke with him at the 2012 Silicon Valley Code Camp conference. His number one rule for managing software teams is to connect with them and gain their respect. This is easier said than done and always means leaving the coding behind. “If you continue to try to code, you will code and not manage,” said Lichty. It’s a common issue and a refrain we heard time and again from different presenters.

Watch the video and don’t miss the joke about the difference between introverted and extroverted programmers, it’s worth the wait.

Image: Mad Programmer [Bigstock]

Comments

6 Responses to “How to Manage Testy Programmers”

November 06, 2012 at 4:58 pm, Me said:

http://www.amazon.com/Managing-Humans-Humorous-Software-Engineering/dp/159059844X

November 06, 2012 at 6:32 pm, TopCoder said:

As a Top Coder that was promoted to director, I can tell you that the best coders make amazing managers. I am already the cream of the managerial crop. The best of the best.

Next stop is VP. I am already probably the top candidate for a promotion due to my amazing track record.

November 07, 2012 at 2:10 pm, Me said:

Is there a room large enough for your ego?

November 13, 2012 at 1:58 pm, jsward17 said:

If I was your boss I would fire you for that comment.

I get called boy genius, rockstar, ninja all day long because I can execute at a top level as well being a bleeding edge front-end engineer.

The difference is I let the work do the talking.
I knock it out of the park, then say nothing and hang back.
People like to discover your awesomeness, not have you tell them about it.
If you do, then if you don’t hit the mark, then not only are you not as good as you think you are, you look like a total fool.

And just cause I’m feeling SASSy(pun) here’s my work featured on Fox
http://www.myfoxny.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=7843105

So please….
http://humour.200ok.com.au/image_nicebigcup.html

kthankxbye