Ask HN: How to Be a Good Technical Lead?

+ for mentioning on-boarding and implications, another + for mentioning open discussions on things that matter

I always recommend the book "Leading Snowflakes" for new technical leads or engineering managers:

  http://leadingsnowflakes.com

It gives very concrete advice, and it explains the people side in terms of skills that may already be familiar to you as an engineer -- for example, to "code review" your management decisions with your teammates.

I'm also a big fan of this video on Autonomy without Chaos, by David Singleton. David is one of the best engineering managers I've worked with, and really exemplifies a style of management that's focused on empowering your team from the bottom up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKgZmHhSD9I

I've been a team lead for less than a year but it feels somewhat natural for me since I've handled leadership roles informally on projects in the past. The hardest thing is having to delegate when a fire's going on that you know how to fix but you have to stop trying to uh... "do work"

If you embrace that you're expected to be a force multiplier for the team, you have the right mentality. But being sensitive to what role you need to play is critical. Sometimes you need to be a tie-breaker on a heated argument on a framework decision (lead by wisdom / deference to your respected authority), perhaps people are in despair and they just need someone that puts everyone at ease that something's being done right and you should just step in and write a reference implementation (lead by example).

One thing I would add is that you should find out if there's a program / product manager present and ask to interview with that person if you haven't. If there's no such role, you will have to pull triple duty as a product / program manager potentially by making a lot of strategic decisions probably. At that level, you might as well be considered a CTO though rather than a technical middle manager basically.

You will have people who depend on you to allow them to get on with what they do best. You will likely find that you don't write code any more, but have to trust others to do a good job - a better job than you might have done, even. You may not have the time to understand everything they produce. Even so you need to be able to understand the system at a higher level.

As you say, you have some architectural responsibility. This can seem like a large weight on your shoulders if you think that it is all your job. Remember that your developers probably have a huge amount of understanding of the codebase: Don't be afraid to let them guide you, at least partially, in making improvements. There may be others at a similar level who have moved elsewhere in the company who can give you what their plan was for making things better... They might have been where you are but without your remit.

It can be a role where you get to build stuff (with the hands of others), have some power and weight behind decison making, also ever-varied and even fun. It can also be stressful and extremely taxing. Good luck!

What's a good source on becoming a software dev lead? Here are a few suggestions among the many available:

Brooks' "The Mythical Man Month" is a classic in this space, though I think its emphasis is less on leadership than the difficulties in software project management. And the book is rather dated now.

DeMarco and Lister's "Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams" is also a classic, and emphasizes interpersonal team dynamics as well as software project management.

Hunt and Thomas's "The Pragmatic Programmer" is highly regarded and traces the progression of a software pro from being led to becoming leader.

Mantle's "Managing the Unmanageable: Rules, Tools, and Insights for Managing Software People and Teams" looks intriguing, but I have no firsthand experience with it.

I know agile is a big deal these days, but I can't recommend any books that are specific to doing it well. I'm not really a fan. But in this space, you might take a look at Rich Sheridan's: "Joy Inc: How We Built a Workplace People Love". He runs a small creative agile contracting shop that employs a variety of techniques build and maintain a positive workplace.

In a similar vein is Weinzweig's "A Lapsed Anarchist's Approach to Being a Better Leader". He's the founder of Zingerman's Deli (in Ann Arbor MI) and is a very creative force toward making your workplace constructive and engaging. Not related to software, but full of good ideas.

Weinberg's "Becoming a Technical Leader: An Organic Problem-Solving Approach" is an oldie but goodie in this space, though it doesn't focus on software but tech of all kinds.

Finally, I heartily recommend "Code Complete" as an excellent source on how to program solid/maintainable code, especially if you hope to lead more by example than command.