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The Alpha Engineer

blog.aha.io

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Re: The Alpha Engineer

#11

Post by bdehaaff »

chaetodon wrote: post #2

IMHO an alpha engineer should do one of two things: 1) Architect the application and divide the detail programming in enough well-defined subtasks that lesser gods can start working on these subtasks while the alpha starts engineering further. Well-defined subtasks need relatively little communication, and economies of scale are used. 2) Add the brilliance to an existing framework built by beta engineers (Like Rembra…

Good addition. The Alpha needs to be cognizant of the lifecycle of a given project and be able to motivate a broader team.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#12

Post by mdehaaff »

I have led product in a number of software companies -- some with an Alpha Engineer and some without. The companies with a dominate engineer have outperformed the others when the lead engineer could relate to the other teams and customers. This is a fine reminder, but you should note that no matter how great the star is, he is still part of a team.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#13

Post by bdehaaff »

mdehaaff wrote: post #12

I have led product in a number of software companies -- some with an Alpha Engineer and some without. The companies with a dominate engineer have outperformed the others when the lead engineer could relate to the other teams and customers. This is a fine reminder, but you should note that no matter how great the star is, he is still part of a team.

Agreed. @malandrew mentioned something similar. The Alpha Engineer can be a force for good if she works well and motivates the team.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#14

Post by adamnemecek »

bdehaaff wrote: post #8
adamnemecek wrote: post #3

I'm not quite sure what is the point of this post. Being smart = good. Thanks for the heads up? And I'm sure that building aha.io is extremely intellectually demanding (judging by description on the splash page). Also isn't this just that one thing that Steve Jobs used to say but in a blog post form?

The point is simple. Find the Alpha Engineer and put him or her in a position to succeed, get rid of group think, and prosper.

Well in that case that's a pretty shitty point and goes against what people (e.g. Joel Spolsky) have been saying about team building.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#15

Post by bdehaaff »

adamnemecek wrote: post #14
bdehaaff wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point is simple. Find the Alpha Engineer and put him or her in a position to succeed, get rid of group think, and prosper.

Well in that case that's a pretty shitty point and goes against what people (e.g. Joel Spolsky) have been saying about team building.

Alright. I guess we all should just quit what we are doing, throw out our own experiences, and follow Joel's advice.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#16

Post by k1w1 »

bdehaaff wrote: post #8
adamnemecek wrote: post #3

I'm not quite sure what is the point of this post. Being smart = good. Thanks for the heads up? And I'm sure that building aha.io is extremely intellectually demanding (judging by description on the splash page). Also isn't this just that one thing that Steve Jobs used to say but in a blog post form?

The point is simple. Find the Alpha Engineer and put him or her in a position to succeed, get rid of group think, and prosper.

I don't know that it is always the case that putting a productive developer in charge of a team is the best approach either. Just because someone can code doesn't mean that they can lead - and anyway, by putting them in charge you just added another distraction to the day anyway.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#17

Post by adamnemecek »

bdehaaff wrote: post #15
adamnemecek wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well in that case that's a pretty shitty point and goes against what people (e.g. Joel Spolsky) have been saying about team building.

Alright. I guess we all should just quit what we are doing, throw out our own experiences, and follow Joel's advice.

Yeah that or maybe before writing another post like this, you might want to stop and thing whether you are really in a position to be pontificating about anything.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#18

Post by bdehaaff »

k1w1 wrote: post #16
bdehaaff wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point is simple. Find the Alpha Engineer and put him or her in a position to succeed, get rid of group think, and prosper.

I don't know that it is always the case that putting a productive developer in charge of a team is the best approach either. Just because someone can code doesn't mean that they can lead - and anyway, by putting them in charge you just added another distraction to the day anyway.

I think you are misinterpreting the point and blog post. I am not arguing that a lead engineer should be in charge of every team or even the broader engineering team. The point is that great engineers are different and can have an exponential impact on a product and company.

Re: The Alpha Engineer

#20

Post by bdehaaff »

adamnemecek wrote: post #17
bdehaaff wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alright. I guess we all should just quit what we are doing, throw out our own experiences, and follow Joel's advice.

Yeah that or maybe before writing another post like this, you might want to stop and thing whether you are really in a position to be pontificating about anything.

How true. I ask myself that question every day. Feel free to look me up and come to your own conclusion. Best.
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