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Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

allen.bargi.org

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Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#31

Post by [deleted] »

AuthorizedCust wrote: post #29
jnovek wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“Leadership”, whether you like the LinkedIn-ism or not (I also think it’s stupid), generally refers to upper management, not people management. At my startup, my team reached a headcount of ~30 and I had to design process to keep things moving. Getting a bunch of disparate parts in even a 100 person company to produce the artifacts needed to create software is a massive undertaking that doesn’t involve people managem…

Leadership is a mutual influence process that happens outside formal authority. It’s not a corporate title or rung on a ladder. If one is a leader, that’s a status informally conveyed by the leader’s voluntary followers.

[deleted]

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#32

Post by spacechild1 »

AuthorizedCust wrote: post #29
jnovek wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“Leadership”, whether you like the LinkedIn-ism or not (I also think it’s stupid), generally refers to upper management, not people management. At my startup, my team reached a headcount of ~30 and I had to design process to keep things moving. Getting a bunch of disparate parts in even a 100 person company to produce the artifacts needed to create software is a massive undertaking that doesn’t involve people managem…

Leadership is a mutual influence process that happens outside formal authority. It’s not a corporate title or rung on a ladder. If one is a leader, that’s a status informally conveyed by the leader’s voluntary followers.

Exactly. For example, you can be the leader of an open source project.

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#33

Post by dotancohen »

wewewedxfgdf wrote: post #6

Not for me. My head is in exactly the same place as coding - deep technical connection to the mental model of what is being built.

I agree completely. Maybe binge vibe coding is "management" or "leadership" but for actually building production applications all the classic low-level concerns still apply. VIM keybindings didn't change that, autocomplete and syntax highlighting didn't change that, and having an LLM write the actual lines of code doesn't change that.

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#34

Post by conartist6 »

woadwarrior01 wrote: post #28
conartist6 wrote: post #19

Why are LLM users such poor leaders then? To go anywhere serious you have to lead people, but even the ones who should be leading people are heads down talking to the LLM

Perhaps some of the people who got into traditional leadership roles got there due to factors besides their raw leadership abilities. LLMs are an equalizer, and with them, the inability to lead them simply becomes a "skill issue", for the lack of a better term.

An equalizer, yes. They lift up those with little skill, and they drag down the top talent.

This is a practical effect by which top talent is neutralized. Where they should lead people, they talk to models instead. ...now you have a generation of leaders that don't deal well with any real emotion or disagreement. They can steer but not lead -- many no longer believe in the value or efficacy of leading people.

Of course you are also right to point out that many people in "traditional leadership roles" have been content to sit back and steer rather than heading of the charge. I still wish to command both talents: steering and leadership. I refuse to flatten myself out to fit in better, and I always have.

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#37

Post by peder »

wewewedxfgdf wrote: post #6

Not for me. My head is in exactly the same place as coding - deep technical connection to the mental model of what is being built.

Delegation can still mean deep technical connection to the code, just without needing to write the code itself.

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#38

Post by andsoitis »

jnovek wrote: post #24
miyoji wrote: post #7

The word is "management", not "leadership". This comes across as a LinkedIn post filled with vague notions and weak writing. The conclusion also completely contradicts a previous point, which is that managing an LLM is not like managing a human. So the skills are, in contradiction to that LLM-ism of a conclusion, new. The author isn't using their people management skills, they're using new LLM-management skills. They…

“Leadership”, whether you like the LinkedIn-ism or not (I also think it’s stupid), generally refers to upper management, not people management. At my startup, my team reached a headcount of ~30 and I had to design process to keep things moving. Getting a bunch of disparate parts in even a 100 person company to produce the artifacts needed to create software is a massive undertaking that doesn’t involve people managem…

Leaders lead. Managers manage. It is something you do, rather than your title.

Some leaders are also great managers. Some managers are also great leaders.

But not all managers are leaders.

Re: Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding

#40

Post by VladVladikoff »

I was already in a management position when this started. But I also have 20 years of development experience. So for me it has been a super power. I do feel bad for all the devs trying to break into the industry right now though, it must be hard. I’ve basically stopped hiring devs for my company. I haven’t fired anyone but I have no plans to expand the team, even as our workload increases as the companies keep growing.
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