Leadership in Tech
Leadership in Tech
#291 – March 05, 2026
unless you genuinely want to lead people staying on the technical track is the smarter bet right now
Don't become an engineering manager
5 minutes by Anton Zaides
In this post Anton points out that tech is moving fast, and stepping into engineering management means less time to keep up. The management career ladder is also shrinking, with fewer senior roles and more competition. Staff engineers now often out-earn managers when comparing across companies. Unless you genuinely want to lead people, Anton advises that staying on the technical track is the smarter bet right now.
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How to work with anyone
9 minutes by Deb Liu
Learning to work with almost anyone becomes one of the most important career skills as you rise, because your options narrow and you rarely get to choose who you work with. Deb suggests four practices that may help: understand what drives people by looking at their incentives, find genuine common ground, share praise openly, and position yourself beside people rather than across from them. Most difficult situations come from misalignment, not bad intent.
The complicators, the drama aggregators, and the avoiders
7 minutes by Michael Lopp
Effective leaders must understand what motivates their teams. Michael describes three difficult work styles: complicators who over-tinker and never finish, drama aggregators who spread energy and gossip, and avoiders who stay inside clear boundaries. Each type has strengths but can drain time and trust. Instead of blaming them, leaders must communicate clearly, set goals, and understand human drive to build strong, balanced teams.
Friction focused management
11 minutes by Petros Bountis
Friction at work is everywhere, but most people stay silent about it because naming problems feels like admitting weakness. Asking team members to name their top three frictions each week cuts through that habit and forces real prioritization over endless noise. The same question works as an interview tool too, since how a company describes its frictions reveals whether leadership actually understands its own problems.
How we hire engineers when AI writes our code
4 minutes by Dan Federman
Traditional technical interviews are flawed because they focus on memorizing algorithms instead of real-world skills. He describes a new interview approach that reflects daily engineering work and allows candidates to use AI tools. Instead of testing speed or recall, the process evaluates judgment, problem-solving, communication, and code quality. The goal is to hire engineers who can think critically and ship maintainable products.
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