Episode 42: How I went from "non-technical" to technical leader with Danielle Leong, VP of Engineering at Maca (ex-GitHub, and Twilio)

Episode 43: Trust the Process: How to succeed as a first-time manager with Stephanie Herre (Leadership Coach, Sales Leader at Remote.com, Ex-Cisco and SAP)

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Darja chatted with Stephanie Herre, Senior Sales Leader at Remote (ex-Cisco, and SAP). Stephanie shared her take on how AI will impact the future of work, and why we need fewer managers, but more leaders. She discussed the simple steps you can take not to feel overwhelmed as a leader, how to say “no” at work without sounding rude, and still be there for your team. Stephanie believes the skill of asking the right questions at work and being self-reflective is underrated, and the world needs better question-askers, not better talkers. She also shared what she struggled with the most as a first-time manager and how she learned to set communication boundaries at work to maximize productivity, live a full life, and help her team do the same. In this episode, you’ll learn: * How Stephanie transformed her under-performing team as a first-time manager and gained her team’s trust while helping everyone achieve their goals * What makes a true leader nowadays, and the super skills that will help you to go from good to great leader * How to utilize and make the most out of the 30-60-90 plan, and why this good old framework, should be your go-to tool as a first-time manager * Will we need managers in the coming years at all, and why in the future with AI, you won’t go far without the human skills Timecodes: * 4:20 - the question you ask someone at the beginning of their leadership journey * 6:05 - will AI replace managers, will we need managers in the coming years at all? * 9:00 - in the future with AI, you won’t go far without the human skills * 14:05 - the simple steps you can take not to feel overwhelmed as a leader * 18:00 - how to say “no” and decline meetings at work without being rude * 26:00 - role play: how to help your coachees or mentees apply what they’ve learned in the sessions * 29:30 - how Stephanie transformed her under-performing team as a first-time manager * 30:20 - the number one advice to first-time managers: utilize the good old 30-60-90 plan * 33:30 - a quick practice to free up your schedule * 37:25 - the 3 main skills you need to train for the future of work * 42:00 - the competitive advantage of introverted leaders Connect with Danielle: * Twitter: https://twitter.com/coachsteph2022 [https://twitter.com/coachsteph2022] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephherre/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephherre/] * Udemy Course: https://www.udemy.com/course/306090plan-leadership/ [https://www.udemy.com/course/306090plan-leadership/] Connect with Darja: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick [https://twitter.com/darjagutnick] Follow Bunch: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ [https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ] Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8]

Episode 42: How I went from "non-technical" to technical leader with Danielle Leong, VP of Engineering at Maca (ex-GitHub, and Twilio)

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Darja chatted with Danielle Leong, currently VP of Engineering at Maca, working on SaaS pricing insights. She started her career as an early engineer at Twilio, after that Danielle became a Director of Engineering, building a tech team to lead the development of mission-critical services at GitHub. She is a passionate learner and loves mentoring others on their journey, she also has her own photography studio where she captures and amplifies diverse and unique voices. Danielle shared her nontypical career journey, and how she balances her technical and creative sides (and how they complement each other). She also shared her take on leading by example, why failing is healthy, and how to actually apply learnings from the past to solve problems in the present. Danielle believes even if you are early on in your career or come from a different background you always have something to bring to the table, you just gotta believe in yourself and be curious! In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why technical talent is made, not born, and the two qualities you actually need to succeed on the tech leadership journey * How to make sense of all the resources out there, adjust them as a template to fit the needs of your team, and then pick out a specific solution * Why leading by example is not showing what you know but rather stepping up and admitting what you don’t know * How failing fast and failing often can help you become a better professional and why none of us actually “have it together” Timecodes: * 6:00 - why curiosity and drive to learn are the only things you need to succeed in anything * 8:20 - how to apply learnings from the past, what inspires Danelle today, and what she’s keen on learning more about * 11:00 - why you gotta fail fast and fail forward, and how failure can positively shape your journey * 13:50 - none of us “have it together” and even leaders fail * 16:30 - if people are afraid to admit they don’t know something, you need to lead by example * 24:28 - Panda Planner method for productivity * 27:35 - unpopular opinions about engineering management * 38:00 - no matter what you’re going through, you are not alone, and there are definitely mentors and people out there ready to help Connect with Danielle: * Twitter: https://twitter.com/tsunamino [https://twitter.com/tsunamino] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielleleong/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielleleong/] Connect with Darja: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick [https://twitter.com/darjagutnick] Follow Bunch: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ [https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ] Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8]

Episode 41: From chaos to clarity and how to lead with confidence with Eric Weiss, Executive Coach, and ex-CTO

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Eric Weiss, ex-CTO at Rock My World, Angel Investor, CEO, and Podcast Host at Chaos To Clarity, and an Executive Coach working with technical founders and executives to help them overcome the challenges of growth. Eric shared his two guiding leadership philosophies that helped him throughout his career, and his key learnings on the pillars you have to oversee and manage as an engineering leader, and how to balance them all. Eric also shared how was passionate about technology alone at first, but after beginning his engineering career, he discovered his love for working with people and leading teams, how much he enjoyed understanding the motivations of each team member, how to best work and collaborate with them, and leverage their own motivations to achieve the shared team goals, which ultimately led him to become an engineering leader and coach. In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why the role of the CTO is the most complicated C-level role and is it even possible to truly excel in it at all * Why executives sometimes make bad decisions and how to prevent it - spoiler alert: Eric does a live exercise for that in the podcast! * Why understanding the product-building methodologies and being customer-centric is more important than being a good coder * BONUS: top learnings from 40 Teams at Work episodes from our co-founders Anthony and Darja Timecodes: * 2:11 - where Eric’s passion for leadership and technology came from * 5:15 - why the role of the CTO is the most complicated C-level role * 9:15 - the pillars you have to oversee and manage as an engineering leader, and how to balance it all * 13:13 - why is it important for engineers to be customer-centric * 21:30 - understanding the product-building methodologies is more important than being a good coder * 25:15 - Eric’s two guiding leadership philosophies * 36:00 - what are the most common challenges executives and founders are facing today, and how Eric helps them navigate this chaos * 39:17 - you should be leading out of confidence, not out of fear * 42:00 - feeling scared as a leader? Do this exercise * 46:00 - Eric’s advice to his younger self Connect with Eric: * Twitter: https://twitter.com/realEricWeiss [https://twitter.com/realEricWeiss] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericmweiss/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericmweiss/] * Podcast: https://linktr.ee/chaos2clarity [https://linktr.ee/chaos2clarity] Connect with Anthony: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo [https://twitter.com/anthonyareo] Follow Bunch: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ [https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ] Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8]

Episode 40: Hot Takes with Raz Shuty: Why working in sprints sucks, the downsides of remote work and more

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Raz Shuty, Senior Director of Engineering at Delivery Hero with over 12 years of experience leading technology teams. Raz shared why he hated the role of a manager at first, and how he struggled to fit in, what he learned about leadership from his father, a chef and why the first manager he ever had is a role model when it comes to management. In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why becoming a manager in engineering means a negative return on investment on the craft that brought you to the role * Why Raz hated his first engineering manager job, quit, and how he ultimately found his role and got to enjoy it * How working in sprints can suck, and what you can do to find a framework that will work best for your team and your goals * The limitations of remote work and why there is an upside to working in an office Timecodes: * 2:06 - how being a Senior Director of Engineering can be a nightmare * 9:40 - why you should not become a manager * 12:30 - did Raz ever regret becoming an engineering manager * 16:00 - go-to tools and hacks to stay productive as a manager * 19:50 - how to determine your mission for the week and prioritize effectively * 25:05 - what is the primary difference between managing individual contributors vs. other managers * 33:30 - the benefits and the struggles of remote work through the lens of an engineering leader * 48:00 - growth is not a numbers game, sometimes it’s about doing as much as you can with what you have in the moment * 50:30 - creating a fun environment is an underrated part of management that can actually result in better team engagement * 53:00 - why Raz despises sprints as a work framework for engineering teams Connect with Raz: * Blog: somehowimanage.blog [http://somehowimanage.blog] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raz-schweiger-shuty-86299814/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/raz-schweiger-shuty-86299814/] * Podcast: techpointcharlie.blog [http://techpointcharlie.blog] Connect with Anthony: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo [https://twitter.com/anthonyareo] Follow Bunch: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ [https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ] Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8]

Episode 39: The 4-part formula for high performance teams: lessons learned at Monzo and Pleo

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Meri Williams. Meri was the CTO at Monzo - the online bank - before it even became a bank! She led the technology team through a period of immense growth in both the team itself and in the customer base. Now as the CTO at Pleo, Meri is continuing to lead teams through different changes while enabling each team member to reach their full potential. Meri shared her key learnings on what it actually takes to create a healthy, safe, diverse and inclusive work environment, as well as why high-performing teams are the ones who are happy, and feel comfortable in their individual roles. Meri also discussed what she would do differently as a new CTO, some of her best principles for success and why sometimes hotdogs are the only thing you need to make your team happy. In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why management (especially in engineering) is a career change, not a promotion, and how can you succeed in it * What it really takes to build a diverse and inclusive team: 3 questions you should ask yourself * What is the real difference between being nice vs. kind to your team and the impact it can have * Why you shouldn’t treat others like you would want to be treated. Rather treat them like they want to be treated Timecodes: * 2:30 - the challenges of joining a growing startup as a CTO * 12:00 - purpose, autonomy, mastery, inclusion: the magic formula for high performance * 14:00 - the model for DEI: 3 questions you should ask * 32:00 - why management is a career change, not a promotion and how can you succeed in it * 41:00 - how to help people feel safe at work, enabling them to reach their potential: be nice AND kind * 51:00 - how to really be an empathetic person and leader Connect with Meri: * Twitter: https://twitter.com/Geek_Manager [https://twitter.com/Geek_Manager] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meriwilliams/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meriwilliams/] Connect with Anthony: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo [https://twitter.com/anthonyareo] Follow Bunch: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/] * Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ [https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ] Other helpful resources: * Learn more about engineering leadership from Lara Hogan: https://larahogan.me/ [https://larahogan.me/] * Learn more about being an Engineering Manager: https://nickmchardy.com/2019/02/on-being-an-engineering-manager.html [https://nickmchardy.com/2019/02/on-being-an-engineering-manager.html] * The home of engineering management: https://leaddev.com/ [https://leaddev.com/] Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8]