The hottest Engineering Teams Substack posts right now

AI could greatly help developers by automating routine tasks and improving productivity. It's important for teams to embrace these changes to stay effective.
Communication is crucial in engineering teams. It's vital to allow junior developers to learn from their mistakes and for everyone to share insights openly.
Good management practices are often lacking but very valuable. Establishing clear goals and regular check-ins can help teams perform better.

Organizational structure influences software design
Conway's Law states organizations produce designs reflecting their communication structures
Engineering team structure impacts product development

Estimations should not be mistaken for project planning to avoid unnecessary stress and friction.
Knowledge needed to estimate may be acquired mid-project, creating challenges at the project's start.
Engineer teams must have enough context to avoid making assumptions about business owners' perspectives.

Focusing on solving business problems is crucial when building a technical strategy.
Measuring the impact of an engineering manager requires a mix of quantitative and qualitative measures.
Taking risks, making mistakes, and pivoting are essential for growth in a company or team.

User-centric engineering teams lead to 40% higher organizational performance and 20% higher job satisfaction.
Understanding user needs, aligning with those needs, and using user feedback for prioritization positively impacts team outcomes.
User-centricity should be applied across different types of engineering teams, from product delivery to platform engineering, to improve performance.

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Time pressure in software development is influenced by poor effort estimates, project management issues, and company culture.
Three theories explain the effects of time pressure: Yerkes-Dodson Law, Job Demands-Resources Model, and Dimensional Model of Emotions.
Time pressure impacts individuals by decreasing confidence, process by affecting quality assurance, and efficiency and quality by increasing efficiency up to a certain point.

Improving employee well-being is crucial for team performance. Factors like organizational culture, stability, job security, and knowledge transfer can significantly reduce burnout.
Underrepresented groups, especially women, tend to experience higher levels of burnout. They often do more repetitive work that may not be recognized or aligned with their skills.
To combat burnout, teams can focus on distributing non-promotable work evenly, streamlining code writing and review processes, and prioritizing a healthy culture which leads to improved productivity.

Psychological safety in teams allows for open communication without fear of reprimand, crucial for innovation and risk-taking.
Team autonomy positively correlates with psychological safety, but this relationship differs based on project type and alignment.
High psychological safety levels can reduce turnover and boost project performance in engineering teams, making it a key factor in team success.