Leading leaders who lead engineers (remastered)

Mar 26, 2025

Lara Hogan, a management coach and author of 'Resilient Management,' shares her expertise on leading engineers. She discusses the essential roles of leaders, such as mentoring, coaching, and giving feedback. Lara emphasizes the power of sponsorship in professional development, especially for underrepresented groups. The importance of adaptability in leadership is highlighted, along with the psychological dynamics of workplace relationships. She also addresses the challenges engineers face in transitioning to management roles, reinforcing that effective leadership skills can be learned.

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ADVICE

Sponsorship over Mentorship

Consider sponsorship opportunities to support growth.
Put someone's name forward for visible, valuable work.

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INSIGHT

Unintentional Sponsorship

Managers often unknowingly sponsor, not mentor, for growth.
Lara Hogan's workshop reveals this through participant stories.

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ANECDOTE

Military Leadership

Adam Stacoviak shares how an unexpected leadership opportunity in the military shaped his career.
Being thrust into a leadership position fostered growth.

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The Power of Sponsorship in Leadership

05:13 • 20min

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Adapting Leadership Strategies and Accelerating Development Workflows

25:20 • 4min

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Navigating Leadership Roles

29:26 • 16min

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Neuroscience of Workplace Dynamics and Influencing Change

45:43 • 4min

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Maximizing Impact with Rapid Application Development

49:49 • 3min

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Navigating the Management Transition

52:19 • 16min

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Navigating the Leadership Spectrum: Linchpins vs. Cogs

Laura Hogan's "Resilient Management" offers a practical guide to effective leadership in the tech industry. The book emphasizes the importance of empathy, compassion, and understanding in building strong teams. Hogan explores various leadership styles and provides actionable strategies for fostering a positive and productive work environment. She highlights the crucial roles of mentorship, coaching, and sponsorship in developing individual team members. The book is a valuable resource for engineering managers and leaders seeking to improve their skills and create a more resilient and successful team.

Linchpin

Are You Indispensable?

Seth Godin

In 'Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? ', Seth Godin argues that the modern workplace has evolved beyond the traditional roles of management and labor. He introduces the concept of 'linchpins' – individuals who are indispensable to their organizations because they invent, lead, connect others, and create order out of chaos. Godin emphasizes the importance of creativity, passion, and art in one's work, suggesting that these qualities make an individual irreplaceable. The book encourages readers to stop being mere cogs in a machine and instead strive to become artists who bring unique value and meaning to their work and organizations.

Essentialism

The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

Greg McKeown

In 'Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less,' Greg McKeown argues that by applying a more selective criteria for what is essential, individuals can regain control of their time and energy. The book is divided into sections such as Explore, Eliminate, and Execute, providing practical advice on distinguishing the vital few from the trivial many and eliminating non-essential activities. McKeown emphasizes the importance of clarity of focus, the ability to say 'no,' and living 'by design, not by default. ' This approach helps readers achieve more by doing less and making the highest possible contribution in their personal and professional lives.

Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard

Chip Heath

Dan Heath

In 'Switch', Chip and Dan Heath explain that the primary obstacle to change is the conflict between the rational mind and the emotional mind. They present a framework for change that involves directing the rational mind, motivating the emotional mind, and shaping the environment. The book uses compelling stories and decades of research in psychology and sociology to illustrate how everyday people have achieved significant changes in various contexts, such as healthcare, home organization, and customer service.

Atomic Habits

James Clear

Atomic Habits by James Clear provides a practical and scientifically-backed guide to forming good habits and breaking bad ones. The book introduces the Four Laws of Behavior Change: make it obvious, make it attractive, make it easy, and make it satisfying. It also emphasizes the importance of small, incremental changes (atomic habits) that compound over time to produce significant results. Clear discusses techniques such as habit stacking, optimizing the environment to support desired habits, and focusing on continuous improvement rather than goal fixation. The book is filled with actionable strategies, real-life examples, and stories from various fields, making it a valuable resource for anyone seeking to improve their habits and achieve personal growth.

The Manager's Path

A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change

Camille Fournier

Camille Fournier's "The Manager's Path" provides a comprehensive guide to engineering management, offering insights into various aspects of leadership in technical teams. The book covers topics such as building high-performing teams, managing conflict, and making effective decisions. Fournier's experience in the tech industry provides a practical perspective, offering relatable scenarios and actionable strategies. The book is a valuable resource for aspiring and experienced engineering managers seeking to improve their skills and effectiveness. It offers a structured approach to navigating the challenges and opportunities of leadership in a technical environment.

This week we’re bringing you a remaster of our epic 2021interview with Lara Hogan – author of Resilient Management and management coach / trainer for the tech industry.

The majority of our conversation focuses on the four primary hats leaders and managers end up wearing; mentoring, coaching, sponsoring, and delivering feedback. We also talk about knowing when you’re ready to lead, empathy and compassion, and learning to lead.

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Sponsors:

Heroku – The Next Generation of Heroku “Fir” is coming soon — Fir is built on a foundation of cloud native technologies and open source standards, ensuring portability, interoperability, and a vibrant ecosystem for your applications. Cloud Native for everyone, for the next decade and beyond.
Depot – Build faster. Waste less time. Accelerate Docker image builds, and GitHub Actions workflows. Easily integrate with your existing CI provider and dev workflows to save hours of build time.
Retool – The low-code platform for developers to build internal tools — Some of the best teams out there trust Retool…Brex, Coinbase, Plaid, Doordash, LegalGenius, Amazon, Allbirds, Peloton, and so many more – the developers at these teams trust Retool as the platform to build their internal tools. Try it free at retool.com/changelog

Featuring:

Lara Hogan – Website, GitHub, LinkedIn, X
Adam Stacoviak – Website, GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, X
Jerod Santo – GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, X

Show Notes:

An excerpt from Resilient Management on A List Apart
Paloma Medina
Core Needs: BICEPS
Lara’s book
The Manager’s Path: A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change
Your brain on progress – Increment
Voltron!
I’m a cog
The Changelog #342: From zero to thought leader in 6 months with Emma Bostian
Lara Hogan on mentorship and sponsorship
What does sponsorship look like?
Linchpin from Seth Godin

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

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