One quality every engineering manager should have? Empathy.
Feb 21, 2025
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Caitlin Weaver, Senior Engineering Manager at Clear, discusses her fascinating journey from aspiring museum designer to tech leader. She shares insights on the vital role of empathy in engineering management and how it fosters effective communication. Caitlin recounts a dramatic Kafka cluster failure, emphasizing teamwork in crisis. She elaborates on the evolution of platform engineering, advocating for collaboration and open-source contributions to tackle complexity. Her unique path illustrates the blend of creativity and technology.
Caitlin Weaver's non-linear career path emphasizes the importance of creativity and self-directed learning in technology careers.
The shift in platform engineering from project-based to product-based thinking highlights the need for user experience and efficiency in development.
Deep dives
The Impact of Algorand on Various Industries
Developers are leveraging the Algorand blockchain to create innovative solutions across multiple sectors, including finance, supply chain tracking, and climate technology. This decentralized platform enables the development of applications that can disrupt traditional business models by enhancing transparency and efficiency. For example, Algorand facilitates real-time tracking of goods in the supply chain, ensuring that products are delivered on time and under optimal conditions. By making blockchain technology accessible, it empowers a diverse range of developers to build practical applications that can address pressing societal challenges.
Innovative Pathways into Technology
Caitlin Weaver's journey into the tech world exemplifies a non-linear, creative approach to career development. Starting her fascination with technology at a young age, she created websites and even sold her own video games in middle school. Despite not pursuing formal education in programming initially, her interdisciplinary background in linguistics fostered a unique perspective on creating digital solutions. This unconventional path highlights how creativity and self-directed learning can lead to success in the tech industry.
The Evolution and Challenges of Platform Engineering
Platform engineering is increasingly recognized for its role in simplifying complex systems to enhance productivity within engineering teams. Caitlin discussed how her team transitioned from viewing their work as a collection of projects to treating it as a comprehensive product, focusing on user experience and efficiency. This shift underscores the challenge of managing complexity while providing developers with the tools they need to succeed. As platform engineering evolves, finding the right balance between abstraction and flexibility will remain a key concern for organizations.
CLEAR is an identity company trying to take the friction out of air travel (such as with TSA PreCheck, available through CLEAR), stadium events, and other experiences that require security screening.