In today’s episode, we have Vladimir Sheyda, Director of Engineering at Dropbox. He’s a passionate engineering leader with over 15 years of experience in application security and cloud infrastructure.

In this episode you'll learn:

➡️ What are the most important topics to cover in a 1:1 with your manager

➡️ What is the GROW framework nd how it can help your career

➡️ The big myth about who has more control, an engineer or their manager

Follow Culture of Code

➡️ Twitter - https://twitter.com/FelixThea

➡️ Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/culture-of-code-podcast/id1563271780

➡️ Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0fqIsZcqFeB6NTdKaHSJtP

Timestamps:

00:00 Into

03:01 The challenge of managing a large surface area for an infrastructure team with many internal clients, and how Vladimir stays abreast of everything.

04:25 How Vladimir prioritizes identifying and filling gaps in his team, specifically regarding hiring and training.

06:30 The Ignite program at Dropbox, which brings in people from other industries to provide new perspectives and technical training.

07:12 What makes an individual contributor (IC) coachable and able to upskill, according to Vladimir's experience.

09:05 The willingness to take risks and fail publicly as a necessary attribute for growth

11:41 Dealing with investing time into team members who may eventually leave or transfer teams.

13:36 The importance of taking risks in investing in team members, and that the alternative is much worse.

14:06 The manager's or director's job in identifying what motivates people to stay, and advice for those who are less experienced and don't yet know what motivates them.

17:17 Felix asks about the best way for ICs to get the most value out of one-on-one meetings with their managers.

20:26 How to handle situations where an IC doesn't agree with their manager's assessment of their work, and how to calibrate better in those situations.

24:42 The importance of being on the same page and using a growth framework to establish common goals between managers and ICs.

28:15 The skills needed to manage a growing team, and how to develop them along the way.

31:17 The differences between a top-down and bottom-up culture, and the pros and cons of each.

33:11 How to lead without relying on authority in a bottom-up culture, focusing on establishing common goals and optimizing approaches rather than being married to a particular solution.

35:06 Vladimir dispels the myth that managers have all the power, explaining that ICs actually have more control and power in the relationship dynamic at Dropbox.

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