In the last episode we recorded in the "before times", Nick and Brandon discuss the connection between blameless culture, systems thinking, and just culture. Nick explains how blame robs learning, and how to foster an environment that allows the system to learn and improve. They talk about how accountability fits into a blameless culture, and Nick introduces Sidney Decker's idea of Forward Accountability and shifting behavior rather than assigning blame.Show notes:Just culturehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_cultureNick's talk on Three Mile Islandhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMk6rF4TzsgField guide to understanding human errorhttps://www.amazon.com/Field-Guide-Understanding-Human-Error/dp/0754648257Sidney Decker: Forward accountabilityhttps://sidneydekker.com/just-culture/

In another episode recorded in the "before times", Travis talks about finding the balance between not enough and too much process. Is Scrum too much process? How do you tell when process is designed to help versus be a remote control for a team? What if the process is being blamed for other problems? They discuss the signals that tell you when a process isn't working for you and when to modify existing processes versus throw them out.Notes:Extreme Programming Explained by Kent Beckhttps://www.amazon.com/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658Scrum Guide ™ ™ ™ ® ® ®https://www.scrumguides.org/index.htmlTaylorism (Scientific Management)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_management

In an episode recorded in "the before times" that we feel is still relevant, Nick suggested we talk about what to do when you can't do it all. Nick, Brandon, and Travis discuss how the game of "Calendar Jenga" is symptomatic. What happens when your calendar is so full of "valuable" things that you have to choose between lunch or more meetings? Nick talks about using WIP limits to keep your calendar clean, and Travis talks about how designing your schedule is like designing teams.Notes:@catehstn tweet:https://twitter.com/catehstn/status/1231685231909974018Your calendar is a trash firehttps://speakerdeck.com/tehviking/the-new-managers-toolkit?slide=62Time blockinghttps://blog.rescuetime.com/time-blocking-101/Time Management Matrixhttps://facilethings.com/blog/en/time-management-matrix

Travis, Nick, and Brandon ask: what do you do when you have a sense that things are about to change? What about when your work evaporates due to a startup pivot or major organizational change? They talk about how to help maintain a team's composure and capability during times of uncertainty or lack of clear direction, including leaning on your own manager.

Burnout is a very real problem right now, and is often aggravated in our jobs as managers, ironically in our work to help others avoid burning themselves out. Nick, Travis, and Brandon ask: how do you stop the cycle of overwork that led you to success in the first place? How do you take a break? Once you do, how do you come back to work? They discuss learning to set boundaries and say no, even to things we want. Travis compares burnout to technical debt. Nick explains how systemic thinking can alleviate the "trapped" feeling that can exacerbate burnout.Show notes:6 Causes of Burnouthttps://hbr.org/2019/07/6-causes-of-burnout-and-how-to-avoid-them

Nick, Travis, and Brandon talk about the chaotic and downright scary state of the world and our own prior adjustments to remote work. They discuss ways to lead authentically in these times, and how remote work has helped them learn how integrate life and work (and also, paradoxically, how to keep them separate).Show notes:Bringing your whole self to work https://mike-robbins.com/work/CNN/BBC guy gets interrupted by childhttps://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2017/03/10/interview-interrupted-children-newday.cnn Career timeline exercisehttp://lanipeterson.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Career-Timeline-Exercise-01.2015.pdfBasecamp: Shape Uphttps://basecamp.com/shapeup Miro (formerly RealtimeBoard)https://miro.com/

Travis and Brandon talk about the tendency of software developers to fall into an "overly strategic" or "overly tactical" style of thinking. How do you encourage individuals and teams to consider both near and long term impact in their day to day work? How does team design factor in? What can you do if external factors are causing or aggravating these challenges? Is there a way to achieve balance?Show notes:A Philosophy of Software Designhttps://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-Software-Design-John-Ousterhout/dp/1732102201/Pragmatic Programmerhttps://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Programmer-journey-mastery-Anniversary/dp/0135957052/ E myth revisitedhttps://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280/

Nick, Travis, and Brandon talk about the seasonality of work and how that affects individuals and teams. They talk about how they work with low points in the cycle and how to capitalize on the high points, rather than fighting these cycles. How can you change the rhythm when things are flagging too much? What do you do when you can't move dates or deadlines around? When is it OK to ask the team for an "above and beyond push"?Notes:Shop Class as Soulcrafthttps://www.amazon.com/Shop-Class-Soulcraft-Inquiry-Value/dp/0143117467The Productivity Cyclehttps://alexsexton.com/blog/2014/1/the-productivity-cycle/

Brandon asks Nick about a piece of advice he doesn't even remember giving about teaching teams to manage themselves. Nick, Travis, and Brandon explore tough questions around self-managing teams: How do you know when to let go and when to step in? What is the job of a manager on a self-managing team? How do you deal with micromanagement from above? How do you dig out if your team can't live without you?

Travis and Brandon talk about how teams can support early-career developers and career changers. What environments are they a good fit for? How do you set expectations for newer folks? How can you help them get and stay productive? Is the cost of doing so worth it?They also talk about the surprising lack of definition around the space between "Entry-Level" and "Senior" engineers to define the main role that the rest are supposedly based on. They talk about the Dreyfus model of skill acquisition, how folks get stuck in "Advanced Beginner" stage, and how to help them move to "Competent" and toward real, holistic expertise.Notes:Zone of Proximal Developmenthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_of_proximal_developmentCharity Majors tweethttps://twitter.com/mipsytipsy/status/1191622396207190016Bryan Liles tweethttps://twitter.com/bryanl/status/1192408098457174016?s=21 Dreyfus model of skill acquisitionhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreyfus_model_of_skill_acquisition