Team Geek by Fitzpatrick, Brian W. -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Team Geek Praise for Team Geek Dedication Mission Statement Acknowledgments

From Fitz From Ben About the Authors

Introduction

Who Is This Book For?

Warning: This Is Not a Technical Manual The Contents of This Book Are Not Taught in School

The Pitch

1. The Myth of the Genius Programmer

Help Me Hide My Code The Genius Myth Hiding Is Considered Harmful It’s All About the Team The Three Pillars HRT in Practice

Lose the Ego

Learn to Both Deal Out and Handle Criticism

Fail Fast; Learn; Iterate Leave Time for Learning Learn Patience Be Open to Influence

Next Steps

2. Building an Awesome Team Culture

What Is Culture? Why Should You Care? Culture and People Communication Patterns of Successful Cultures High-Level Synchronization

The Mission Statement—No, Really Efficient Meetings Working in a “Geographically Challenged” Team Design Docs

Day-to-Day Discussions

Mailing Lists Online Chat

Using an Issue Tracker Communication as Part of Engineering

Code Comments Putting Your Name in Source Code Files (a.k.a., the “Author Tags” Issue) Require Code Reviews for Every Commit Have Real Test and Release Processes

It Really Is About the Code After All

3. Every Boat Needs a Captain

Nature Abhors a Vacuum @Deprecated Manager

“Leader” Is the New “Manager” The Only Thing to Fear Is … Well, Everything

The Servant Leader Antipatterns

Antipattern: Hire Pushovers Antipattern: Ignore Low Performers Antipattern: Ignore Human Issues Antipattern: Be Everyone’s Friend Antipattern: Compromise the Hiring Bar Antipattern: Treat Your Team Like Children

Leadership Patterns

Lose the Ego Be a Zen Master Be a Catalyst Be a Teacher and a Mentor Set Clear Goals Be Honest Track Happiness Other Tips and Tricks

People Are Like Plants Intrinsic Versus Extrinsic Motivation Final Thoughts

4. Dealing with Poisonous People

Defining “Poisonous” Fortifying Your Team Identifying the Threat

Not Respecting Other People’s Time Ego Overentitlement Immature or Confusing Communication Paranoia Perfectionism

Repelling the Poison

Redirect the Energy of Perfectionists Don’t Feed the Energy Creature Don’t Get Overly Emotional Look for Facts in the Bile Repel Trolls with Niceness Know When to Give Up Focus on the Long Term

A Final Thought

5. The Art of Organizational Manipulation

The Good, the Bad, and the Strategies The Ideal: How a Team Ought to Function Within a Company

Your Life Under an Ideal Manager

The Reality: When Your Environment Is an Obstacle to Your Success

Your Life Under a Bad Manager The Office Politician The Bad Organization

Manipulating Your Organization

“It’s Easier to Ask for Forgiveness Than Permission” If You Can’t Take the Path, Make the Path Learn to Manage Upward Luck and the Favor Economy Get Promoted to a Position of Safety Seek Powerful Friends How to Ask a Busy Executive for Anything … via Email

Plan B: Get Out All Is Not Lost

6. Users Are People, Too

Managing Public Perception

Pay Attention to First Impressions Underpromise and Overdeliver Work with Industry Analysts Respectfully

How Usable Is Your Software?

Choose Your Audience Consider Barrier to Entry Measure Usage, Not Users Speed Matters Don’t Be All Things Don’t Be Lazy Hide Complexity

Managing Your Relationship with Users

Don’t Be Condescending Be Patient Create Trust and Delight

Remember the Users

A. Epilogue

A Final Thought

B. Further Reading Index About the Authors Copyright

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