Observation created over 4 years agoOver the last couple of weeks, Casey and I have had some great conversation about how things are going. There are things that she was willing to tell me that i needed to hear. She also was interesting in hearing some of the things I had to say. She is interested in how I am doing as well as my opinions of our organization from a fresh perspective. This not only shares how she cares about me as a person, but about the place show works. This is an interaction that is outside her reporting structure, but she cares
Observation created almost 5 years agoasdf
Observation created over 5 years agoI want to give a well-deserved shout out to our awesome engineering managers.
First off, to Brea, who is making a point spending time getting to know each and every engineer on the team personally. It's really helped me to feel valued by her, and I'm sure will help her relationships with her reporting engineers start off a lot more smoothly. There are a million things she could be doing to be learning about Lessonly, our codebase, how managers here work, etc, but the fact that she has spent time getting to know us (and at more than a group level) shows me that her people are her biggest priority and that's huge. Thanks Brea!
And then of course to Casey, who has been working tirelessly as the solo manager for months now and, even though I wasn't here for most of those months, I feel confident saying she probably never complained. In the time I've been back since being on leave, I've been impressed at how she manages to meet with all of us, answer questions, write up stories, do code reviews, lead hiring, and still manage to be her positive, happy self that we have all come to appreciate. Thanks, Casey, for being a great manager while also leading and lifting up the team in so many ways. We are glad you decided to spend your superpowers on us here at Lessonly. :)
Observation created over 5 years agoFeaturing:Casey S.We don't wait to be told what to do, we take initiativeWe inspire others to do better workWe get agreementsDevX Enablement Leadhttps://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C927U8ZFV/p1567534294000800
Need I say more?
I think the awesomeness speaks for itself, but the specific things I love are:
1) See a need, fill a need... that policy has been in place for a year, and no one took the time to make sure it was being done and clear... but, you did.
2) Get agreements... in bold, and in a fun clear way, you ask not if you've seen it, but if you agree... masterful!
3) The kindness shown here is both blinding and inconspicuous. Fucking love it.
Observation created over 5 years agoFeaturing:Casey S.We inspire others to do better workWe get agreementsWe have difficult conversationsWe highlight what's workingWe critique, we don't complainManagerWow... just wow.
First, she tried something new, and added clarity as to how the new thing should flow:
https://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C8UPX4UPM/p1564432055022900
https://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C97TXG1PW/p1564432252002200Then, the retros happened... all three of them (I wasn't there, so I can't say how they actually went, but as an outside observer, I was impressed with what happened).
Then, she didn't let the things that were discussed die on the vine... no, she took it upon herself to write up the note for all three, with clear actions, and clear ownership of who is going to take on which actions:
https://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C97TXG1PW/p1564675008018100
https://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C8UPX4UPM/p1564675014002100
https://lessonly.slack.com/archives/C97TXG1PW/p1564670582013700I'm damn near in tears of pride and excitement (I cry a lot, so tears of joy, sadness, and pride are relatively common, but I will say they only come when something in the world hits me in my soul).
Here's why...
I've tried retros of all shapes and sizes. I've hated retros of all shapes and sizes. They are often well-intentioned, but it is really difficult to get a group of adults to open up and share in such a way that useful progress can be gleaned from it.
When looking at the result of this, I think of our value of critique, not complain. Clearly, what happened in those retros is people opened up, put themselves out there, and critiqued and not complained! I see no way clear action items like this could be found without that happening.
This shout out is aimed at Casey, but let's be clear, I'm thrilled with the vulnerability and teamwork that had to be shown by the entire Practice and Tech Services squads. Also, I Casey got the idea for this new format from Aaron (:highfive: man!!)
Casey, it has been amazing to work with you from day one, and every day I am a bit more in awe. Thank you for being you!!
Let's keep it rolling... ONWARD!!