Confessions of a First-Time Engineering Manager
summary
Story of a move from QA into engineering management that names concrete outcomes and surprises: reviewed 50 job postings to map real expectations, spends two and a half years at a fast‑changing Polish startup, managed five teams (at one point reorganizing up to seven), drives delivery that reaches market even as leadership later disbands teams, and endures frantic context switching (four to five switches per hour), juggling recruitment, people and product strategy, technical guidance, and frequent hands‑on code reading.
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chapters (14)
- 0:00My journey to engineering management
- 2:13Why I became a manager
- 3:40What engineering managers do
- 6:56Overwhelming role expectations
- 9:50The many hats of management
- 12:42Pros and cons of management
- 15:58Challenges of context switching
- 17:20Why loving people is essential for the role
- 18:44Testing background for management
- 20:30Real-world management problems
- 21:12Key characteristics of great managers
- 21:54Balancing upper management
- 23:17Working without direct subordinates
- 23:39Daily QA collaboration
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