Managing your tech career
- 1. Managing Your Tech Career & Tracking Your Tech Greg Jensen Macalester College Olin Rice, room 100, Wednesday March 30, 2016 12:00 - 1:00pm
- 2. www.slideshare.net Search on “Greg Jensen” and you will spot the cover slide...
- 3. Overview Finding Your Path Building Your Personal Brand Evolving Your Mindset Tracking Your Tech
- 4. Finding Your Path Understand the industry landscape and how to plot your own path through it: How does it all work? What is your best fit? Common Personas Taking care of yourself Telling your story
- 5. How does it all work? (common titles) CEO, CIO, CTO, COO, CPO, CSO… EVP, SVP, VP, Senior Director, Director Chief Architect, Head Engineer, Fellow, Associate Fellow, Senior Staff, Staff.. Senior Engineer, Engineer, Associate Engineer, Intern Senior Manager, Manager Senior Analyst, Analyst
- 6. How does it all work? (many roles) Architecture / Infrastructure / Networks / Devices / Security / Software Development / DevOps / Testing & QA / Program & Project Management / Business Analysis / Requirements Management / Process Engineering / Team & Department Management / Business Intelligence & Reporting / UX / Product Management
- 7. How does it all work? (many variations) Information Architect, UX Architect, Security Architect, Data Architect, Network Architect, Software Architect, Systems Architect, Application Architect, Solution Architect, Capability Architect, Enterprise Architect, Cloud Architect, Chief Architect
- 8. What is your best fit: Technical Depth Keep digging deeper into what is possible How it works, how to leverage or apply Technical Breadth Follow connections, look for synergy High level views, components & modules People Management Like to coach and mentor Care, share and support Art - Craft - Science Logic and Rules vs Creativity Tools or Systems vs Applications
- 9. Compensation = i* salary + j* stock options + k* benefits + l* who they get to work with + m* where they get to work + n* what they get to work on + . . . Managing the Unmanageable, Mantle and Lichty What is your best fit:
- 10. ● Timing - be patient, company and position first ● Base compensation ● Benefits ● Contracting vs FTE (30% plus or minus) ● Startups and Stock Options (vesting schedule, shares, and shares outstanding) Sidebar - let’s talk about...
- 11. Common Personas Biz Stakeholders Why does this take so long, why can’t I change this or that, when will it be ready??? Senior Management Time and cost estimates? What will the ROI be for each phase? Do we need this many people? Lowest contractor rates? Engineers We need these new tools. That is not best practices. We have to service our tech debt. This won’t work. That is not enough time! Ops & Security You will need a new license. That is not supported. This does not comply with policy. Not approved for deployment!
- 12. Common Personas Not a good strategy for engineers Don’t say “NO”, give options Explain tradeoffs Be positive, consistent, and rational
- 13. The single most important leader in an organization is your immediate supervisor. —JIM KOUZES You can safely assume all perceptions are real, at least to those who own them. —JOE FOLKMAN
- 14. You don’t have to like or admire your boss, nor do you have to hate him. You do have to manage him, however, so that he becomes your resource for achievement, accomplishment and personal success. —PETER DRUCKER
- 15. Taking Care Of Yourself (first, then your job)
- 16. Taking Care Of Yourself... Essentialism, The Disciplined Pursuit of Less (Greg McKeown): Half of the troubles of this life can be traced to saying Yes too quickly and not saying No soon enough. Josh Billings Flow, The Genius of Routine - Routine, in an intelligent man, is a sign of ambition. W.H. Auden
- 17. Taking Care Of Yourself… diet, exercise & budget YMMV - but we all have to guard against burnout Time to do my job, 32 hrs Time to communicate and manage (up, down, sideways), 8 hours Time to study best practices, learn what is new, 8 hours Time to network, 2 hours
- 18. Telling Your Story First things first, pause for some gratitude… we are lucky to be knowledge workers and in such a healthy industry Do you fill squares or fill a role? Why are you here, right here right now, what brought you here? If we created the perfect job for you, the one that would fit you best and position you to bring the most value and
- 19. Telling Your Story Now create an arc that connects the dots from your first interests and activities to this ideal landing zone of a perfect job. This is your career narrative. You are now the main character in your own lifetime movie, you have an arc to follow with lessons learned from both failure and success, with a supporting cast that helped educate, challenge and collaborate with you on your journey.
- 20. Activity - Build a short narrative and “tell me about yourself” Early Interests ● Passions ● Aptitude ● Influencers ● Talent ● Energy ● Fun Skills & Experience Think through each step of your journey: What did you do? What did you learn? Quantify and qualify results Why did you leave? Why did you pick the Direction & Vision Weave it all together and smooth out your arc: 1. Fine tune and revise as needed 2. Show true north 3. Develop the overall value proposition
- 21. This is my true passion - and it informs my daily work if I stay focused and balanced
- 22. My Journey 1982 Apple II (first love), 1983 TRS-80 (first line of code), 1984 Z-100 (first IT job) College Dropout, Bioenvironmental Technician, Computer Programmer, Intelligence Analyst, Counterdrug Intelligence Analyst, Unix Systems Administrator, Scientific Programmer, Team Lead, Sales Engineer, Systems Architect, Director of Systems Integration, Director of Research & Development, Consultant, Founder & CTO, Consulting CTO, Interim CTO, Technology Practice Manager, Unemployed, Executive Consultant, Acting VP of Enterprise Architecture, CTO, Program Manager & Lead Technologist, Product Manager, Acting VP of Engineering, Solution Architect, Senior Program Architect, VP of Engineering, UMSEC Adjunct Faculty Member, SVP of Engineering
- 23. Building Your Personal Brand Bringing your career narrative to life and finding what is essential: Authenticity Performance Linkedin Community Participation Permission Just Ask...
- 24. Authenticity So easy to underestimate the importance of this... No mask, no fear, be true to who you are, be in touch with your own gut and intuition, and feel the connection to your heart - Patty Jensen (my wife) Build a support network, start with one person you really trust
- 25. Performance Results = Results Anything Else = Results
- 26. Performance... How you do anything is how you do everything - Buddhist expression How you do what’s next is how you do what’s next - Greg Jensen
- 27. LinkedIn Why bother with a resume anymore? (because you have to) Just do it, and keep at it... Google is your friend, learn best practices and dig through examples Don’t keep changing it for every job opening Your profile is your passport (not your narrative)
- 28. Community You are a “company”, an army of one, and your brand matters Everyone you interact with is a “customer” and their experience matters Be positive and communicate thoughtfully, be helpful Don’t do it well because people don’t forget, do it well because you don’t forget, you have muscle memory
- 29. Participation It’s hard being an introvert, but there are so many benefits… (and extroverts are still OK too) Make the effort to come out and play Think about what best supports your narrative and spend your time wisely Choose your moments at the office, there is plenty of oxygen to go around
- 30. Permission It starts with you Grade yourself on a scale of 1 - 10 and be honest, but know that people rarely rank you higher than you are willing to rank yourself Rich vs Poor (and not just in dollars) often comes down to what you think you deserve, to your sense of self-worth
- 31. Just Ask... Not just me, I mean anyone, anytime, for just about anything This is the single biggest blocker in our own daily career standup Don’t bring any pressure or obligation or expectation, just ask people if they can help you with whatever you need help on… and make it clear you are happy to reciprocate in any way that you can
- 32. Evolving Your Mindset We could complain and criticize, or we could grow stronger and happier: Core Values Growth & Learning Mindset Imposter Syndrome Staying above the line...
- 33. Core Values What are yours, what are your employers and do they align? Some examples: Clear Communications Ownership Craftsmanship Recognition Customer-Centric Thinking Respect & Humility Dogfooding Results Over Politics
- 34. Core Values... Culture reflects the real values of a company and its employees (recruiting makes all the difference) ...along with the agenda and competency of senior leadership Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast :) Read the history about this quote on Quora
- 35. Growth & Learning Mindset Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol Dweck https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wh0OS4MrN3E
- 36. Mindsetonline.com In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success—without effort. They’re wrong.
- 37. Mindsetonline.com... In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. Virtually all great people have had these qualities.
- 38. Mindsetonline.com... Teaching a growth mindset creates motivation and productivity in the worlds of business, education, and sports. It enhances relationships. When you read Mindset, you’ll see how.
- 39. Imposter Syndrome If you feel anxious or feel like your confidence is slipping away, look this up and read about it and take it all in. This is extremely important for many of us and we need to step back and know that we are OK, that we belong here and have in fact earned our seat at the table.
- 40. Staying Above The Line The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership, Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman, & Kaley Warner Klemp https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovrVv_RlCM w
- 42. The Drama Triangle Victim Hero Villian Wanting to be right Blame Fear
- 43. Servant Leadership “SOMEONE WHOSE PRIMARY MOTIVE IS TO HELP OTHERS SUCCEED.” - SIMON SINEK, LEADERS EAT LAST
- 44. Tracking Your Tech Do the work: Read every day Books, blogs, podcasts, youtube... Your Tech Radar Context & Ecosystem
- 45. Read (and watch, and listen, and learn…) ● Start with Google ● Establish regular touch points ● Explore terms and references...don’t settle! ● If not knowing how things work is something you are comfortable with, you are in the wrong business
- 46. Tech Radar Neal Ford, Thoughtworks https://www.thoughtworks.com/insights/blog/build- your-own-technology-radar Split into 4 quadrants: Techniques, Tools, Platforms, and Languages & Frameworks with four rings, from outer to inner: hold, assess, trial, and adopt. What makes sense for you? Modify to suit your needs and go through the exercise of building one.
- 47. Appreciate the ecosystem and your context: Corporate Interests You are here :) Best Practices Consumer Interests Science
- 48. In Summary: ● Observe The Landscape ● Visualize Your Own Path ● Experience Your Journey ● Appreciate The Ecosystem
- 49. Thank You