Note: This is based on an excellent piece my coworker Lynie Wong wrote about an interview we did together. Check it out on Poll Everywhere’s blog. With the explosion of software engineering jobs, it can seem impossible to stand out amongst industry professionals with years of work experience. Here are a few ways to get yours noticed. 1. Create a unique resume design Avoid popular resume templates that follow a common format. If you decide to use one of the stock Google Docs or Microsoft Wor...

Note: This article is cross-posted from Poll Everywhere’s blog. This past month at Poll Everywhere, we rolled out a career in management progression. The approach mirrored that of our engineering career ladder. However, the larger scope required close collaboration with our People Operations (People Ops) team and consensus building across a broad audience. After establishing levels for our Individual Contributor (IC) engineers, managers on the team found themselves in limbo. When it came tim...

Note: This article is cross-posted from Poll Everywhere’s blog. Around a year and a half ago, we rolled out a career progression for Poll Everywhere engineers. I’ve organized my reflections about this work into a step-by-step guide to define an Individual Contributor ladder for your engineering team. Poll Everywhere was founded in 2007 by three engineers with consulting backgrounds. Our Engineering team didn’t put this progression in place until 2018. 11 years is a long time to go without f...

360° feedback, when done right, leads to some of the most eye-opening insights for self-reflection and personal growth. This process is different than individual feedback and there are subtle ways it can go wrong. In this article, I’ll break down how you can run great 360° feedback for your team. Terminology I’ve found 360° feedback most effective with a three-party system. The first is the person requesting feedback (requestor). The second is a group of people providing feedback. The thir...

Level 5 is the highest level of leadership. These people are all industry leaders like Lee Iacocca, Jack Welsch, and Steve Jobs. It’s hard to get here and once you’ve achieved this level there’s no guarantee you’ll stay. The reach and impact you have at this level is unparalleled. Positives Leading at this level fundamentally transforms an organization and leaves a legacy long after you’ve left. You have an opportunity to make a lasting impact on a very large group of people. Negatives It’s...

People that get to level 4 leadership can see beyond the short-term gains of getting things done as a team. When you develop your team into great leaders there is a force multiplying effect and the impact is far greater than the impact you could have as an individual. Positives Most leaders don’t get here. Often they’ll cap out at production. The force multiplying effect of developing your team is much higher than a single person’s output. Developing strong leaders at the company sets it up...

Production is where you can start building great momentum with your team. Starting with small wins you build up your credibility and reinvest in the team. Working on a team with a level 3 leader feels rewarding and is highly motivating. Positives Being productive attracts other productive people. There’s a mutual respect when people get things done together. With each successful project, you gain credibility. Lead by example to make the vision you’ve been setting for the team more concrete ...

Leading by permission is all about building strong relationships. Once that is established, people shift from being managed by you because you have the job title to being lead by you because they trust that you have their best interests at heart. Positives Leading by permission can alter the team’s attitude from begrudging subordinates following orders to enthusiastic followers working toward shared goals. Leading at the permission level is about serving your team and building strong relati...

Position is the lowest level of leadership. It’s associated with reliance on job title and hierarchy to motivate your team and is the least effective of the five levels. Positives Typically you are promoted into leadership because of a recognized potential. Leadership at the position level is an opportunity to grow and run great teams. What you do with your potential is up to you. Negatives Title alone doesn’t define a leader. Actions define leaders. Invoking your title hurts your leadersh...

A manager on my team recently suggested The Five Levels of Leadership as her favorite leadership book. One of the tenets of this book is that you have a different level of leadership with each person you lead. Your poorest relationship defines what type of leader you are overall, even if you exhibit more advanced traits with others. I’ve found these concepts helpful as I think about improving my leadership with my teammates. In this set of articles, I’ll walk through each of the levels, sum...

Recently I set up 12 recurring one on ones for the people that are managed by the managers I’m responsible for. I’ve been meaning to do this for a long time and kept putting it off. It was one of those things I couldn't muster the activation energy to start. Last Friday I finally set aside the time to do some research. There’s a ton of advice about the best way to do this and even huge libraries of all the questions you could or should ask. A big thanks to Know Your Team whose guide I adapt...