Griffin Leadership

Management is not leadership. People Leadership in technology is hard to find yet it is the backbone of being able to successfully execute on ideas. This talk will briefly outline problems in technology and explain how they are symptoms of poor leadership, elaborate in detail on tactics that make for great technology leadership, and what can be accomplished in technology when you have Griffin Leadership. In short, this is a case study of Griffin Caprio (currently Director of Engineering at Enova) and his phenomenal leadership.

Transcript

1. Griffin Leadership Alison Stanton Personal Pronouns: She/Her/Hers @alison985 me@alisonstanton.com
2. Why Should I Care About Griffin Leadership?
3. Why Should I Care About Griffin Leadership? You have problems.
4. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time You have problems.
5. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time
6. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time
7. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time
8. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time
9. Low morale Releases are late Major bugs in production High turnover Lack of responsibility Poor work/life balance Hard to recruit Tech debt Distrust Poor communication Changes need a long lead time
10. You have problems.
11. You have problems. And you choose band-aids over root issues.
12. And you choose band-aids over root issues. Low morale Lack of responsibility More managers New project management system Lack of responsibility
13. What is Griffin Leadership?
14. Griffin Leadership is: • Managing with integrity • Acknowledging reality • Confronting Problems • Communicating with clarity • Valuing individuals • Having broad expertise and deep experience • Executing against a vision
15. You might think I mean this: • A Manager • Who is Knowledgeable • And deals well with crisis • Is a Clear communicator (i.e. Excellent verbal and written communication skills.) • Gets along well with others • Has experience • Talks about a vision Griffin Leadership is: • Managing with integrity • Acknowledging reality • Confronting Problems • Communicating with clarity • Valuing individuals • Having broad expertise and deep experience • Executing against a vision
16. • A Manager • Who is Knowledgeable • And deals well with crisis • Is a Clear communicator (i.e. Excellent verbal and written communication skills.) • Gets along well with others • Has experience • Talks about a vision is not a leader Leaders work to avoid crisis. Leadership is lonely. Subject matter experience does not equal leadership. Talking does not equal doing. Standard. An easy bar. Knowledge does not equal truth or perspective.
17. Griffin Leadership is: • Managing with integrity • Acknowledging reality • Confronting Problems • Communicating with clarity • Valuing individuals • Having broad expertise and deep experience • Executing against a vision Not Traditional
18. Griffin Leadership is: • Managing with integrity • Acknowledging reality • Confronting Problems • Communicating with clarity • Valuing individuals • Having broad expertise and deep experience • Executing against a vision First, action.
19. Griffin Leadership is: • Managing with integrity • Acknowledging reality • Confronting Problems • Communicating with clarity • Valuing individuals • Having broad expertise and deep experience • Executing against a vision Second, no title.
20. What Does Griffin Leadership Look Like?
21. Career Ladder https://github.com/enova/career_ladders/
22. Promotes
23. Deals with people where they are
24. Gives feedback people need to hear • Positive feedback publicly in front of peers • Feedback on ways to improve in one-on-ones ◦ Encouraging un-learning coping mechanisms
25. Seeks feedback and is thankful for it
26. Active supporter of professional development
27. Trains people • Direct reports • Peers • Superiors • Clients • Investors • Advisors
28. Fires people
29. Deals with issues swiftly
30. Re-acts proportionally
31. Backs up decisions of others
32. Pro under-represented people and firmly against discriminatory behaviors • Sometimes 100% of technical position candidates are women • Codes of Conduct • Not relying on under-represented groups to teach inclusivity • Speaking with organizational authorities about sexist doodles on white boards
33. Strong belief in and support for work-life balance
34. Does not harass and does not allow others to harass
35. Doesn’t hire or promote when not qualified
36. Builds teams
37. No Heroes
39. How do you be a Griffin Leader?
40. Action Supported by Thought
41. If you do it right, you work yourself out of a job.
42. What are the results of Griffin Leadership?
43. Technical
44. Personal • Work 40 hours a week. • Feel good about your accomplishments. ◦ You’re a mentor. ◦ You’re a learner. • Can go on vacation or go to another job without worry and stress. • Build sustainably. • People have heard positive stories about you before you come into a room.
45. Why is Griffin Leadership Important to Alison?
46. Why is Griffin Leadership Important to Alison? It solves MY problems.
47. Why is this the most important talk I’m going to give all year? It solves MY problems. I need male allies and I need leaders.
48. Why is this the most important talk I’m going to give all year? Why isn’t Griffin giving this talk? It solves MY problems. This is all no-brainer, basic stuff for him. I need male allies and I need leaders.
49. Why is this the most important talk I’m going to give all year? Why isn’t Griffin giving this talk? Why isn’t this talk titled “How to Recruit, Support, and Retain Women in Tech”? It solves MY problems. This is all no-brainer, basic stuff for him. I need male allies and I need leaders. Because then I’d be preaching to the choir. I want to talk to the men who are the problem.
50. What are the results of Griffin Leadership? Retention Cohesive Teams Recruitment On Time Releases (Dependability) Sustainable Code (Maintainability) Efficiency Improvements (Speed) Turn on a dime (Agility)
51. How do you be a Griffin Leader? Value People
52. What Does Griffin Leadership Look Like? All the things you claim to want People being upset with you
53. What is Griffin Leadership? Speaking Up & Taking Action
54. Why Should I Care About Griffin Leadership? Personal Life True Accomplishments Prepares you for the next challenge Positive Recognition
55. Alison Stanton Personal Pronouns - She/Her/Hers Twitter - @alison985 Data Engineering, Architecture, and Advice - me@alisonstanton.com Intro to Data Analytics March 28 - http://ga.co/1T3fUX8 4 Themes of Optimizing Metric Usage March 30 - http://bit.ly/1LyUyzl Ally Skills Workshop April 8th - http://bit.ly/1OOJUid