Setting goals as a senior individual contributor - LeadDev Berlin 2022

In this talk, you’ll learn how to define your development journey as a senior individual contributor, figuring out what you should be working on, how to set your goals, and how to you define your backlog of work. You’ll also learn how to track your progress so you can keep growing as an engineering leader in the individual contributor track.

Transcript

1. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Setting goals as a senior individual contributor
2. Setting goals as a senior individual contributor?
3. It depends…
4. Setting goals as a senior+|staff| principal|… individual contributor
5. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro You Team Team Team
6. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro What’s changed? You’re not working as part of a team anymore What are my goals? 🤔
7. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro You’re not part of team rituals How do I know what’s going on? 🤔 What’s changed?
8. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Your work is more than coding What else should I be doing?! 🤔 What’s changed?
9. Setting goals as a senior individual contributor
10. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 🙀 BUSY WORK 💻
11. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro High impact work
12. You create it!
13. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 1. List all inputs Business and product strategies Teams’ needs Engineering Org’s needs
14. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 1. List all inputs Business and product strategies Teams’ needs Engineering Org’s needs Tip for managers: Share business context
15. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 2. Prioritise inputs Riskiest areas or projects Personal growth goals Company needs
16. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 2. Prioritise inputs Riskiest areas or projects Personal growth goals Company needs Tip for managers: Help connect to performance review
17. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 3. Trim it down Are there opportunities for delegation?
18. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro 3. Trim it down Are there opportunities for delegation? Tip for managers: Help find other owners
19. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Write it down
20. Sabrina’s document format
21. Sabrina’s document format
22. Sabrina’s document format
23. Sabrina’s document format
24. An example
25. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Share it
26. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Get feedback from… your manager your peers your cross-discipline peers
27. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Share Your goals What you’ll do to deliver on your goals How you’ll work with teams
28. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Repeat
29. Sabrina’s timeline Quarterly goals Cycle 2 Cycle goals Cycle goals Week
30. Track progress Quarterly goals Cycle goals Cycle 2 Week Cycle goals
31. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro If When things change Missing context? Re-prioritise or delegate No changes? Say “no not now” and use as input for next goal setting period
32. Setting goals as a senior individual contributor
33. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro What about coding? Prioritise as any other goal Define why you want to do it Spot problems and use as input for new goals
34. Setting goals as a senior individual contributor and more…
35. Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Beyond goal setting Onboarding: Role introduction Focus: Saying “no” or reprioritising Motivation: Seeing the big picture Growth: Performance reviews
36. What’s next for you?
37. November 2022 Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Summary Create your backlog Prioritise & trim it down Get feedback Break it down & track progress Repeat! Setting goals as a senior individual contributor
38. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro Thank you! Join me at Office Hours 👋
39. November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro November 2022 LeadDev Berlin Sabrina Leandro @saleandro https://www.intercom.com/blog/engineering-management-benefits/ https://charity.wtf/2017/05/11/the-engineer-manager-pendulum/ https://staffeng.com/guides/staff-archetypes/ https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/the-staff-engineers/9781098118723/ References