The Debug is born: Your Weekly Guide to Engineering Leadership

Debugging the Craft of Engineering Leadership

Welcome to The Debug – Your Weekly Guide to Engineering Leadership.

In this introductory issue you’re going to hear about me and my plans with The Debug.

Who writes The Debug?

I’m Steve, I’ve worked in tech professionally for over 15 years, working across a range of disciplines including IT Operations, Data Centres, IT Infrastructure and Software Engineering. In the most part, I’ve worked in a Leadership capacity across these roles so my primary focus has been on the human and business aspects of Technology. This means I’ve spent my time studying, experimenting and crafting the art of coaching, building high performing teams, influence and persuasion, strategy, planning and organisational change. I love my job, it’s my passion and through it I’ve been lucky to work with some exceptional talent and share some amazing experiences.

Through my career I’ve progressed from an entry level individual contributor caretaking IT systems and responding to out of hours pages, to being a subject matter expert running services and hiring and building specialist teams, to leading and transforming a 100+ strong team to create more fulfilling roles and greater customer impact.

Whilst this outlines who I am professionally, it doesn’t really outline who I truly am as a person.

Of all the things I’m proudest of in my career, it’s the times where I’ve worked with individuals to build their confidence, set goals, identify their strengths, step outside their comfort zones and go on to get promotions and/or deliver things they never imagined possible that inspire me the most. Whilst technology is my natural home and the environment I’m most comfortable in, it’s nothing without the people and ingenuity they bring to the problems we solve - technology is merely the tool to get us there.

Why I’ve started this publication

I’ve always had a passion for writing - it’s the therapeutic process I use to organise my thoughts, where I develop my creative ideas and where I cement things I’m learning before they drop out of context.

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about how I can broaden my impact. I’ve spent the best part of my career problem solving and whilst it’s been great putting ideas and improvements into practice, the impact only goes as far as the teams and organisations I’m working directly with. My goal with this publication is to openly share my real-world experiences, challenges, and practical problem-solving insights, all with the aim of inspiring and assisting others on their Engineering Leadership journey. I'm excited to build new connections, spark fresh conversations, and collaboratively learn from individuals who have navigated similar experiences

There’s no time like the present so I’m going to start the connections/community aspect today! Please subscribe and drop me a message to say hello, share your ideas, your thoughts and problems and any feedback you have. It’d mean the world to me to hear from you and would really help me get this publication off to a great start!

What is my commitment to this publication and to you?

I’ll be sharing weekly insights on the most relevant, interesting and topical experiences in my role as an Engineering Leader. Expect truthful commentary, useful tools, challenging of industry norms and ideation. If you’re looking to progress into more senior Engineering roles, you want to work in tech or you’re already an Engineering leader, this publication will provide useful insights, will broaden your perspectives and arm you with tools to aid your progression. The subjects I’ll be covering here are the tools I’m using daily to progress my career.

Here’s a sneak peak on what’s scheduled for upcoming weeks…

• Exploring an underestimated skill for Engineering Leaders, with actionable tips.

• Insights into a recurring anti-pattern that's becoming increasingly common.

• Thoughts on business planning and objective setting.