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https://github.com/daniel-cottone/readme

My manager readme.
https://github.com/daniel-cottone/readme

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My manager readme.

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README 

          
# Manager README



My name is Daniel Cottone, and I am a lead software engineer and people leader at Asurion.



## Motivation



I created this readme to share expectations for both myself and you, and how we can effectively work together. My hope is that this

will be a guide for both of us. This is a way for me to express my values and keep me accountable to them, as well as illustrating to

you those values and help align us both.



The most important value I have is [servant leadership](#servant-leadership). My primary and most important function as your leader is

to serve your needs and to nuture your career.



## What is my role?



As an engineering lead, I am both an individual contributor as well as a people leader. I view my responsibilities to be the following:



- Be a voice for engineering both on our team and within our organization



- Take ownership of team health and alignment with the Journey Team model



- Mentor other engineers and help them grow their abilities



- Own engineering quality; build resilient and scalable products



- Invest in those I lead; nuture and support their career goals



## What are my values?



### Servant leadership



[From Robert K. Greenleaf](https://www.greenleaf.org/what-is-servant-leadership/):



> It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead.



My philisophy as a leader is to serve the needs of those I lead. I believe the most important thing I can do as a leader is to grow, nuture,

and elevate others; in fact this is my responsibility. I value your feedback, as I hope that you value mine; if I am not serving you as best

I could and falling short in some way, please let me know! I am not perfect and am always looking to improve, and your best interests are

also mine.



> A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. While traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid,” servant leadership is different. The servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.



### Mentorship



From William Arthur Ward:



> The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.



Mentorship is the most impactful activity a software engineer can engage in. A good mentor has a multiplicative effect within an

organization. The most productive, prolific, and brilliant engineer may create amazing, useful, and impactful work. A brilliant mentor will

create brilliant engineers. You do the math!



My goal is to be a mentor to you, and to instill in you the value of mentorship by example.



### Product mindset



[From Steve Jobs](https://www.forbes.com/sites/micahsolomon/2014/11/21/how-apple-thinks-differently-about-the-customer-service-experience-and-how-it-can-help-you):



> You’ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology – not the other way around.



As software engineers, often we can become absorbed by the languages, frameworks, and technologies we use. Sometimes, they can become the

focus rather than the products themselves. We should always remember that at the end of the day, it doesn't matter how elegant our solution

to a problem is, how scalable our platform is, or how dynamic and configurable our implementations are if no users want to use the things

we've built! Don't miss the forest for the trees.



We should always do that which is in service of the customer and the product. We should be focusing on delivering value to the user. We

should obsess over what our users want and how we can give it to them.



### Engineering excellence



[From "Uncle Bob" Martin](https://twitter.com/unclebobmartin/status/1163789159309434880):



> The only way to go fast is to go well.



Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Having a product mindset and delivering value is important, but it is not an excuse to rush quickly and

build terrible systems. The products and platforms we build should be thoughtfully designed: extensible, resilient, and scalable.



## Expectations



### Working together



Having time where we can communicate with each other and sync is critical. I believe strongly in the importance of one-on-one time; we

will have a recurring meeting every week or so where we can chat. This is your time, and you should own the agenda (please come

prepared). I will often have things to discuss, but overall what we talk about and when is entirely up to you!



If you want to chat with me anytime, please do! Hit me up on Slack if it is not urgent, or in-person if it is. Don't assume that I am

too busy, it is my responsibility to make myself available to you.



I expect that you will own our one-on-one time by setting the agenda and coming prepared. I expect that you will respect my time, as I

will respect yours. You can expect from me to prioritize our one-on-one time and to make myself available to you.



### You control your own time



Our expectation is that everyone who we add to our team is professional and capable of making sure that they are meeting their

responsibilities and commitments. We do not track your time, or assign you work. We believe in being flexible and that everyone should

have the ability to work around their life.



As such, I expect that you will be an engaged and active member of the team. I expect that you will proactively work towards the goals

of the team. Likewise, you can expect from me that I will not micromanage you and that I will support your autonomy.



### Availability



At Asurion we believe in a healthy work-life balance. We have an unlimited PTO policy, and we encourage everyone to use it. We want you

to take time off to recharge, refresh, and come back to your team with energy and focus. We also believe in flexibility with working

remotely as needed.



I expect that you will communicate to your team if you will be taking vacation, are sick, working remotely, or are otherwise

unavailable with a reasonable amount of notice so that the team is not negatively impacted, if possible. I expect that if you are

working remotely, you will be available via our communication tools (email, Slack, Zoom).



You can expect from me that I will respect your time off and that I will ensure you have flexibility in your working hours.



### Career development



My primary focus as your people leader is your career development. I want to understand what your goals are and to support you in

achieving them. As an organization we identify goals (personal goals and business goals) at the beginning of the year and then sync

on our progress every quarter. Using feedback from our peers and leaders we are able to determine what our successes are and possible

areas for improvement.



I expect that you will be an active participant in growing your own career. I expect that you will make progress to your stated career

goals. You can expect that I will support you in these goals and be an advocate on your behalf. You can expect that I will give you

meaningful and constructive feedback about your progress and performance. You can expect that I will make your successes known and

always seek to elevate your career.