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This talk offers a practical, opinionated framework for evaluating and growing the people managers who report to you, using a model that goes beyond sentiment and 360s to focus on observable impact, leadership competencies, and the systems you all operate within.
“Engineering leaders are often asked to evaluate and develop managers based on indirect signals: team sentiment, 360 feedback, engagement surveys, or the occasional skip-level. But these signals—while valuable—rarely tell the full story. Managers who are well-liked may be avoiding hard conversations; those delivering results may be holding their teams together with unsustainable effort. Without direct observation, senior leaders risk rewarding surface-level traits while missing the deeper work of effective management.
This talk introduces a practical framework for evaluating leadership against impact and competencies. We’ll explore how to embed observational shadowing as a leadership development tool, offering a clearer view into how managers are actually leading day-to-day. We’ll talk about translating team metrics into actionable feedback. Finally, we’ll cover how to translate those insights into high-leverage coaching, targeted interventions, and systemic improvement. Attendees will walk away with language, structure, and tools for developing stronger leaders—and stronger teams—at scale.
Key takeaways
- What matters when assessing leadership performance?
- What observable competencies should I expect from my managers—and how do I coach to them?
- How can shadowing be used to gain real insight into someone’s leadership system?
- How do I manage developing individuals and improving the systems they’re building in real-time (rather than waiting for the results of long feedback cycles)?
