Making the move to manager: Common pitfalls for new engineering leaders

As the saying goes, “What got you here won’t get you there.” What helped you thrive as an individual contributor may not carry you to success as an engineering lead. So, how can you pick up the new skills you’ll need while avoiding common pitfalls? In this talk, we’ll give you two perspectives on navigating this transition into leadership and share lessons learned from our own journeys. Some engineers’ pathway to leadership begins within their team, whereas others choose to seek out other teams for this opportunity. When taking on a new role in the same team, it can be challenging to shift the perspective of your peers as they become your reports overnight. You want to gain their trust as a leader and maintain the relationships you have spent years building. On the other hand, those joining a new team as a manager must start developing these relationships from scratch while learning a new technology stack and doing their new job effectively. From navigating how to step up as leaders to learning how to manage up to skip-leads, we’ll share insights into common pitfalls based on our personal experiences transitioning from software engineers to engineering leaders at Bloomberg. This talk, which will primarily focus on challenges involved with people leadership, will broadly cover: – How to rebrand yourself as a new engineering leader – How to build trust with a new team without prior experience or credibility – How to delegate effectively – How to balance proactive leadership without micromanaging