
Latest
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Rejecting promotions, PIPs, and other dreaded conversations
Difficult conversations are no-ones favorite part of the job. Here’s how to make promotion rejections and performance conversations easier.
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Build documentation that developers can actually navigate
Creating onboarding documentation for your product? Or just writing up a “how-to” for a new internal tool? Here’s how you do it.
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Debugging the most critical relationship in your work life: How to work better with an imperfect boss
Many bosses, despite their best efforts, struggle with communication, delegation, and career support for their teams. This talk explores how to navigate the complexities of working with your boss, balancing honesty with career impact, and building a more effective partnership.
Editor’s picks
A tech lead’s guide to effective communication
Tips for improving your communication skills as a tech lead
A leader’s guide to active and reflective listening
Active listening is often overlooked in the realm of communication. Here are some tactics to improve how you listen to others.
Essential reading

Writing matters: How to improve your written communication skills
Mastering the art of writing as an engineering leader
On our Communication playlist

Influential storytelling
Brianna McCullough talks about how to structure compelling stories that lead to alignment, buy-in and most importantly belief from our stakeholders, partners, and more importantly our teams.

How to complain positively
Josh Goldberg, a serial complainer with a catchy smile, will walk you through the steps he takes to make sure his complaining is heard and felt without causing pain.

Influencing without management authority as a senior individual contributor
Effectively communicating technical expertise.

Communicating change: leading through the change curve
How to tailor your communications based on how your employees are experiencing and reacting to the change.

Help your engineering, product and security teams get on the same page
How can teams find alignment among competing priorities?
More about Communication
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How to win buy-in for big changes
Getting buy-in for your idea can be difficult. Here’s how you can approach different stakeholders to get the support you need.
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A leader’s guide to active and reflective listening
Active listening is often overlooked in the realm of communication. Here are some tactics to improve how you listen to others.
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What to do when everyone’s sick of meetings
The rise of remote work has created meetings, lots more meetings, and engineers are getting fed up.
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Use 1:1s to develop engineering managers reporting to you
As a manager of managers, these meetings are vital for getting the most from your reports.
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How to give feedback without killing morale
Instilling a culture of free-flowing feedback between team members is difficult but not impossible.
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Preparing your team for a tense election season
And should we even talk about politics at work in the first place?
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How to handle difficult conversations as a leader
Difficult conversations are never anyone’s favorite pastime. For many, it can be an anxiety-inducing trip…but it doesn’t have to be.
Top Communication videos
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Feedback for intercultural teams – Where is the map?
Explore techniques for delivering culturally sensitive feedback, with practical tips to improve communication, foster growth, and boost performance in today’s diverse, intercultural team environments.
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How to talk to everyone: Connecting with your reporting chain
Explore effective ways to build trust and rapport in distributed teams, using strategies to maintain connection and support across organizational layers and remote setups.
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Backwards compatible – Lessons from a quarter century in software
Explore career lessons from a 25-year journey in software development. Learn about growth, leadership, and the power of kindness to shape lasting impact in engineering.
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Cultivating great teams: Managing out with kindness
Learn a humane approach to managing underperforming team members, with strategies for setting expectations, providing direct feedback, fostering growth, and handling tough conversations with compassion.
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Nail the pitch and stick the landing: How to propose & deliver major technical projects
Learn how to pitch refactor projects effectively. Ei-Nyung shares successful strategies from leading a major infrastructure re-architecture, cutting development time by 65%.
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Effective delegation without authority
In my talk, I will explore this common challenge and share some of the tips I find useful in my day-to-day to help influence and inspire fellow engineers to get stuff done together.
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Mastering Visual Communication for Software Development
In this session, learn from a hands-on solution architect – and thought leader in communication design and documentation – how to tailor your visuals to your audience, choose the most appropriate standards (or not) and level of detail, and apply patterns to improve accessibility for all audiences.
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Navigating complex projects: Finding the right mode of operation
In this talk, I share my journey of deciding on an effective mode of operation when engaging with complex projects.