Sign up to our DirectorPlus newsletter
Subscribers get the best engineering leadership content in their inbox every month.
Newsletter archive
AI agents and the missing link in DevOps
AI agents aren’t just assistants anymore – they’re making decisions. Are engineers ready for the shift or are they just too skeptical?
Carving out time for large-scale engineering chores
Determine what to prioritize, set out a path, and be prepared for some hiccups along the way.
Encouraging a passion for productivity
In this edition of DirectorPlus, Neha Batra, VP of Engineering at GitHub, explains how she creates a culture of productivity.
Framing AI rollouts in the right light
How can you introduce AI into teams in a way that doesn’t invite unrest within your org? It starts with presenting it in the right light.
Latest
-
Bringing internal engineering projects to the world
Pia Nilsson, senior director of engineering at Spotify, on how they identify and externalize impactful internal developer tools like Backstage.
-
95% AI-written code? Unpacking the Y Combinator CEO’s developer jobs bombshell
Garry Tan says YC startups are launching with 95% AI-written code. What does this mean for the shape and size of engineering teams?
-
Executive communication tactics that work for all audiences
The way you communicate with executives – clear, direct, and to the point – should be the standard for all communication.
-
Tech debt is an outdated concept
Tech debt is often overused as a blanket statement for all manner of engineering issues. What if we reframed our approach?
-
How leaders can beat the first quarter slump
After the buzz of New Years Eve and all the aspirations that follow fizzle out, what can you do to regain some momentum?
November 5, 2025
A unique one-day event for Heads, Directors, VPs and CTOs exploring core leadership challenges.
Essential reading
What is a Director of Engineering? The glue keeping engineering together
A director of engineering is responsible for keeping an entire engineering function humming. Find out what skills you need to climb the ladder to this vital position.
On our DirectorPlus playlist
Strategies to hone commercial awareness and drive business outcomes
Learn effective strategies for enhancing commercial awareness in tech teams, turning engineering into a business driver through alignment, impactful initiatives, and stakeholder engagement.
The path from Director to CTO: How to follow it, or how to mentor it
This talk is aimed at both aspiring Chief Technology Officers and those who are in a position to mentor future CTOs. Explore the journey from a Director of Engineering role to a CTO, focusing on the skills and experiences needed for this transition and how experienced leaders can guide others on this path.
Making the manager of manager’s mindset
Suzan Bond covers the difference between the two roles and the key mindset shifts leaders need to make to manage managers.
November 5, 2025
A unique one-day event for Heads, Directors, VPs and CTOs exploring core leadership challenges.
More for managers of managers
-
Tech debt is an outdated concept
Tech debt is often overused as a blanket statement for all manner of engineering issues. What if we reframed our approach?
-
How leaders can beat the first quarter slump
After the buzz of New Years Eve and all the aspirations that follow fizzle out, what can you do to regain some momentum?
-
How to combat bias in the hiring process
Don’t let bias dictate your next hire and make hiring decisions based on skills, not gut feelings.
-
AI agents and the missing link in DevOps
AI agents aren’t just assistants anymore – they’re making decisions. Are engineers ready for the shift or are they just too skeptical?
-
How the scales tipped against tech workers
The bosses are back in charge and expectations for what a job in tech looks like is changing rapidly. Is the industry losing its lustre?
-
The 6 warning signs of overengineering
How to look for the signs of overengineering in software, why it happens, and how to prevent unnecessary complexity to build maintainable systems.
-
How banks caught up in the battle for developer talent
Who will win the battle of big banks vs big tech jobs?
Videos for managers of managers
-
Build great engineering teams and have a positive social impact
On the back of working in the tech industry developing great products in highly competitive markets, how can we make society better? Germán and Seraphine will share the story of skills and talent meeting diversity and social impact.
-
Transformed: Moving to the product operating model: Marty Cagan in conversation
Join us at the next edition of Bookmarked where Suzan Bond will be joined by Marty Cagan to discuss Transformed: Moving to the product operating model. In this episode, Marty discusses the reasons why organizatons need to transform and the practical ways that you can be successful in achieving meaningful…
-
Transformed: Moving to the product operating model: Marty Cagan in conversation
In this episode, Marty discusses the reasons why organizatons need to transform and the practical ways that you can be successful in achieving meaningful change and innovation similar to the top tech companies out there.
-
Think faster, talk smarter: Matt Abrahams in conversation
Watch the newest edition of Bookmarked where Suzan Bond was joined by Matt Abrahams to discuss think faster, talk smarter.
-
The Software Craftsman: Sandro Mancuso in conversation
Learn how Sandro’s principles enable engineers to build the best software.
-
How to completely fail at learning
Hywel Carver asks, are you being asked to do more with less? Are hiring ambitions lower than they were a couple of years ago? Are you finding it slow and painful to adopt new technologies? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, this talk is for you.
-
In partnership with SabreHow enterprises can overcome the challenges of legacy code
How can enterprise engineering teams tackle the challenges of modernizing outdated codebases?
-
I’ve got the power: Career growth, today and beyond
Lena Reinhard will help you not just celebrate and reflect on what you learned on this day full of practical advice from experienced leaders: She will also make space for you to operationalize turning these lessons into actions.
-
In partnership with SplitFostering a culture of experimentation in your engineering teams
How can engineering leaders help their reports find joy in their work?
-
Why can we still not measure team performance?
Scott Carey & Rebecca Murphey discuss findings from the LeadDev Engineering Team Performance report 2023.
-
AI and the future of software engineering
Hywel Carver talks focuses on the shape of engineering teams and how they work – including how they have changed over time with the advent of Agile and DevOps – and suggest how this will change as AI-generated code becomes mainstream.
