5 Things I Wish I'd Known Sooner About Scaling Teams & Culture - at Turing Fest

1. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager 5 Things I Wish I'd Known Sooner About Scaling Teams & Culture Turing Fest August 2018

2. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager

3. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager http://www.flickr.com/photos/kodomut/3667608102/

4. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager #1: DRY DOESN’T WORK FOR HUMAN COMMUNICATION

5. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager “DON’T REPEAT YOURSELF” IS A NICE PROGRAMMING PRINCIPLE IT IS A TERRIBLE HUMAN COMMUNICATION PRINCIPLE YOU NEED TO REPEAT IMPORTANT THINGS CONSISTENTLY (7 TIMES)

6. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://www.flickr.com/photos/psd/9613972159/

7. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TinFoilHat002.jpg

8. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager BE CLEAR BE CONSISTENT REMEMBER OTHERS STILL NEED TO HEAR BEYOND THE POINT WHEN YOU ARE WORRIED YOU HAVE BEEN REPETITIVE

9. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager REMEMBER WE DON’T JUST COMMUNICATE IN THE PRESENT USE ARCHITECTURAL DECISION RECORDS TO COMMUNICATE (TO FUTURE FOLKS) WHAT YOU WERE THINKING WHEN YOU MADE A CHOICE

10. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager #2: SCALING TEAMS IS ABOUT CREATING CONDITIONS FOR SUCCESS

11. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WE ALL HATE BAD BOSSES WE DESCRIBE THEM AS •Clueless •Empty suits •Pointless •Seagulls

13. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://twitter.com/Caterina/status/6715084157

14. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager Across industries, across countries, the best performing teams answer certain questions positively

15. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager Predictors of High Performance 1. Do I know what is expected of me at work? 2. Do I have the materials & equipment I need to do my work right? 3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day? 4. In the last 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work? 5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person? 6. Is there someone at work who cares about my development? 7. At work, do my opinions seem to count? 8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important? 9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work? 10. Do I have a best friend at work? 11. In the last 6 months, have I talked with someone about my development? 12. At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow?

17. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager UNDERSTAND MOTIVATION • Purpose • Autonomy • Mastery

18. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager MOTIVATION = + PURPOSE (Do I believe in WHY?) + AUTONOMY (Do I get a say in WHAT?) + MASTERY (Am I proud of HOW?) - ANY NEGATIVE FACTORS THAT DETRACT

19. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager Predictors of High Performance (remix) PURPOSE • Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important? AUTONOMY • Do I know what is expected of me at work? • At work, do my opinions seem to count? MASTERY • Do I have the materials & equipment I need to do my work right? • At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day? • Is there someone at work who cares about my development? • Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work? • In the last 6 months, have I talked with someone about my development? • At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow?

20. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager And What Else? OTHER FACTORS: • In the last 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work? • Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person? • Do I have a best friend at work? ESSENTIALLY, AM I RESPECTED & REWARDED HERE? CAN I BE MYSELF AND SUCCEED HERE? I CALL THIS INCLUSION.

21. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager Predictors of High Performance (remix) PURPOSE • Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important? AUTONOMY • Do I know what is expected of me at work? • At work, do my opinions seem to count? INCLUSION: • In the last 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work? • Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person? • Do I have a best friend at work? MASTERY • Do I have the materials & equipment I need to do my work right? • At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day? • Is there someone at work who cares about my development? • Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work? • In the last 6 months, have I talked with someone about my development? • At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow?

22. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager SPACE TO BE AWESOME = + PURPOSE (Do I believe in WHY?) + AUTONOMY (Do I get a say in WHAT?) + MASTERY (Am I proud of HOW?) + INCLUSION (Do I BELONG HERE?) - ANY NEGATIVE FACTORS THAT DETRACT

23. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager EVERY PERSON IS CAPABLE OF VIRTUOSITY

24. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager #3 INFLECTION POINTS Semper in excretum, sed altuit variunt

25. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager DIFFERENT THINGS COME “FOR FREE” AT DIFFERENT INFLECTION POINTS

28. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager FOCUS ON THE RIGHT PROBLEMS AT THE RIGHT TIME

29. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager #4: WITH PEOPLE, OBSERVABILITY > TESTING

30. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager SOMETIMES HOWEVER WELL WE PLAN, HOWEVER HARD WE TRY, OUR IMPACT MAY NOT EQUAL OUR INTENT

31. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager REGULARLY CHECK WHETHER WHAT YOU INTENDED MATCHES UP TO THE ACTUAL IMPACT

32. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://speakerdeck.com/madtypist/retrospectives-look-back-to-move-forward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIU6P9HRYzo

33. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://labs.spotify.com/2014/09/16/squad-health-check-model/

34. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://speakerdeck.com/thesambarnes/people-are-weird-im-weird-the-lead-developer-london-2015 https://vimeo.com/139910836

35. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager #5: CULTURE ADD MATTERS A LOT MORE THAN CULTURE FIT

36. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager https://www.flickr.com/photos/psd/8451589322/in/set-72157633230231221

37. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager “DO I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO WHAT I DO BEST EVERY DAY?”

38. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WE NEED TO STOP LEVELLING PEOPLE OUT TO EQUAL CONSISTENT MEDIOCRITY AND INSTEAD FOCUS ON GETTING THE MOST OUT OF DIFFERENCE

39. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WE JUST NEED A SHIFT IN PERSPECTIVE

41. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WE ARE NOT INTERCHANGEABLE RESOURCE UNITS

42. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WE ARE COLOURS … OR FLAVOURS WE ARE BETTER IN COMPLEMENT, IN CONCERT WITH EACH OTHER

44. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager WHAT IF WE THINK OF PEOPLE AND ROLES AS A MATTER OF CASTING?

45. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager HOW DO WE ASSEMBLE A GREAT TEAM WITH COMPLEMENTARY ABILITIES?

47. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager CRAFT INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENTS 1. Am I EXPECTED here? 2. Am I RESPECTED here? 3. Can I BE MYSELF and BE SUCCESSFUL here?

48. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager IN SUMMARY…

49. Meri Williams, ChromeRose @Geek_Manager 5 Things I Wish I’d Known Sooner About Scaling Teams 1. DRY Doesn’t Work for Human Communication – repeat, consistently, 7+ times. ADRs rock. 2. Scaling Teams is About Creating the Conditions for Success – Purpose, Autonomy, Mastery, Inclusion. 3. Inflection Points Exist – focus on the right problems at the right times. Borrow solutions from folks facing YOUR problems. 4. With People, Observability > Testing – use tactics to check whether you impact is matching your intent (and adjust!). Retros rock. 5. Culture ADD Matters a Lot More Than Culture FIT – cultivate inclusion, outperform the homogenous teams Every. Damn. Day.