Lessons Learned Writing a Book Collaboratively with LLMs
(ycombinator.com)
I recently finished a months-long project collaborating intensively with various LLMs (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) to write a book about using AI in management.
I recently finished a months-long project collaborating intensively with various LLMs (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) to write a book about using AI in management.
How to Tell Your Boss They're Wrong–Tactfully
(hbr.org)
Your boss is set on a strategy that sounds great in theory, but which you’re sure will be a logistical nightmare. Or maybe you’re in a team meeting, and everyone is nodding along to your boss’s idea that you believe will crash and burn. Speaking up in these moments takes finesse and nerve. How do you voice your concerns to your boss without being confrontational? Should you ask questions or make a direct case?
Your boss is set on a strategy that sounds great in theory, but which you’re sure will be a logistical nightmare. Or maybe you’re in a team meeting, and everyone is nodding along to your boss’s idea that you believe will crash and burn. Speaking up in these moments takes finesse and nerve. How do you voice your concerns to your boss without being confrontational? Should you ask questions or make a direct case?
Dear Lewis, my CEO wants AI to do it all. How do I argue for humans?
(lewislin.substack.com)
An executive has 48 hours to convince his CEO why AI can't replace human talent—revealing the irreplaceable capabilities that no algorithm can simulate.
An executive has 48 hours to convince his CEO why AI can't replace human talent—revealing the irreplaceable capabilities that no algorithm can simulate.
'A big part of my job is sacking people': Life in HR
(news.sky.com)
Caroline Wood sits down with the Money blog to reveal what life is really like as an HR boss, including the most common complaints she has to deal with, and what you need to be wary of on a staff night out.
Caroline Wood sits down with the Money blog to reveal what life is really like as an HR boss, including the most common complaints she has to deal with, and what you need to be wary of on a staff night out.
Ask HN: What made your favorite manager so great?
(ycombinator.com)
Ask HN: What made your favorite manager so great?
Ask HN: What made your favorite manager so great?
Work Simplification and the History of Government Efficiency and Management
(governance.fyi)
Dave Deek: Okay, recording has started. How's your week been going?
Dave Deek: Okay, recording has started. How's your week been going?
Gravity Maps: An Alternative to Org Charts
(leadinginproduct.com)
An organizational chart shows who’s responsible for what. It’s like a map of job titles and tasks, but it doesn’t tell you who really gets things moving. It’s great for understanding formal roles, but it misses the hidden forces that actually drive decisions and progress.
An organizational chart shows who’s responsible for what. It’s like a map of job titles and tasks, but it doesn’t tell you who really gets things moving. It’s great for understanding formal roles, but it misses the hidden forces that actually drive decisions and progress.
Software engineering laws
(manager.dev)
Some of those are famous, and some are quite niche. ALL of them are super useful to engineers and managers.
Some of those are famous, and some are quite niche. ALL of them are super useful to engineers and managers.
Software Engineering Laws
(manager.dev)
Some of those are famous, and some are quite niche. ALL of them are super useful to engineers and managers.
Some of those are famous, and some are quite niche. ALL of them are super useful to engineers and managers.
Forking Work Simplification – Let's Bring Back Eisenhower's Process Improvement
(governance.fyi)
Happy April Fool’s, but frankly we are all (well almost all) business today with a neat little update.
Happy April Fool’s, but frankly we are all (well almost all) business today with a neat little update.
We replaced all our managers with AI
(yolodex.ai)
Yolodex, a word-of-mouth growth engine for DTC businesses, has made a bold move: we eliminated all human managers and replaced them with a bespoke, multimodal AI management system.
Yolodex, a word-of-mouth growth engine for DTC businesses, has made a bold move: we eliminated all human managers and replaced them with a bespoke, multimodal AI management system.
Managing People You Can't Fire
(staysaasy.com)
One of the worst situations in management is needing to fire someone and getting blocked. This happens somewhat regularly and is one of the most trust-breaking experiences between a manager and their boss. Let’s talk about why it happens and how to right-size the situation
One of the worst situations in management is needing to fire someone and getting blocked. This happens somewhat regularly and is one of the most trust-breaking experiences between a manager and their boss. Let’s talk about why it happens and how to right-size the situation
The Worst Programmer I Know (2023)
(dannorth.net)
The great thing about measuring developer productivity is that you can quickly identify the bad programmers. I want to tell you about the worst programmer I know, and why I fought to keep him in the team.
The great thing about measuring developer productivity is that you can quickly identify the bad programmers. I want to tell you about the worst programmer I know, and why I fought to keep him in the team.
Career Development: What It Means to Be a Manager, Director, or VP (2015)
(kellblog.com)
It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of big-company HR practices. I’m more of the First Break all the Rules type. Despite my general skepticism of many standard practices, we still do annual performance reviews at my company, though I’m thinking seriously of dropping them. (See Get Rid of the Performance Review.)
It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of big-company HR practices. I’m more of the First Break all the Rules type. Despite my general skepticism of many standard practices, we still do annual performance reviews at my company, though I’m thinking seriously of dropping them. (See Get Rid of the Performance Review.)
What qualities should an excellent product manager possess?
(ycombinator.com)
Here are some of my thoughts, which might be wrong or incomplete, and I welcome discussion on them.
Here are some of my thoughts, which might be wrong or incomplete, and I welcome discussion on them.
Ask HN: EM to Director
(ycombinator.com)
How are you all thinking about your careers and making this move?
How are you all thinking about your careers and making this move?
Ask HN: How do you have effective 1:1s with your manager?
(ycombinator.com)
I'm about six years into my career now and I have no clue how to make my 1:1s with my manager more effective. How do you all prepare for your 1:1s, how do you conduct them, how do you see them as a tool for improving your career?
I'm about six years into my career now and I have no clue how to make my 1:1s with my manager more effective. How do you all prepare for your 1:1s, how do you conduct them, how do you see them as a tool for improving your career?
Unpopular Defaults for High-Performing Tech Organizations
(avivbenyosef.com)
“No one ever quit!” “Look at our hackathon!” “We hard-allocate time to fight tech debt.” Ostensibly, good things. In reality? Just the advice to follow… if you want to lead a mediocre team.
“No one ever quit!” “Look at our hackathon!” “We hard-allocate time to fight tech debt.” Ostensibly, good things. In reality? Just the advice to follow… if you want to lead a mediocre team.
Should managers still code?
(theengineeringmanager.substack.com)
This month we have a mailbag question from a reader who asks:
This month we have a mailbag question from a reader who asks:
Difficult Employees (and How to Handle Them)
(canopy.is)
👋 Howdy! Claire here, Founder & CEO of Canopy. Welcome to my weekly newsletter on leadership, “Views from the Canopy”. If you’ve been enjoying my writing (and illustrations!) recently here, do please make sure you’re subscribed so you can receive a fresh piece each week, and consider sharing with a friend or colleague who you think might enjoy as well.
👋 Howdy! Claire here, Founder & CEO of Canopy. Welcome to my weekly newsletter on leadership, “Views from the Canopy”. If you’ve been enjoying my writing (and illustrations!) recently here, do please make sure you’re subscribed so you can receive a fresh piece each week, and consider sharing with a friend or colleague who you think might enjoy as well.
The Hollow Core of Elon Musk's Productivity Dogma
(newyorker.com)
On Saturday afternoon, Elon Musk posted on X that “all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week.”
On Saturday afternoon, Elon Musk posted on X that “all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week.”
"At Our Companies, Employees Just Disappear"
(slate.com)
Few people are as knee-deep in our work-related anxieties and sticky office politics as Alison Green, who has been fielding workplace questions for a decade now on her website Ask a Manager. In Direct Report, she spotlights themes from her inbox that help explain the modern workplace and how we could be navigating it better.
Few people are as knee-deep in our work-related anxieties and sticky office politics as Alison Green, who has been fielding workplace questions for a decade now on her website Ask a Manager. In Direct Report, she spotlights themes from her inbox that help explain the modern workplace and how we could be navigating it better.
Work-Life Balance as a Manager
(yusufaytas.com)
As an IC, you close your laptop at 6 PM, log off, and forget about the work unless you are oncall. As a manager, you check Slack at 10 PM because someone might need you. Your calendar looks like there’s no time to do anything and you haven’t had an actual deep focus hour in weeks. Sounds familiar? Welcome to management, where your time is no longer yours. Or is it?
As an IC, you close your laptop at 6 PM, log off, and forget about the work unless you are oncall. As a manager, you check Slack at 10 PM because someone might need you. Your calendar looks like there’s no time to do anything and you haven’t had an actual deep focus hour in weeks. Sounds familiar? Welcome to management, where your time is no longer yours. Or is it?
Walking the Doge
(thedailywtf.com)
One thing I've learned by going through our reader submissions over the years is that WTFs never start with just one mistake. They're a compounding sequence of systemic failures. When we have a "bad boss" story, where an incompetent bully puts an equally incompetent sycophant in charge of a project, it's never just about the bad boss- it's about the system that put the bad boss in that position.
One thing I've learned by going through our reader submissions over the years is that WTFs never start with just one mistake. They're a compounding sequence of systemic failures. When we have a "bad boss" story, where an incompetent bully puts an equally incompetent sycophant in charge of a project, it's never just about the bad boss- it's about the system that put the bad boss in that position.
Yes you built that but at what cost?
(abhinavomprakash.com)
You tighten the last screw on the bridge. Feeling triumphant you raise your hands and cheer. Your crew cheers. The bridge is five years too late but it is done. The people you started with are no longer with you. But they were traitors and disloyal people. “Tough times don’t last, tough people do” you utter to yourself, rationalizing the loss of your entire team.
You tighten the last screw on the bridge. Feeling triumphant you raise your hands and cheer. Your crew cheers. The bridge is five years too late but it is done. The people you started with are no longer with you. But they were traitors and disloyal people. “Tough times don’t last, tough people do” you utter to yourself, rationalizing the loss of your entire team.
Ask HN: How to handle pushback on a team switch?
(ycombinator.com)
Here's an _imaginary_ but common scenario in the corp tech hemisphere:<p>VP: Gives the IC a dubious signal about a promo in the next cycle, mentioning tenure, budget constraints, or something incredibly vague.<p>IC: Lets go of the promo and seeks to switch teams at the same level in search of more interesting work and possibly to avoid a similar situation in the next cycle.<p>VP: Feels betrayed, claiming they were working hard on the promo case and that it might have happened
Here's an _imaginary_ but common scenario in the corp tech hemisphere:<p>VP: Gives the IC a dubious signal about a promo in the next cycle, mentioning tenure, budget constraints, or something incredibly vague.<p>IC: Lets go of the promo and seeks to switch teams at the same level in search of more interesting work and possibly to avoid a similar situation in the next cycle.<p>VP: Feels betrayed, claiming they were working hard on the promo case and that it might have happened
DOGE Staff Had Questions About the 'Resign' Email. Their HR Chief Dodged Them
(wired.com)
On Friday, staff at what was formerly the United States Digital Service and is now part of Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative met with Stephanie Holmes, who identified herself as a part of the DOGE team and as the staff’s new HR representative.
On Friday, staff at what was formerly the United States Digital Service and is now part of Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative met with Stephanie Holmes, who identified herself as a part of the DOGE team and as the staff’s new HR representative.