Managing Humans: Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager [Paperback]

Michael Lopp (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 22, 2007 | ISBN-10: 159059844X | ISBN-13: 978-1590598443 | Edition: 1

Managing Humans is a selection of the best essays from Michael Lopp's web site, Rands in Repose. Drawing on Lopp's management experiences at Apple, Netscape, Symantec, and Borland, this book is full of stories based on companies in the Silicon Valley where people have been known to yell at each other. It is a place full of dysfunctional bright people who are in an incredible hurry to find the next big thing so they can strike it rich and then do it all over again. Among these people are managers, a strange breed of people who through a mystical organizational ritual have been given power over your future and your bank account.

Whether you're an aspiring manager, a current manager, or just wondering what the heck a manager does all day, there is a story in this book that will speak to you.

What you’ll learn

• What to do when people start yelling at each other
• How to perform a diving save when the best engineer insists on resigning
• How to say "no" to the person who signs your paycheck

Who this book is for

This book is designed for managers and would-be managers staring at the role of a manager wondering why they would ever leave the safe world of bits and bites for the messy world of managing humans. The book covers handling conflict, managing wildly differing personality types, infusing innovation into insane product schedules, and figuring out how to build a lasting and useful engineering culture.

Table of Contents

1. Don't Be a Prick
2. Managers are Not Evil
3. The Monday Freakout
4. Agenda Detection
5. Mandate Dissection
6. Information Starvation
7. Subtlety, Subterfuge, and Silence
8. Managementese
9. Technicality
10. Avoiding the Fez
11. Your Resignation Checklist
12. Saying No
13. 1.0
14. Taking Time to Think
15. The Soak
16. Malcolm Events
17. Capturing Context
18. Status Reports 2.0
19. Trickle Theory
20. A Glimpse and a Hook
21. Nailing the Phone Screen
22. Ninety Days
23. Bellwethers
24. NADD
25. A Nerd in a Cave
26. Meeting Creatures
27. Incrementalists and Completionists
28. Organics and Mechanics
29. Inwards, Outwards, and Holistics
30. Free Electrons
31. Rules for the Reorg
32. Offshore Risk Factor
33. Joe
34. Secret Titles

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Michael Lopp is a veteran engineering manager who has never managed to escape the Silicon Valley. In over 20 years of software development, Michael has worked at a variety of innovative companies, including Apple, Netscape, Symantec, Borland International, and a startup that slowly faded into nothingness. In addition to his day job, Michael writes a popular technology and management weblog under the nom de plume "Rands," where he discusses his management ideas, worries about staying relevant, and wishes he had time to see more of the world. His weblog can be found at RandsinRepose.com. Michael lives in northern California, never far from the ocean.

Product Details

• Paperback: 209 pages
• Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (June 22, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159059844X
• ISBN-13: 978-1590598443
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 0.6 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #481,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #55 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Humor > Computers & Internet

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable insights for both the manager and the "manage-ee"... July 14, 2007

By Thomas Duff HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Managing people is difficult. Managing software engineers is something completely different. Michael Lopp brings his experience to bear in the book Managing Humans: Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager. Wickedly funny, and dangerously accurate...

Contents:
Part 1 - Management Quiver: Don't Be A Prick; Managers Are Not Evil; The Monday Freakout; Agenda Detection; Mandate Dissection; Information Starvation; Subtlety, Subterfuge, And Silence; Managementese; Technicality; Avoiding The Fez; Your Resignation Checklist; Saying No
Part 2 - The Process Is The Product: 1.0, Taking Time To Think; The Soak; Malcolm Events; Capturing Context; Status Reports 2.0; Trickle Theory
Part 3 - Versions Of You: A Glimpse And A Hook; Nailing The Phone Screen; Ninety Days; Bellwethers; NADD; A Nerd In A Cave; Meeting Creatures; Incrementalists And Completionists; Organics And Mechanics; Inwards, Outwards, And Holistics; Free Electrons; Rules For The Reorg; Offshore Risk Factor; Joe; Secret Titles
Glossary; Index

Although the title would lead you to believe that the book is targeted for managers, that's not really the case. Yes, software managers will get a *lot* from these pages, but so will any other software professional being managed (that should cover everyone). Lopp, aka "Rands", has spent many years on the front lines of management, from larger companies to startups. In a "cut to the chase" fashion (with words you likely won't see in any other management book), he shares his insights and knowledge when it comes to dealing with the strange and often bizarre world of software development. You'll learn the underlying cause of the Monday morning "freakout", and what's really being said behind the emotional outburst. You'll understand what happens when your staff is starved for information (not a good thing). And something I've already used... figuring out the players in a meeting, and what the real agenda is.

Much of part 1 is devoted to the management side, but parts 2 and 3 are more general in nature, and apply to your own well-being. The Soak is something that we often don't allow ourselves the luxury of, but it's critical to sorting through your thoughts and ideas. A Nerd In A Cave does a great job explaining why we set up our work area as we do. And if you've ever had an argument with someone over the merits of a particular solution to a problem, you'll immediately relate to Incrementalists and Completionists. I know that explains a lot about my approach to problem resolution...

This is one of those reads that is both enjoyable and valuable. You'll either learn to manage better, or learn how to be managed better. You may even learn how to manage yourself while you're at it.

36 of 43 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Some good content, but needs an editor July 25, 2007

By A. Pukinskis

Format:Paperback

I'm torn, because there's a lot of great content in this book on management responsibilities, how to handle specific management problems, and how developers can understand managers.

But the book is really choppy. Topics shift abruptly in the middle of chapters without transitions, headings have nothing to do with the content that follows then, and the chapters don't flow together. The style is downright strange at times. There are whole paragraphs full of incomprehensible colloquial gobbledygook. The author occasionally refers to himself in the third person as "Rands", but only at random, which just serves to make the book harder to read.

I usually inhale books like this in a day or so, but I've been working on this one for weeks and am barely a hundred pages in.

If you need practical software management advice, do buy this book, but be prepared to do a lot of work to get value out of it. And let's hope Mr. Lopp can find a skilled editor for a second edition that really helps this great information shine.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Definitely not the best book on management June 23, 2008

By Leonardo Bueno

Format:Paperback

I've read a couple of Rand's posts on his blog and thought it'd be nice to be able to read the edited, reviewed and improved paper version... I should have saved my money. It's not that the book is useless, but it doesn't adds to much value to the blog posts. Also, not all chapters are worth reading, so you pay for a lot of bad stuff too.