Description:

A human-centric guide to solving complex problems in engineering management, from sizing teams to handling technical debt.

There’s a saying that people don’t leave companies, they leave managers. Management is a key part of any organization, yet the discipline is often self-taught and unstructured. Getting to the good solutions for complex management challenges can make the difference between fulfillment and frustration for teams—and, ultimately, between the success and failure of companies.

Will Larson’s An Elegant Puzzle focuses on the particular challenges of engineering management—from sizing teams to handling technical debt to performing succession planning—and provides a path to the good solutions. Drawing from his experience at Digg, Uber, and Stripe, Larson has developed a thoughtful approach to engineering management for leaders of all levels at companies of all sizes. An Elegant Puzzle balances structured principles and human-centric thinking to help any leader create more effective and rewarding organizations for engineers to thrive in.

Review

“Software engineering is evolving faster than ever before. What principles are durable in a time of so much change and what are the contemporary pain points that may change in the future but cannot be ignored today? In An Elegant Puzzle , Will Larson captures the timeless spirit of creative problem-solving that draws us to software engineering while also providing concrete strategies for modern organizations.” -- Jeffrey Meyerson, Host of Software Engineering Daily

“ An Elegant Puzzle is a masterful study of the challenges and demands of the discipline of engineering management viewed through the prism of systems thinking. Readers can expect an actionable template for addressing complex problems with finesse, creativity and fairness.” -- Cindy Sridharan, Distributed Systems Engineer and author of Distributed Systems Observability

“Engineering Managers can often feel like they are struggling to keep their head above the water. Our technical training is missing the frameworks and tools needed to build healthy and productive teams. The insights and step-by-step approach covered in An Elegant Puzzle will become your favorite go-to resource.” -- Oren Ellenbogen, VP Engineering at Forter, Curator of Software Lead Weekly newsletter

About the Author

Will Larson has been an engineering leader and software engineer at technology companies of many shapes and sizes, including Yahoo!, Digg, SocialCode, Uber, and Stripe. He grew up in North Carolina, studied computer science at Centre College in Kentucky, and spent a year in Japan teaching English through the JET Programme. An Elegant Puzzle draws from the writing in his blog, Irrational Exuberance!, which he has been updating since graduating from college. It is currently, and will always be, a work in progress. Larson lives in San Francisco.