When I coach software engineering executives and leaders one of the concepts we talk about is how they budget and spend their time. I ask them to allocate 100% of their work-focused time to four categories—IN, ON, AROUND, and AWAY. I wondered what they thought so I created a survey to learn more.

You need a knowledge investment strategy. Do you have one? If not, let me explain why you need one.

Why is it so hard for software engineering leaders to justify architectural improvements? When the CEO asks why you need to invest in upgrades, you can’t just say “trust me” and then get frustrated when your requests don’t get funded.

One of the skills you need to learn as a manager (and as a leader) is how to give tough feedback. I find it interesting that people have so much trouble doing it.

As a manager and leader, you coach. It’s a core skill. In fact, I’d suggest that if you can’t coach, you shouldn’t be a manager and you're not the most effective leader you can be for your organization.