Build Systems that Drive Business
June 11–12, 2018: Training
June 12–14, 2018: Tutorials & Conference
San Jose, CA

Leadership sessions

Leadership and management sit at the crossroads of people, process, and technology. Successful leaders find ways to continue improving in all three areas. The talks this year strike a balance between personal development and team development at companies that range from startups to entrenched government bureaucracies. These sessions represent the stories and experiences from some of the best leaders in the industry. Whether you’re an experienced leader of large teams or thinking about a career in management, these talks will both educate and inspire you.

Track host

Herman Radtke (Nordstromrack.com | HauteLook)Herman Radtke (Nordstromrack.com | HauteLook) is a sociologist turned full stack engineer turned VP of Engineering at Nordstromrack.com | HauteLook. He designed and built much of the original hypermedia API that drives the website and mobile applications. When not managing people, Herman hacks on Rust and leads the Rust Los Angeles user group. Outside of technology, he spends his time crafting pale ale home brews.

11:25am–12:05pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Scaling yourself during hypergrowth: Lessons learned managing managers
Location: LL20 A/B Level: Non-technical
Secondary topics: Leadership & Career Growth
Julia Grace (Slack)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 14 ratings)
When Julia Grace joined Slack two-and-a-half years ago, the company had fewer than 100 engineers. It's now at more than 350, and her own team grew from 10 to 50 people in 18 months. Expanding on her keynote, Julia shares tips and stories from the leadership front lines as she transitioned from line manager to managing managers. Read more.
1:15pm–1:55pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Enterprise transformation (and you can too)
Location: LL20 A/B Level: Non-technical
Secondary topics: Leadership & Career Growth
Donovan Brown (Microsoft)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 9 ratings)
“That would never work here.” You’ve likely heard this sentiment (or maybe you’ve even said it yourself). Good news: change is possible. Donovan Brown explains how Microsoft's Visual Studio Team Services (VSTS) went from a three-year waterfall delivery cycle to three-week iterations and open sourced the VSTS task library and the Git Virtual File System. Read more.
2:10pm–2:50pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
For managers: How to keep up your technical skills without annoying your team(s)
Location: LL20 A/B Level: Intermediate
Secondary topics: Leadership & Career Growth
K Vignos (Twitter)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 3 ratings)
Engineering teams want technically competent managers, but they also often want managers to keep their hands off their code. So how can managers keep their technical skills relevant in order to add the most value? Kathleen Vignos shares creative strategies for developing and maintaining technical skills—some through the act of managing itself. Read more.
3:40pm–4:20pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Leading an effective engineering team within the world's largest bureaucracy
Location: LL20 A/B Level: Non-technical
Secondary topics: Leadership & Career Growth
Sunil Sadasivan (Nava)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 5 ratings)
Sunil Sadasivan compares the work environments of startups to those of bureaucracies and shares lessons for maintaining an optimal engineering work culture learned at the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Read more.
4:35pm–5:15pm Thursday, June 14, 2018
Superfan
Location: LL20 A/B Level: Non-technical
Secondary topics: Leadership & Career Growth
Sacha Judd (Hoku Group)
Average rating: *****
(5.00, 3 ratings)
Homogenous teams are one proven cause of missteps and flaws in software products and pipelines. Sacha Judd offers a fresh perspective, detailing available tools to improve hiring, promotion, and internal culture. Read more.