Feb 9Member-onlyDear AI hype train, stop confusing novel for usefulChatGPT is coming for Google Search, or is it? At the moment it’s hard to read anything on the Internet without coming across some article or another proclaiming that search is about to be changed forever. The culprit is ChatGPT, a large language model (LLM) that has thrown up some…Tech9 min readTech9 min read
Published inThe Modern Scientist·Feb 2Member-onlyWhy companies stop innovatingHow leaders create a culture of stagnation by failing to appreciate their role Recently, a friend sent me an article about how leaders within big tech were trying to recapture the early startup spirit. It included trigger phrases for me like “being scrappy” and “be like a startup” and, to…Leadership13 min readLeadership13 min read
Published inBetter Programming·Jan 31Member-onlyMotivation for Engineering OrganisationsAre you trying to land someone on the moon or build a pyramid? — Understanding how people in your team or organisation are motivated is important and the traditional mechanisms for motivating people don’t well as we think they do. My rough rule of thumb is that if you can effectively motivate people then not only are they upwards of 3 times more effective…Leadership6 min readLeadership6 min read
Published inBetter Programming·Jan 30Member-onlyWhat Are Google’s Leaders Teaching?Leadership is learning but what lessons are being learned? — As both a former manager and a (current) parent one of the things that has struck me about both roles is that people are constantly learning from you. They are learning how to act, they are learning a set of values and they are learning a set of skills. As…Leadership9 min readLeadership9 min read
Jan 26Member-onlyHow to make layoffs less awfulPrinciples for being involved in disruptive and difficult change One of the questions I got after writing my opinion on the cultural and leadership failure that is the layoff process at Google was to ask me what I would have done differently. I’m going to reiterate this now before I…Google14 min readGoogle14 min read
Jan 25Member-onlyAfter the layoffsUnderstanding the impact of layoffs and how you can help mitigate some of them I wrote an article yesterday about the Google layoffs which garnered way more attention than I expected. After it I’ve spoken to a lot of people who’ve shared their experience. A sense of devastation like being…6 min read6 min read
Jan 24Member-onlyWhy the Google layoffs are about personal ambition and poor leadershipHow did the company that aspired to be so much more come to this? Recently, Google announced it was laying off approximately 6% of its workforce (or 12,000 people). This brings it in line with most of the rest of the tech industry. The reason given by a publicly contrite…Google8 min readGoogle8 min read
Nov 25, 2022Member-onlyAn Opportunity for TwitterHow the revolution at Twitter may give them the chance to break their chains. Or not. Like many people I’m curious about the ongoing train crash that is Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. The first part of this is the human carnage being wrought as the company is dismantled and…Twitter8 min readTwitter8 min read
Nov 23, 2022Member-onlyDecision Making and YouHow the way you go about decision making as a leader either cripples or enables your organisation One of the most important roles a leader has is in being part of an effective decision making process. You’ll notice here that I’m not saying “making decisions” which is important but only…Leadership8 min readLeadership8 min read
Nov 3, 2022Member-onlyAsk, Show or TellA simple hierarchy for influencing people Thoughout our personal and professional lives we communicate to influence people of a particular view point or course of action. The trouble is we’re not very good at it. It kind of isn’t our fault because we grow up being exposed to the least…Leadership6 min readLeadership6 min read
