True story … I worked for a very large semi-manufacturer. An engineering team was attempting to invent a new device for cloud data centers. The engineering team built early units. The price, performance and capabilities were all best in class. But, it was incapable of hot-plug; meaning to add this device, the server must be […]

Hubbert’s Book on Remote Tech Teams url: https://www.amazon.com/Inspiring-Remote-Tech-Teams-Performance-ebook/dp/B08VLFYTT3/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=hubbert+smith&qid=1615748275&sr=8-2 Based on personal experience of managing 26 successful tech projects … spoiler — its 80% soft science involving workplace neural responses, and 20% hard science of project management Foreword by – Thomas DiGiacomo,President of Engineering and Innovation at SUSE When Hubbert shared his idea to write about […]

What can we learn from bankruptcies of K Mart and Sears? What can we learn from WalMart emerging as the largest company in the world (not Fortune 100, but Fortune 1)? And what does it have to do with Tech Teams, remote or otherwise? We know every business is a tech business in some form […]

Early in my career, I was tasked with all sorts of random, weird, short-fused things. When I was introduced to a new team, I learned the habit of doing something for others before asking others to do something for me. It’s a simple gesture, that says, “You matter.” Our sense of belonging is strengthened with […]

It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.— Chinese proverbThe point is, innovation is painful. But failing to attempt innovation is worse. Innovation involves uncertainty and often failure. Who among us is continuously motivated when efforts often end in failure or the inventor is perceived as a failure? Innovation is even […]

From my upcoming book “Effective Remote Tech Teams”to be published by Taylor and Francis. Real life story — Decades ago, I worked for NCR, the company had problems, so many problems. Changes were made. A new CEO was hired, Lars Nyberg.Lars was awesome, Lars directly addressed all 15,000 NCR employees every month. He did a […]

From my upcoming book “Effective Remote Tech Teams”to be published by Taylor and Francis. Folksy wisdom — When we buy a drill, it is not because we need a drill, rather it is because we need a hole. This is a question of craftsmanship. Agile is a tool. The work product is about how we […]

Empathy About you and your empathy — Empathy is a conscious choice. Being consistently empathetic takes focus and significant effort. As a project moves along and fatigue sets in, we will find situations where we don’t want to accept the burden of hearing and attempting to improve. Consistent empathy is the only genuine form of […]

Instinct is something we just know. ———————————– Merriam-Webster defines Instinct as a behavior mediated by reactions below the conscious level. Instinct is not consciously learned. Instinct is below the conscious level. We know how to breathe, eat and drink. We know how to use our hands and feet. For 80,000 years of human evolution, for […]

Tech projects are hard. Mistakes and obstacles are a reality. Unhealthy teams allow problems to go uncorrected and problems usually become chronic. But that’s an uncomfortable conversation, we don’t like being told we are wrong. It’s even worse to be told we are wrong in front of our team, (our “tribe”). The art in this […]