leadership

Create a More Productive Work Environment

There is no one ideal set of criteria for a productive work environment, but there are some common themes that team members and managers can keep in mind. On an agile team, the issues of office space, remote working, and multitasking are great topics to discuss at an iteration retrospective.

Steve Berczuk's picture
Steve Berczuk
Finding the Right People to Manage Your Programmers

Managers are often the ones responsible for removing impediments, but finding people who are good at managing programmers is difficult. Steve Berczuk explores why quality engineering managers are hard to come by.

Steve Berczuk's picture
Steve Berczuk
Is Your Team Healthy? These Are the Questions to Ask

A healthy team is characterized by trust, respect, openness, honesty, empathy, and flexibility. When your team is not healthy, you're met with closed minds, domination, selfishness, negativity, personal criticism, and stubbornness. How can you ensure a healthy team? Ask yourselves these questions.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
Leading by Example: An Essential Trait of Successful Leaders

Being an effective leader in today’s competitive world is challenging. However, a true leader stands out at these times, making all the difference in driving his team and their project to success. “Leading by example” is a top-listed trait of successful leaders in the workplace for good reason.

Mukesh Sharma's picture
Mukesh Sharma
What Makes Collaboration Work

No matter what field you're in or position you hold, chances are you sometimes have to collaborate with colleagues. And while collaboration can be made out to sound like a smooth process, the reality is that few teams can work well together for long. Read on for some tips on collaborating better.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
How to Lead without Authority

Lacking formal authority means you have to use other means to get people to listen to you. And that’s not so bad, because the traits that will help you lead—and be seen as a leader—in the absence of formal authority are traits that will inspire followers. Read on for tips on becoming a motivator.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
Why We Should Get Rid of Bonus-Based Pay

There are several problems with basing a knowledge worker's pay on a bonus. In a team-based organization, management often doesn't know who did exactly what work; people concentrate on their own objectives rather than working together; and whether some targets are hit depends on too many factors.

Johanna Rothman's picture
Johanna Rothman
The Benefits of Making Deliberate Mistakes

Sometimes a mistake is exactly what’s needed to make progress. You require not just a mistake—but a deliberate mistake. Even if you don’t get what you really wanted or hoped for, you’ll probably learn something useful that will help you along your path. Read on to learn how to make good mistakes!

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten