Community Management & Beekeeping: 3 Tips For Managing A Software Team Amer MallahMay 28, 2024 Image from Bigstock

Last month marked an interesting moment for me—the average tenure of my team hit the 10-year mark. We have had our fair share of churn, but it gave me a moment of pause—I am struck by how much time that is. When I first got hired in this particular storyline of my career, my boss (at the time) said, "We know you coders don't stay anywhere long, just give me two years." It's been 23.

A few years later, I stumbled on this humor piece by Orson Scott Card, and part of it is something I think about. The original is internet lore at this point, but there is a part about bees that has a sparkle of truth:

Here's the secret that every successful software company is based on: You can domesticate programmers the way beekeepers tame bees. You can't exactly communicate with them, but you can get them to swarm in one place and when they're not looking, you can carry off the honey. You keep these bees from stinging by paying them money. More money than they know what to do with. But that's less than you might think. You see, all these programmers keep hearing their fathers' voices in their heads saying "When are you going to join the real world?" All you have to pay them is enough money that they can answer (also in their heads) "Jeez, Dad, I'm making more than you." On average, this is cheap. And you get them to stay in the hive by giving them other coders to swarm with. The only person whose praise matters is another programmer.

The part that really resonates with me is that the most important thing keeping the hive together is the other bees. I've been in our beehive for many years now; the other bees are absolutely what keeps me engaged every day. I can't describe why it formed or why it keeps producing honey, but I do think I have figured out a few things and I think they are worthy of sharing to any fellow beekeepers and bees who find themselves pondering honey production.

1. One-on-ones

One-on-ones have taken on a buzzword-level (pun intended!) vagueness these days. In a software company, if you manage people, it's the most important time you will spend in a week. People are your most valuable asset. No software is being built without them.

An important part of establishing and maintaining a relationship with people is having regular and meaningful interaction. I look forward to these conversations and so should you. In this conversation, sometimes it will start off as a status update, which is fine, but that can happen in email or Slack. What you want is problem-solving, as in: there is a problem, and we are going to solve it together. Whether you like it or not, you have problems to solve, and they are either being ignored until they explode or you are working with your people to get them solved.

2. Let the Information Flow

There are definitely situations where confidentiality and discretion are important. There is also plenty of information that is irrelevant. That being said, it's extremely difficult to coordinate the success of something complicated if your team is operating in the dark. That's easy when the timing is convenient. Before you leave for the beach, check the weather. Before you go on a road trip, fill up the gas tank. Seems obvious. But it's most critical when the information is inconvenient or difficult: decisions are being made constantly and the timely actions on that information matter.

If a storm suddenly forms while you're at the beach, it's unfortunate that your vacation is getting interrupted, but you need enough time to get to safety. If you burn more gas than you expected, your schedule is messed up, but you should not skip this exit. Sharing this information will be uncomfortable, but you need all the available brains to avoid disaster. Most importantly, it establishes a sense of collective ownership and trust.

3. Reduce Friction

If you're a manager, you work for your team. Your job is to figure out how to get enough obstacles out of their way so that they can get the job done. The role of a manager, at any level, is to take the challenges you're assigned from the business, translate them into a strategy and tactics, sell your strategy and tactics, and then work hard to reduce friction that would slow the plan down.

The tactics and strategy will change when presented with new information (aka Agile) and the sources of friction will be different and challenging, but doing this for people is something that is truly appreciated and builds loyalty.

Managing a team is more educational than it sounds and it takes years to tune these skills, but it is worth every minute! What do you think? Any other tips you'd add for the beekeepers out there?

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management Cover Letter Spring Cleaning: 4 Ways To Fix Your Job Search Aaron SanbornJenna ArcandMarch 19, 2024 Bigstock

Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.

In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.

For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.

Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach Bigstock

Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:

• How did I learn about this job?
• How did I apply for the job?
• Did I earn an interview?
• What was the ultimate result?

A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:

Negative Trends

You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.

The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.

One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.

The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.

This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.

Positive Trends

You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.

The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.

The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.

Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.

The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.

Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention Bigstock

Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.

Let's start with resumes!

Every resume should be tailored to the position in order for it to stand out to recruiters and hiring managers. It may seem like a lot of work, but it's actually less work than submitting the same resume over and over again and never hearing back.

The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.

Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.

While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.

As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.

If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.

Build Your Personal Brand

Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.

Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"

Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.

By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.

You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.

Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search Bigstock

Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.

There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:

• Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
• Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
• Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!

Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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