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Don't become an engineering manager
Should you become an engineering manager?
Topics /
Career & Management
The most popular blog posts about career & management on Hacker News. 217 posts.
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Why I Left Google DeepMind
I fought against Google’s Pentagon AI deal from the inside. Powerful people and institutions failed to keep their AI ethics promises under pressure.
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Vulnerability reports are not special anymore
We needed the insight and confidentiality to protect our users, but now that anyone can get the same results from LLM?
64
You are not your job
On automation, identity, and why warmth and presence — not technical skill — are the parts of a person that can never be replaced by a model.
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A Staff Engineer's Guide to Inventing Work
A how-to manual for engineer-led discovery in software platforms
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Write some software, give it away for free
This website which you're on right now is free (as in beer), free (as in freedom), open source software called Nonograph. It cost about $600 USD to release, mos...
67
Bored of eating your own dogfood? Try smelling your own farts
I called a large company the other day. Did I know the information I wanted could be found on their website? And was I aware that I could manage my account online? And would I like to receive a link to chat with their AI assistant via WhatsApp? Naturally, call volumes were higher than expected. I can only assume that…
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AI coding is gambling
GambleAI I’ve been coding a lot with AI since November, when we all noticed it got really good. And it is quite good for instantly generating something th...
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To those who fired or didn't hire tech writers because of AI
Hey you, Yes, you, who are thinking about not hiring a technical writer this year or, worse, erased one or more technical …
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How to write an effective software design document
Best practices for writing a design doc based on my experience working as a developer at Google and Microsoft.
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Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing
Tim Cook had an extraordinary run — and impeccable timing, both in terms of when he became CEO, and when he is stepping down.
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Drunk post: Things I've learned as a senior engineer (2021)
Everything your mentor wants to say but HR won't let them
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I am often wrong
[I shared this note with my team earlier this week, and am posting it here as well. I hope it is interesting or helpful for others working on building product in the age of AI.]
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AI has a multiplying effect on existing technical skills
Friendly articles and tutorials for front-end web developers. ❤️
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Why I'm Forced to Say Farewell: Google Management Has Lost Its Moral Compass
I am forced to leave Google with 2026-08-31 because of the deal with the US Department of War, which is incompatible with my ethical principles.
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Prioritize mental health, and why communication is so important
and why communication is so important
79
Working with AI feels more like leadership than coding
Working with AI is less predictable than traditional software. That makes leadership skills such as context, clarity, and feedback more valuable.
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If you thought code writing speed was your problem you have bigger problems
AI coding tools are optimising the wrong thing and nobody wants to hear it. Writing code was already fast. The bottleneck is everything else: unclear requirements, review queues, terrified deploy…
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Why thinking out loud with someone beats thinking alone
Why does a five-minute hallway conversation sometimes solve what a week of solo thinking couldn't?
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The next two years of software engineering
Exploring five critical questions shaping software engineering through 2026, with contrasting scenarios for each. These lenses help prepare for the evolving ...
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Jobs and Software Is Fucked
Or how I decided to scream into the void about how awful the job market is. I'm still in a very sour mood after the latest rounds of interviews but ultimatel...
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Why I Am a Programmer
There they sit, the preschooler class encircling their mentor, the substitute teacher.
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Tell the speakers that you liked their talks
if you always wanted to but think it isn't worth telling a speaker you liked their talk, this is your encouragement post to do so.
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Software Engineering fundamentals matter more
The manifestation of my imposter syndrome, for me and today, is what does it mean to be a software engineer. There’s a lot more noise than signal on the Internet about agentic engineering, wh…
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Why AI hasn't replaced software engineers, and won't
Coding agents as normal technology
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No management needed: anti-patterns in early-stage engineering teams
Sharing a reluctant, "node & postgres" approach to engineering management for early-stage startups
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You can't unit test for taste
I’m building In the Long Run where runners do virtual runs on famous routes around the world. The app tallies up your Strava mileage and plots your total distance as progress against country- or continent-spanning routes. The intention is to provide long-term inspiration and motivation; life is a marathon, not a…