Eddie and Morgan are joined by guest Erin Doyle, a staff software engineer at Lob. Together, they delve into developer productivity, exploring the balance between developer experience and organizational efficiency. They discuss challenges like cognitive overload, psychological safety, and the pitfalls of productivity metrics. The conversation highlights practical steps for fostering a productive engineering environment, focusing on key concepts such as Shift Left, developer joy, and the importance of clear ownership in tackling tech debt.

Morgan and Eddie explore the often-taboo topic of money in engineering organizations by tackling listener questions about explaining layoffs and budget cuts to a team. They break down how SaaS businesses operate, the factors influencing engineering budgets, and practical strategies for managing finances as an engineering leader.

• (00:00) - Introduction and Listener's Dilemma
• (01:13) - Understanding Corporate Finance
• (01:48) - Challenges of Discussing Money
• (02:50) - SaaS Finance 101
• (04:36) - Financial Decision Making in Tech
• (08:59) - Engineering Budget Scrutiny
• (17:39) - Overhiring and Layoffs in Tech
• (21:07) - Strategies for Managing Budget Cuts
• (25:42) - Alignment of Values in Leadership
• (27:47) - Defensible Organizational Design
• (31:56) - Investment Allocation Strategies
• (33:28) - Build vs. Buy Decisions
• (35:34) - Importance of Fundamentals in Engineering
• (39:31) - Cost Consciousness and Budget Management
• (43:52) - Communicating Budget Changes to the Team
• (47:52) - Final Thoughts and Feedback

In this episode, Morgan and Eddie pivot from their usual Q&A format to discuss the crucial topic of individual performance assessment, particularly timely during mid-year reviews. They explore the complexities introduced by recent economic shifts, the significant role of perceived performance in career trajectory, and the challenges in achieving fairness and transparency. Key discussion points include the impact of luck on performance, how to consider proper sample sizes, providing actionable feedback, and the importance of regular, transparent communication. They also dive into practical solutions like separating reward and punishment from the performance cycle, fostering a team composition strategy, and considering the 'how' as much as the 'what' in evaluations. Finally, they offer strategies for just-in-time performance review preparations.

• (00:00) - The Importance of Performance Assessment
• (01:00) - Challenges of Performance Conversations
• (03:15) - The Role of Luck in Performance
• (07:31) - The Importance of Sample Size in Evaluations
• (11:00) - Feedback and Its Pitfalls
• (13:53) - Effective Performance Management Strategies
• (21:26) - Consistency and Avoiding Bias in Evaluations
• (26:56) - Growth Opportunities and Mitigating Failure
• (27:35) - Challenges with Staff Plus Roles
• (28:22) - Promotion Transparency and Organizational Honesty
• (30:27) - Role-Based Staff Plus Jobs
• (36:33) - Performance Calibration and Engineering Personas
• (41:41) - Addressing Tech Debt and Engineering Efficiency
• (44:13) - Strategies for Performance Evaluation Season
• (50:55) - The Importance of Transparency and Trust