Can’t Get Technical Talent? Mind the Interviews!

Waiting for job interviews

Imagine this scenario: your company paid a recruiting firm to find candidates for new technical roles in support of your expanding product portfolio.  Technical talent is rolling in, your team is interviewing them, but nobody is accepting your offers.  You are starting to wonder how this is happening. “We’re a world-class company, with world-class talent … Read more

Mindfulness For Zombies

Zombie in the Office

Trick or treat! Almost everyone has seen zombie movies or shows.  Almost without exception, the zombies are portrayed as unthinking beasts, satisfying their primitive instincts by preying on the living.  Fun on Halloween, but rather apocalyptic and scary otherwise, right? Another way to think about zombies, is that they are incapable of higher thought.  They … Read more

Humility As A Skill

Humility

Having formerly worked in the big data space, I once met an experienced software guy named Ken who is a well-regarded big data and search expert.  Upon trading some design thoughts on a particular topic, I was struck by how approachable he was.  His points were always reasonable and well-articulated; there was no hint of … Read more

The Lost Art of Listening

man being yelled at by senior manager

The old cartoon character Foghorn Leghorn once said to his nemesis Henery Hawk, “You’re hearing me boy, but you just ain’t listening!” Listening skills seem to be getting rarer and rarer these days, even in highly technical roles.  I cannot count the times that I have encountered engineers with serious challenges in this area, yet … Read more