Working With Your Manager

Your manager shapes your day more than almost anything else. These episodes cover getting something useful out of your 1:1s, giving feedback upward, surviving a performance review, and what to do when your manager is absent, overbearing, or simply the problem.

95 episodes of Soft Skills Engineering, the weekly advice podcast where Dave Smith and Jamison Dance answer software engineers' questions. Every episode is free, and each page below has the listener's question in full.

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Every episode about working with your manager

  1. Episode 516: Not a baby and my product manager doesn't know the product
  2. Episode 511: Should I take a temporary management position and performance-based bonuses
  3. Episode 509: I hate AI software dev, so should I become a manager and leading, not doing
  4. Episode 502: Management keeps leaving and I hate using AI to code
  5. Episode 498: Testing in big corporations and how to get my first management job
  6. Episode 495: What to do when my boss quits and moving to Romania?
  7. Episode 493: My boss one-ups my negativity and football engineering
  8. Episode 491: Re-arranging deck chairs on the Titantic and my boss leaks private info
  9. Episode 487: My manager ignores me during 1:1's and I am required to work in an empty office
  10. Episode 486: No one on my team talks and skip level meetings
  11. Episode 478: Can you coach self-awareness and my boss is an llm
  12. Episode 466: Bad performance review and moving in to the caves
  13. Episode 465: Talking to your report's previous manager and how to replace a 30-year-old ticketing system
  14. Episode 463: CTO w/ weak resume and I tried management and it was TERRIBLE
  15. Episode 456: Will I look bad on the job market if I'm a crypto developer and struggling to go from management back to dev work
  16. Episode 451: Un-collaborative architect and who is my boss?
  17. Episode 440: How do I help my boss not burn out and should I tell people I'm older than I am?
  18. Episode 437: My company canceled all one-on-ones and moving to a single backlog
  19. Episode 435: How to make my boss actually do something and kindly shooting down
  20. Episode 434: Forgetful boss and nothing to say
  21. Episode 429: Should I quit my job for free hoodies and manager to IC
  22. Episode 420: New grad getting boring work and busy manager
  23. Episode 417: Should I tell my boss I'm checked out and how do I deal with a PM who has no idea what he's doing?
  24. Episode 416: My boss wants me to build dark patterns and getting promoted without writing code
  25. Episode 410: Guaranteed cost-of-living raises and my manager doesn't like me
  26. Episode 399: Higher paid than my boss and crossing over to management
  27. Episode 387: No juniors and manager forced to return to office
  28. Episode 382: Mentors for managers and mob programming
  29. Episode 380: Overruled by non-technical manager and describing technical stuff to non-technical people
  30. Episode 368: Manager in crisis and cutting costs
  31. Episode 352: Exploding manager and I hate computers
  32. Episode 349: Performance review dissonance and being a remote manager
  33. Episode 347: New untrusting manager and crappy project management
  34. Episode 343: Tech lead/manager and discouraging seniors
  35. Episode 338: I am the golden handcuffs and Staying in management
  36. Episode 337: Helping the principal and Manager conflict
  37. Episode 333: Unsure about management and I shall decline the offer
  38. Episode 329: Falling behind and can't get a management job
  39. Episode 314: "That guy" and how to skip level
  40. Episode 309: Missing boss support and new manager, who dis
  41. Episode 302: Bad boss movies and well-written emails
  42. Episode 300: Manager move and cultural or personal
  43. Episode 297: Flat decisions and pointy-haired boss
  44. Episode 296: Low performer and frantic manager
  45. Episode 293: Moving TOO fast and following my manager
  46. Episode 292: Haunted by former co-worker and awkward manager endorsement
  47. Episode 288: Too excited about learning and furious boss when quitting
  48. Episode 285: Staying technical as a manager and skill over seniority
  49. Episode 270 (rerun of 227): Junior expectations and manager flakiness
  50. Episode 265 (rerun of 216): One-on-ones and inter-team power struggles
  51. Episode 263: Why am I bored and ver-boss-ity
  52. Episode 250: The management track and active listening
  53. Episode 229: Other people's code and moving into product management
  54. Episode 227: Junior expectations and manager flakiness
  55. Episode 224: Bad review from conflicted boss and questioning my career choices
  56. Episode 221: Current boss reference and getting paid to do nothing
  57. Episode 219: Remote crickets and Manager Careering
  58. Episode 216: One-on-ones and inter-team power struggles
  59. Episode 213: Interviewing your future boss and screwed by private equity
  60. Episode 206: Micromanaging WFH and vaguely tech lead
  61. Episode 201: Too soon for a raise and management, masters, maybe?
  62. Episode 198: Stinky manager and VP overhaul
  63. Episode 183: Terrible boss code and peer-to-peer mentorship
  64. Episode 182: Lunch and switching to product management
  65. Episode 174: Bottleneck manager and how to tech lead
  66. Episode 160: Non-manager 1:1s and throwing away dev learning
  67. Episode 146: What to do with sick co-workers who come into the office and dealing with weird performance review feedback
  68. Episode 145: What to do with a bad manager who is loved by upper management and should I include detecting major security vulnerabilities on my resume?
  69. Episode 142: Can I get hired above my level even though I look inexperienced on paper and should I be brutally honest in peer performance reviews
  70. Episode 140: Should I apologize for my bugs after I quit and should I become a project manager
  71. Episode 137: How to get answers to technical questions and Should managers also be technical
  72. Episode 135: Publicly Correcting Speakers and Forced Into a Dev Role as a Product Manager
  73. Episode 132: Should I tell my boss I'm planning to quit and keeping tech talks going
  74. Episode 129: Office romance and What to say during one-on-ones
  75. Episode 121: Working Remotely Without Hating It and Managing Rotating Engineers
  76. Episode 119 (rerun of episode 77): My boss wants me to speak at conferences and how to get better than a 2% raise
  77. Episode 105: Interviewing for Management and Annoying Noises
  78. Episode 101: Style In Code Reviews and How To Thank My Manager
  79. Episode 98 (Rerun of Episode 57): Disliking Management and Difficult Co-workers
  80. Episode 90: Upper Management Dislikes Me and Undeserved Job Offers
  81. Episode 77: Boss Wants Me To Speak and The 2% Raise
  82. Episode 72: The Micromanaging CEO and The Only Developer
  83. Episode 69: A Know-It-All Lead and Selling Your Boss on Remote Work
  84. Episode 63: (Rerun) Management Snobs and Two Bosses
  85. Episode 61: Product Managers and Notifications
  86. Episode 57: Disliking Management and Difficult Co-workers
  87. Episode 53: Bait and Switch and Informing Your Manager
  88. Episode 50: I Didn't Quit and Manager of Zero People
  89. Episode 45: RAPID FIRE and Micromanagers
  90. Episode 41: Management Snobs and Two Bosses
  91. Episode 39: Brilliant Jerks and One on Ones
  92. Episode 31: Going In To Management and Knowing If A Job Is Worth Applying To
  93. Episode 25: Understanding the Business and Managing Without Being a Developer
  94. Episode 13: Dealing with a 'yes' boss and the difference between contract and permanent positions
  95. Episode 11: Negotiating offers and dealing with an oblivious boss

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Browse all 527 episodes or ask Dave and Jamison your own question.