This is the blog of Adam Kalsey. Unusual depth and complexity. Rich, full body with a hint of nutty earthiness.

Recently Written

Software engineering manager interview questions (Aug 6)

Here are some questions I like to use to get a sense of who an engineering manager is and how they work.

A framework for onboarding new employees (May 15)

There’s no single good way to onboard an employee that works for every role. Here's a framework for creating a process that you can adapt to each situation.

TV hosts as a guide for software managers (May 10)

Software managers can learn a lot from journalists or late night TV hosts and how they interview people.

The Improvement Flywheel (Apr 29)

An incredible flywheel for the improvement of a development team. Fix a few things, and everything starts getting better.

Managers and technical ability (Dec 26)

In technical fields, the closer you are to the actual work being done, the closer your skills need to resemble those of the people doing the work.

Dysfunctions of output-oriented software teams (Sep 17)

Whatever you call it, the symptom is that you're measuring your progress by how much you build and deliver instead of measuring success by the amount of customer value you create.

Evaluative and generative product development (Aug 30)

Customers never even talk to the companies that don't fit their needs at all. If the only product ideas you're considering are those that meet the needs of your current customers, then you're only going to find new customers that look exactly like your current customers.

Product Manager Career Ladder (Aug 19)

What are the steps along the product management career path?

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What I'm Reading

• Thinking in Systems: A Primer by Donella H. Meadows
• All the Devils (Livia Lone #3) by Barry Eisler
• The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever by Michael Bungay Stanier
• Hit Refresh: The Quest to Rediscover Microsoft's Soul and Imagine a Better Future for Everyone by Satya Nadella
• The CEO of Automattic on Holding “Auditions” to Build a Strong Team
• New Employee Bootcamp | Silicon Valley Product Group
• Unlocking value with durable teams
• Why You Should Consider Eliminating the Title “Implementation Consultant” from Your Startup
• Obviously Awesome: How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It by April Dunford
• Wartime Product Leadership
• Model, document and share.
• To Pixar and Beyond: My Unlikely Journey with Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History by Lawrence Levy
• 16 Questions for Selling in COVID-19
• Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Malone Scott
• Testing with Humans: How to use experiments to drive faster, more informed decision making. by Giff Constable
• The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win by Jocko Willink
• Walk the Wire (Amos Decker #6) by David Baldacci
• The End of OS X
• The Goal Fits the Team
• A hiring metaphor for engineers hiring their first UX people