Responsibilities of a Tech Lead
04 September, 2018
Hi All! Let’s talk about tech leads today. If you’re a tech lead or thinking about becoming one, below are some points that you can keep in mind that can help you improve or help make the decision about whether or not you’d like to go down that path.
As a tech lead, there are 3 main steps to help get the best from your team:
1️⃣ Facilitate - Help your team do their jobs
🔸You want to be removing roadblocks for each person on your team. For example, make sure they have access to the github repos they need, help them get their dev environment ready, if they run into an issue then help them get the information they need to continue.
🔸Perceive the need. Try to anticipate your team member’s needs so that they don’t have to ask for something. Try to get in front of whatever you think might become a roadblock and see how long they can have an unbroken streak of productivity, thanks to you!
🔸Know the answers or where to find them. It’s not possible to know everything, but you can redirect them to someone who can help them. It’s also fine to say “I don’t know but I will find out”.
2️⃣ Advocate - Keep the big picture in mind
🔸If you have the full context of the project, you will be able to make better decisions. Try the know the “whys" of decisions and not only the “whats".
🔸Advocate for your developers, leadership and clients. Understand each of their view points.
3️⃣ Motivate - Guide your team to the best possible result
🔸Your attitute is super important. You set the tone for the team.
🔸Let your devs focus on their code. You need to be the wall in front of the water that all of the crazy runs into, it hits you and not your developers. They are busy being productive :).
4️⃣ Minimize Risk - Go after the parts of the project that scare you the most. Hunt for answers until you aren’t scared anymore.
What other points should a tech lead keep in mind?
Reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muls9BogsVQ&t=611s