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Discussion on: Should Technical Managers Be Able To Code?

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John Peters • Edited

In my 30 yrs in IT, the best managers were skilled in dealing with people. In particular those who raised up total trust. The technical roles were reserved for Architects, Leads, Seniors, and Freshers.

The worst manager I ever had was a Team Lead promoted into 1st line management.

The 2nd worst were managers who couldn't be bothered but still demanded due dates.

Then there was the drill Sargeant scrum master.

And finally the snitching wonder boy, loved by the 3rd line untrusted by everyone else.

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Chris Cook

How were they skilled in dealing with people? I could think of a manager I had that excelled at understanding the technical requirements on one side and was able to translate this into plain language when talking to non technical people.

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John Peters

The good ones are able to create an atmosphere of purpose, support, trust and understanding. Everyone enjoys the team, likes the scrum master, team leads and inter-team collaboration is magic. Negatives are always handled professionally. The attitude is can-do continually. Agile is a must.