Remote Software Genius

I sat down with Marcus from the Axon Collective http://axoncollective.com/ and host of The Founder's Forge podcast https://anchor.fm/foundersforge/ and discussed how we approach picking technologies and building teams as well as some common pitfalls all software projects are faced with.

Dr. Péter Érdi is the author "Ranking: The Unwritten Rules of the Social Game We All Play",  serves as the Henry Luce  Professor of Complex Systems Studies at Kalamazoo college and holds positions on the committee of the European Neural Network Society, and International Neural Network Society among others. In our chat discuss issues in modeling, supposed objectivity of models, and their importance in our society. We also discuss our obsession with ranking and the "throw-away" society, two topics covered extensively in his writings.

His book "Ranking: The Unwritten Rules of the Social Game We All Play" is available from Oxford University Press, and of course on amazon.com.

• https://global.oup.com/academic/product/ranking-9780190935467?cc=us&lang=en&
•  https://www.amazon.com/dp/0190935464

An accomplished software developer (my sister) and I discuss the remote work trend over a cocktail. 

I discussed how to make a world-class software development firm in Ukraine. the CEO of Inoxoft and I chat about his experience, what makes Lviv a special place, and how to build a strong and sustainable team. 

A startup culture that promotes others. That's what Jac Stark and I decided we wanted to see, especially in Minneapolis and Philadelphia... Passion is important, technology helps you get there, but bringing someone along (students, other businesses, your employees) might make THE difference. 

Jac builds community for Tech.mn.

Listen to her on the tech.mn (better produced) podcast here: https://tech.mn/news/categories/podcast/

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This Evening I had some tangential programmer wisdom chats with Scott Messer. He is not some Guru, but he is a good guy, level headed, Detroit boy, former Ford-whiz, Swift Day 1-er, and current React Experimenter.

Some things we discussed:

• Love and Love and Hate for Apple's Ecosystem,
• the "Javascript Experience" ,
• Ford vs Ferrari, or reasons not to race cars,
• Free as in Freedom Software Ramblings from Richard Stallman,
• Security and Reasonable Expectations of Privacy,
• IBM Model-M Keyboards (featuring clicky sounds),

Enjoy!

Good software developers have a passion for knowledge that keeps them trudging on into the unknown. Devin and I chat about his experiences moving from Microsoft to FinTech, Startups and back. Devin clearly loves his craft and it was fun to hear his story.

As a contract software development shop, Inoxoft sees and delivers more projects to more customers than most. To do this well (and maintain our stellar reputation) we need to trust our delivery processes… Maksym and I discuss those processes and why they’re important.

below are the average salaries in the US by title, what does this breakdown mean for your project?

• Engineering Manager - $152k
• Dev Ops- $125k
• Machine Learning- $125k
• Full Stack Developer $112k
• QA- $105k
• Designer- $100k
  

Tech teams are best when people teach each other, are open to learning new things, and are inclusive. Marni and I discuss the good and bad of tech culture and hopefully inspire everyone that good teams are out there and very possible with the right mindset :). 

I love the book Moneyball, here's what it means to me and my work in software:

1. Software is team sport, there are so many positions to play!
2. 10x Full-Stack Heroes exist, but I'd never build a team around them.
3. Everyone can contribute! Passion and ability to learn are so important.
4. Good managers focus on process. All-nighters are a sign of bad management. 
5. Assume people are lazy, and setup your project to succeed anyway. Your process needs to work for "normal people", if you're dependtent on a hero to save you, you're being lazy... but assuming noone else is :).
6. Use Continuous Integration principles in your team, and in the market. 

Daniel Hutner and I discussed the state of Javascript, and how to build the best teams in the world. The keys: diversity, humility, openness, learning. 

• We spoke about how Daniel went from a self-taught trainee to an architect/wizard.
• We spoke about the state of Javascript, and common pitfalls in learning and building
• We spoke about how we build teams that we manage, our favorite teams, and aspects of successful teams.
• We also HEAVILY ENDORSE @ESPNS "The Last Dance" as a study in teamwork and teambuilding

I run through some common misconceptions regarding remote work, with my baby in my lap.

Here's the list:

• Remote is NOT NEW
• Remote is NOT NICHE
• Remote is NOT ALWAYS OUTSOURCE OR OFFSHORE
• Remote does NOT REQUIRE SACRIFICING QUALITY
• Remote IS NOT ALL OR NOTHING
• Remote IS ABOUT RELENTLESS OPTIMIZATION (not just your commute)
• Remote requires near-perfect information sharing (Internally and in Market)
• "Always On” is real (but it is not new, it’ll be OK)
• Remote frequently saves money for all parties involved (who saves more isn’t obvious)

I interview Jerrod Howlett about his time at Google, how to motivate the youth and underrepresented groups in Computer Science... and how to make it as the manager of the future (someone with an MBA and coding chops).

Video: https://youtu.be/73QVKGKyMCo

What does it take to be a professional developer? What does it take to  build a great development team? Let's discuss some common advice,  pitfalls and the stuff you MUST DO to be a professional software  developer (or team).