ksindi/managers-playbook

Manager's Playbook is a written guide containing practical advice for engineering managers. It is not software, but a living document in a GitHub repository. The author compiled it from personal experience and observations of other managers, and it is aimed primarily at people moving into management for the first time, though experienced managers may also find it useful. The guide covers the full range of concerns a team manager typically faces. There are sections on one-on-ones (regular private check-ins with each direct report), giving and receiving feedback, coaching, making decisions, strategic thinking, and managing upward toward your own leadership. It also covers more process-oriented topics like how to run a hiring process, onboard new hires, manage a ticket and code review workflow, and announce changes to the team. Some sections include concrete techniques. The one-on-ones chapter suggests a monthly health check where you ask your report to rate on a scale of one to ten how they feel about predictability, ownership, purpose, progress, and belonging in their role. The coaching and feedback sections draw on recognized frameworks. The guide also addresses a common question for engineering managers: how technical should you be? The author recommends against managing people until reaching at least a senior engineer level, and advises that managers with more than seven direct reports should generally avoid coding in the critical path so they do not block the team. The document describes effective teams as needing three qualities: autonomy (the ability to work without depending on other teams), mastery of their domain, and a clear sense of purpose. The README notes the guide is intentionally kept short and focused. It also links out to further reading for anyone who wants to go deeper on individual topics.