Tech Lead Fundamentals - Defining Your Responsibilies

Tech Lead is not a standardised role, as, for example, a Scrum Master.

The Tech Lead role is defined differently among companies.

What is certain is that you are in the middle, interacting with different teams and stakeholders. For example:

• Devs

• Business Analysts / Product Owner

• Product team

• QA team

• Software Architects

• Project Manager

• The client

There is also a common ground for responsibilities/expectations that can be found in most of the companies. They are:

• Unblocking the team

• Mentoring

• Making technical & non-technical decisions

• Communicate technical & non-technical decisions

• Backlog refinement

Coding.. We all love it.

As a Tech lead you might end up coding 70% or you might end up coding 10% or ..not at all. As a Tech Lead it is for you to learn to adjust to what is needed in the project/team at that specific moment.

In this part, we explore where you get your satisfaction when you transition from Software Developer to Tech Lead. As developers, we often experience instant gratification when resolving bugs or completing tasks, with our success measured by these tangible accomplishments.

However, success as a Tech Lead is defined differently. It's about ensuring smooth project execution and delivering on time, which often lacks immediate satisfaction. You might end your day wondering what you have accomplished, feeling unproductive despite having crucial conversations, unblocking team members, and facilitating progress.

Understand that these contributions, though intangible, are essential. Resist the urge to do overtime coding just to feel useful. Embrace the reality that your role now focuses on team performance and project success.

There are unwritten & unmeasurable responsibilities, the ones that define who you want to be. Soft skills.

They are your choice, nobody can impose them on you.

They are a whole other area, related to leadership skills that is not being covered here.

Basic suggestions to consider while defining who you want to be as a leader :

- Making requests & managing promises - being rigorous with that;

- Saying no when it’s the case;

- Choose to communicate even when you want to avoid it.

5 questions to ask yourself when you transition from Software Engineer to Tech Lead:

1. Today you are colleagues, tomorrow you’ll be their “boss”. What will change in your communication?

2. How are you going to manage all the requests that come to you from different directions?

3. Do you need to be the best technical person in the team?

4. Are you going to code as much as before? We already covered this one.

5. Do you know what your manager expects from you as a TL? This will be covered in the homework.

Ask and get clear - What it is:

- it is to get clear on what others expect of you by asking & gathering information

- it is to convert expectations into agreements

- it's to make as measurable as possible the things that are expected from you

- it is to see what you can offer and what you cannot offer

- it is to make it clear for others that might expect from you something and actually is somebody else's responsibility

Ask and get clear - Why is it important:

- it give you a system of reference, something to get back to

- it helps you deal with self-doubt & the impostor syndrome

- will help you manage all the requests that come to you

- it can be clear for you and others what is that you can be counted on and what you cannot be counted on, the result of that being to prevent any upset that might come up when you will say "no" to some of the things requested from you

- asking and getting clear, aligning your responsibilities, makes a difference with how you are going to do and who you are going to be in the Tech Lead role.

Now it’s time for you to do the work. To go out there and have conversations to bring clarity for you and for others.

Taking action, having conversations, it’s not always comfortable and this the only way to make things work for you and for others.

Trust the process, it does work.

Use the workbook.

Things to remember:

- the common responsibilities for a Tech Lead are: unblock the team, mentoring, making and communicating technical decisions, backlog refinement;

- ground in reality your coding expectations - as a Tech Lead learn to be flexible with how much you code, your role is now about what is needed in the project;

- there are unwritten & unmeasurable responsibilities, the ones that define who you want to be as a leader and these are your choice, nobody can impose them on you;

- there is a difference between what your role is about and what others expect from you in this role;

- asking and getting clear, aligning your responsibilities, makes a difference with how you are going to do and who you are going to be in the Tech Lead role, it gives you a system of reference, something to get back to.

Make sure you connect with me on LinkedIn and if you need further support feel free to message me.