In this interview with Jeremy Henrickson, VP Product and Engineering @ Rippling, we discuss hiring at startups, the importance of making decisions quickly while still considering that I might be wrong, and what it takes to be a great engineering leader.
Stories from VPs of Engineering
Interview with Tanaka Mutakwa, VP of Engineering at Names & Faces
In this interview, with Tanaka Mutakwa, VP of Engineering at Names & Faces and organizer of Tech Leadership Meetup Cape Town, we discuss how to conduct culture interviews, the importance of check-ins (1:1s), plus many tips and lessons learned in transitioning to management.
Interview with Rukmini Reddy, VP of Engineering at Abstract
In this interview (and podcast), with Rukmini Reddy, VP of Engineering at Abstract, we discuss motiving and aligning your team, working in a remote company, hiring, and tips for being organized.
Interview with Vishal Saxena, VP Global SaaS Operations at Aktana
In this interview (and podcast), with Vishal Saxena, VP Global SaaS Operations at Aktana, we discuss handling organization change, the relationship between engineering and IT and Dev-ops, and advice for new managers.
Interview with Randy Raw, VP of Information Security at Veterans United Home Loans
Read or listen to my interview with interview with Randy Raw, VP of Information Security at Veterans United Home Loans. We discuss working w/ info security. lessons learned as a leader, recommend podcasts, and more!
Interview with Eugene Bochkarev, VP of Engineering at Xero
In this interview (also available as a podcast), I speak with Eugene Bochkarev, VP of Engineering at Xero who wants to make the whole community of engineers and managers better. We discuss advice for new managers, hiring strategies in the highly competitive SF Bay Area, and a lot of great learning and book recommendations.
Interview with Juan Pablo Buritica Vice President of Engineering at Splice
- What’s your background and how did you get into management?
- What are the biggest challenges you face?
- What are your thoughts on diversity?
- What is your approach to hiring?
- What’s your advice for managers who are just starting out?
- What’s your workday like and how do you manage your time, emails, etc.?
- What’s a personal habit that contributes to your success?
Interview with Robby Russell, VP Engineering, Partner at Planet Argon, LLC
Current role: VP of Engineering, Founder Partner at Planet Argon
Location: Portland, Oregon
What’s your background and how did you get into management?
It’s not conventional. In the second half of the 90s, I began dabbling with open source technologies. In particular, with Linux and Perl. During this time, I was also a high school dropout painting houses for three years.
The idea of working in tech didn’t appeal to me.
Interview with Oliver Plattner, VP of Engineering at Codecademy
Location: New York
Current Role: Codecademy VP of Engineering
What’s your background and how did you get into management?
I’ve been working in technology since I was 15 years old and initially started by working with computer networks and data centers. After graduating with a computer science degree, I took my technical skills to build out technical pre and post sales teams. It was early on in my career that I realized it was much more rewarding and empowering to set others up for success and see them achieve their goals as opposed to being an individual contributor.
Interview with Saminda Wijegunawardena, VP, Engineering @ Box
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Current Role: VP of Engineering
What is your background and how did you get into management?
My background in both management and engineering management is pretty unconventional. In college, I started out as a business major. After taking electives my first year, I took an accounting course in my second year and quickly realized that it was not for me. Ultimately, I took a bunch of science and philosophy of science courses that really reinvigorated me so I decided to go pre-med.