A software engineering leader draws parallels between managing a college radio station staffed by engineering students and leading software teams. The core lesson: credibility with engineers isn't earned through authority or out-coding the team, but by understanding the system, fixing broken processes, building missing structures, protecting what works, and removing obstacles. Engineers grant credibility to leaders who improve the environment where work happens, not to those who assert positional authority.
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Understand the system before trying to lead itDon’t pretend to be something you aren’tFix broken systems and build the ones that are missingProtect the parts of the system that already workCredibility is emotional, not positionalSort: