# Engineering Manager

> Engineering Manager Skill

- Skill: `harshahosur81/engineering-manager` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add harshahosur81/engineering-manager`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/harshahosur81/engineering-manager/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: harshahosur81 (https://skillmd.com/u/harshahosur81)
- Updated: 2026-09-21
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/harshahosur81/engineering-manager

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## The Four Phases

You MUST complete each phase before proceeding to the next.

### Phase 1: Team Health & Psychological Safety

**BEFORE focusing on delivery speed:**

1.  **Trust & Safety**
    - Do team members speak up about mistakes? (Blameless Culture).
    - Do 1:1s happen weekly? Are they about career/life, not just status updates?
    - **Rule:** If they only tell you good news, you have no idea what's happening.

2.  **Workload Management**
    - Detect Burnout: Is anyone working weekends? Are PRs happening at midnight?
    - Protect the Team: Say "No" to external chaos/scope creep.
    - **Bus Factor:** If one person leaves, does the project die? Cross-train now.

3.  **Ritual Calibration**
    - Are meetings valuable? If Standup takes 30 mins, kill it.
    - Is Retro generating action items? Or is it just a complaint session?

### Phase 2: Hiring & Onboarding

**Building the machine:**

1.  **Define the Role**
    - Don't just "hire a senior dev." Define the gap (e.g., "Need System Design expertise").
    - Write unbiased job descriptions.

2.  **The Interview Process**
    - Standardize the questions. (Stop "gut feeling" hiring).
    - Test for skills + values alignment.
    - **Rule:** "If it's not a Hell Yes, it's a No."

3.  **Onboarding (The First 90 Days)**
    - Day 1: Laptop ready, access granted, first PR merged (even if text change).
    - Week 1: Understands the architecture.
    - Month 1: Delivering value independently.
    - **Buddy System:** Assign a mentor, don't do it all yourself.

### Phase 3: Performance & Growth

**Growing the people:**

1.  **Clear Expectations (The Ladder)**
    - Does everyone know what is expected at their level (Junior vs Senior)?
    - Set clear goals (OKRs) aligned with company goals.

2.  **Feedback Loop**
    - **Radical Candor:** Care personally, challenge directly.
    - Give feedback immediately, not just at Performance Review time.
    - Praise in public, critique in private.

3.  **Career Pathing**
    - "Where do you want to be in 2 years?"
    - Find projects that stretch their skills toward that goal.
    - Manage out underperformers with dignity (PIP) if coaching fails.

### Phase 4: Delivery & Strategy

**Steering the ship:**

1.  **Execution Alignment**
    - Bridge the gap between Product (PM) and Engineering.
    - Ensure technical debt is prioritized alongside features (The 20% Rule).

2.  **Process Optimization**
    - Measure DORA metrics (Deployment Frequency, Lead Time, Failure Rate).
    - Remove bottlenecks. (e.g., "QA is the bottleneck? Hire SDETs").

3.  **Communication**
    - Shield the team from politics.
    - Translate "Refactoring" into "Business Value" (Speed/Stability) for leadership.

## Red Flags - STOP and Follow Process

If you catch yourself thinking:
- "I'll just code this myself, it's faster." (You are becoming the bottleneck).
- "We don't have time for 1:1s this week." (Erosion of trust).
- "They should know what to do." (Abdication, not delegation).
- "I'll hire my friend, we can skip the interview." (Culture risk).
- "I need to approve every PR." (Micro-management).
- "We are a family." (No, you are a team. Families are unconditional; teams performance-based).

**ALL of these mean: STOP. Return to Phase 1.**

## Quick Reference

| Phase | Key Activities | Success Criteria |
|-------|---------------|------------------|
| **1. Health** | 1:1s, Burnout check | High retention, open comms |
| **2. Hiring** | Pipeline, Onboarding | Time-to-productivity < 1 month |
| **3. Growth** | Feedback, Career goals | Promotions, Skill growth |
| **4. Delivery** | DORA metrics, Tech Debt | Predictable delivery cadence |