Ask HN: Interview Tips for a Director of Engineering Role?

[_null_pointer_]

Interview-wise:

- What are the key skills that a DoE should have in order to do their job right?

- How do DoEs get interviewed, in general? What does the interviewer usually look for?

- What are some of the things that one should ask about during the interview process to learn more about the role?

Role-wise:

- What are some of the commonly made mistakes in this role, specially for new-commers?

- What separates good DoEs from bad ones?

- How do DoEs get better at what they do?

[rramadass]

My observations:

DoE is actually a multi-functional role responsible for interfacing everything Engineering with Strategic Management, Marketing and Sales. As such Core Engineering competency is the necessity and without that everything else is useless. They must have in depth knowledge of the domain and the specific product line(s) and not mere "hand-wavy" overview. Too many DoEs err on the side of Management and not enough Engineering. Delegate appropriate responsibilities to Tech. Leads/Architects/Sr. Engineers but still be involved so that everything comes together as a organic whole. Shield Engineering from management/operational BS and politics. Have regular meetups with Product Teams and ALL individual engineers one-on-one (eg. brown bag lunches) so that you can assess motivation/morale and work on methods to maintain it at optimum level. Encourage "skunkworks" projects. Be generous in crediting individual engineers and not mere "team talk". While focusing on the company's product vision be also mindful of each engineer's aspirations and provide for opportunities for each of them to grow (eg. training in new technologies and management, 15% time on whatever side projects). Finally, always, always LISTEN to your Engineers on major tech. related decisions.

See also;

https://medium.com/connect-the-dots/what-does-a-director-of-...

https://www.quora.com/What-qualities-and-skills-separate-an-...

[_null_pointer_ → rramadass]

Thank you! The role I am interviewing for is also responsible for system architecture and design, not at the code level but at the level of services and components, sort of a Technical Director who is at the same time the Chief Architect (small company). Do you see this working or do you think it's too much of a scope?

[rramadass → _null_pointer_]

Go for it!

In any new position, you will have to learn and grow into it and if the jump is gradual, all the better. Assuming that you have the engineering domain covered, you may only lack experience on the management side which will have to be worked on but that will be easier since it is a small company and hence will not be onerous. You can also request help (i.e. informal mentoring from peers/seniors) and later on grow your team to delegate some burden off of you if needed. Necessary commitment and hard-work will take you up the career ladder.

Finally, don't sell yourself short while also not losing sight of your limitations. Focus and sell on your strengths while simultaneously working on improving your weaknesses i.e. stretch yourself and don't always stay within your "comfort zone". Have a clear view of Expectations vs. Responsibilities and you can takeup any challenge.

Good Luck!

[_null_pointer_ → rramadass]

Thank you very much for your help and support.

I have been developing software since 2008/2009 and have been a technical team leader for 4 years now. This is definitely a big jump up the career ladder where I will be responsible for three different engineering teams. Sounds exciting.

[thiago_fm → _null_pointer_]

I think the position isn't then of a Director of Engineering. This seems to be more of a technical role. Lead Architect or something. Director of Engineering implies that you manage teams, not directly people/architecture/code.

[_null_pointer_ → thiago_fm]

Well, the role is titled as Technical Director of Data Engineering. The DoE will be responsible for 3 different engineering teams with a headcount of 5-7 full-timers each team. What makes you think that this is not a DoE role?

A bit about myself, I have a total of 11 years of developing software, out of which I have been technically leading a team of 5 full-time engineers for 4 years now.

[thiago_fm → _null_pointer_]

You didn't leave that clear on your post.

[thiago_fm]

It depends on what kind of company you are interviewing to.

Let's suppose it is a great and modern company.

They probably want you to be an enabler, which creates a good environment for the software developers to do great work, either by shielding them from other areas, when they need to. But also you need to display you are able to keep them in line at the same time. Also, obviously, a great communicator: you must always say the right things, at the right time.

You need to also be a great example. That doesn't mean you need to have many strengths and no weaknesses, but rather, that with given what you have, you play the best cards. Developers have no problem following suit from somebody they trust.

[leshokunin]

Well, a good starting place would be to know what you think those are?

Those are really broad questions, and in my experience any person in a director position should be able to give a clear, articulate, concise answer to each.