Hello there. This is your guide to Mattius (Mat-E-us). If we’ve worked together before, or this is your first time meeting me, the purpose of this document is to let you know who I am, how I work, and what I value.
I’ve been an engineering leader since 2015, working with a mix of operations and development teams. I’ve worked in large companies, mid-size startups, and small shops, with a strong preference for 100+ person startups. Bureaucracy isn’t my jam--I believe in getting things done rather than deciding by committee.
I started my career in the mid-2000s as a support engineer before becoming a software developer. I never intended to get into operations, but my first job was in a small 10-person office, and someone needed to care and feed for the servers. I’ve moved back-and-forth from working with ops and development teams since. I don’t believe in strict definitions of roles and prefer an environment where everyone contributes to get the job done.
I’ve been accused of being more blue-collar than usual for a knowledge worker. I come from a long line of pipefitters and I’ve got an innate desire to get my hands dirty. I believe that engineering leaders should be familiar with code. While I’m not going to be the most knowledgeable on the team, I still want to be involved with technology.
Outside of work, I live in Vancouver with my wife Sylvia, my son Henry, and the best dog in the world, Bigby. I’m an avid baseball fan and have been trying to see every major league baseball team at home (50% there). I play on a pub quiz team and have hosted a few trivia nights for charity in the past. I’m happiest when I’m hiking with the dog, watching live music, at the park with my son, or with friends at the pub.
People. I value the people on the team more than I value technology. I am protective of the people on my team and believe in investing in their continued growth. I care about the people that I work with and want to help them become better at what they do.
Commitment. In return for my belief in the people I work with, I want to work with individuals who care. Caring doesn’t mean blind loyalty or that I expect people to work excessive hours. It means I want to work with people who give a honk; people who do things because they’re thinking about the future and what’s best for all of us.
Honesty. I expect folks around me to be forthright and direct. I’ve seen enough go wrong in my career to know that success isn’t a certainty. I expect the people I’m working with to tell me when things have gone wrong right away so we can focus on solving the problem. I bias to trusting those around me but once lost it’s hard to regain.
Feedback. I believe we do better when we’re invested in one another’s success and when we share feedback openly. I care about your success and will give you feedback to help you get better. I expect you to do the same for me. My team should feel comfortable advising me where improvements can be made and should tell me when they think I’ve gotten something wrong—your opinion matters.
My job within the team is to provide clarity, direction, and guidance. It’s my responsibility to let the team and our stakeholders know what we’re working on and why our projects are essential. I’m on the hook for our outcomes, but I expect the team to work with me to make sure we’re making the right decisions.
When working directly with an engineering team, my role is defining problems and clarifying expected outcomes. The team is responsible for how things get built. I’m interested in the solutions the team chooses, but ultimately the team is responsible for deciding implementation.
I provide feedback to the team so we continually improve. Feedback could be helping with career development, helping the team deliver the right solutions to our users, or helping to find technical solutions. It’s my job to celebrate the team’s wins and provide guidance where we can get better.
I’ll facilitate interactions both within and outside the team. Those interactions could mean running discussions with stakeholders or negotiating with vendors. I bring context from other parts of the organization and represent the team’s needs when engaging with others.
I’m here to support the team. My job is to make sure team members get recognized for their successes. I see my role as an advocate for the team and a cheerleader of accomplishments. When things don’t go well, my job is to take responsibility for failures. In short, the team gets praise for the good, and I get the blame for the bad.
Know who their customer is and what they want. Whether it’s a software development or operations team, we all have stakeholders counting on us. My team should be familiar with their customers’ pain and make all decisions with the customer in mind.
Support one another. Someone who helps colleagues find success is always more valuable to me than a lone wolf. Team cohesion is essential to me, and I believe the whole team succeeds when working together. Your teammates' success is a direct reflection of your success.
Work the problem. This is especially true in an emergency, but I expect those around me to try to find ways to solve issues that arise. I don’t expect everyone to know everything, but I do expect team members to find answers to questions. If you can’t solve 100% of a problem, just find a way to make things 1% better.
Tell me things. Tell me what’s going wrong, and tell me what’s going right. Tell me about the opportunities you think we’re missing. Tell me about where things are unclear. I am counting on you to advise me and help me make good decisions. I want everyone to be successful, including you. Most importantly, if something is urgent, tell me so. Nobody should ever have to sit on something important.
Don’t let me get surprised. Along with the importance of talking to me, don’t put me in an uncomfortable position because we haven’t talked about something. You can bring me bad news, but sooner is better. This is true as well for good news. The more you tell me about the good work you’ve done, the better I can evangelize your successes.