Welcome to EM Survival Guide! We're glad you're here.

The Job Has Changed

Let's start with the uncomfortable truth: the expectations on engineering managers have shifted dramatically. In the post-ZIRP era, org size is no longer a status symbol—it's a liability. The default view of managers has shifted from "necessary leadership layer" to "overhead that needs to prove its value."

This isn't going away. We have to accept this reality and work within it.

That means being intentional about the job in a way that wasn't required before. You can't coast on good intentions and caring about your team. You need to be demonstrably effective.

What Does a Manager Actually Do?

The job of the manager is the output of the team, over time.

Not the meetings. Not the 1:1s. Not the processes. Those are tools, not the job. Your value as a manager comes from being a force multiplier; helping your team get more done than they would without you.

At their best, engineering managers are force multipliers for their teams. At their worst, they're overhead. The gap between those two outcomes is what this course is about.

Some days you come in and you're deep in the details, unblocking a project or pairing on a tricky problem. Other days you're in back-to-back 1:1s, helping people work through what's stuck. Other days you're in meetings with leadership, trying to get clarity on priorities or fight for resources.

All of this can be the job. The question is: are you being deliberate about which mode you're in and why? Or are you just reacting to whatever's in front of you?

When you're constantly in reactive mode, you don't have the time or energy to think about what the most effective response actually is. What do you do immediately? What do you do in the medium term to ensure this problem won't surface again? That kind of thinking requires space, and creating that space is itself a skill.

Being a force multiplier means showing up in the way that creates the most leverage for your team in any given moment. Sometimes that's removing a blocker. Sometimes that's having a hard conversation. Sometimes that's doing nothing so someone else can step up. The goal isn't to be busy; it's to make your team more effective than they would be without you.

How This Course Is Structured

The four modules build on each other, each one expanding your capacity to be a force multiplier:

Module 1 - Energy Management: You can't multiply anything if you're running on empty. Before you can help your team, you need to be able to help yourself. This module is about managing your energy (not just your time), understanding baseline vs optional load, and building sustainable practices.

Module 2 - Leverage Feedback: Force multiplication at the individual level. Feedback is how you help people see their impact and adjust. This module reframes feedback as "your work, reflected back to you" and teaches you how to give it, get it, and make 1:1s impactful.

Module 3 - Lead with Clear Direction: Force multiplication at the team level. Direction is the hardest thing to source elsewhere and most uniquely yours to provide. Learn how to think strategically, provide clarity, and close the gap between where your team is and where they need to be.

Module 4 - Expanding Your Leadership Range: Move from surviving to thriving. Understand your defaults and failure modes, learn which leadership styles work in different situations, and develop the flexibility to lead from choice instead of reflex.

What This Course Is Really About

The core of this course is building your resilience and expanding your toolkit.

When you're in survival mode, you narrow. You fall back on instinct, on what's familiar, on whatever worked before. Thriving is expansive and flexible - having options, being able to read a situation and choose a response rather than reacting from habit.

If you want things to be different, you have to create space for them to change. This is the course to help you do that.

Welcome!

Meet your instructors

Jean Hsu is a builder, writer, coach, and fractional engineering leader at early-stage startups. She was previously in leadership roles at Pulse, Medium, and Range, and also built out a leadership development company focused on engineers. She lives in Berkeley with her partner and three kids.

Cate Huston is the author of The Engineering Leader, fractional CTO at Twill, and engineering leadership coach. She was previously in leadership roles at DuckDuckGo and Automattic, and an advisor at Glowforge. She has been all over the world, but now lives in Ireland.

We've both coached engineers through the messy, non-linear reality of building a career in tech. We're here to help you do the same.

How to engage with each module

Modules are released on a schedule to give you time to absorb and reflect. You'll receive an email when each new module becomes available.

Read first. Start with the written content to understand the frameworks and concepts.

Listen to the audio. After reading, listen to the conversation between Jean and Cate. We explore the themes in more depth, share examples from our own experiences, and discuss nuances that don't always fit in the written material. You can download the audio to listen while walking, commuting, or doing other activities.

Do the exercises. The real work happens in the exercises. They're designed to help you clarify your thinking, identify patterns, and take concrete action. The more you put in, the more you'll get out.

Working with your coaches

You'll complete each module's exercises in a Google Doc workbook. Make a copy of each module's Google Doc for your own responses. Once you've finished the exercises for a module, submit your workbook here for feedback.

As your coaches, we will:

• Read your reflections and responses
• Provide personalized feedback and insights
• Ask follow-up questions to help you go deeper
• Suggest concrete next steps where relevant

How to get the most out of this course

• Block out time. We recommend at least 45 minutes a week and keeping up with the module deadlines. Give yourself dedicated time to think, write, and process.

• Be honest. The exercises work best when you're candid with yourself. No one is judging your answers.

• Reach out if you're stuck. If something doesn't make sense or you're struggling with an exercise, reply to any course email, and we'll reply promptly.

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We're really looking forward to working with you over the coming weeks. The transition to management can feel isolating, but you're not alone in this. We've been where you are — navigating the shift from IC to manager, learning to lead, and figuring out how to support both yourself and your team.

This course is the result of years of coaching conversations, our own leadership experiences, and a lot of hard-won lessons. We're excited to share it with you.

See you in Module 1.

— Jean and Cate