The Software Architects' Newsletter May 2024

[InfoQ Live Logo] The Software Architects' Newsletter May 2024 [View in browser]( Welcome to the InfoQ Software Architects' Newsletter! Each month, we bring you essential news and experience on emerging patterns and technologies from industry peers. This month, we focus on "Architects, Distinguished Engineers, and Staff Plus: The Evolution of Technical Careers". Roles, patterns, and practices from this topic span the entire "diffusion of innovation" graphs in our April 2024 reports: [InfoQ Software Architecture and Design Trends Report]( and [InfoQ Culture & Methods Trends Report](. We also discuss the importance of these topics in our "[InfoQ Dev Summit Boston Preview](" podcast, exploring early adopter themes, like socio-technical architecture and psychological safety, and early majority topics, such as remote tooling and the role of Staff Plus. Key challenges remain, including how to build your career and that of the people around you that you lead, mentor, or sponsor. News Catalyzing Change in Software Organizations: Find Allies, Invite People, and Sustain Engagement Much of the change we experience in our software organizations is coercive. [Eb Ikonne]( shared at QCon London 2024 that software engineers, architects, and sometimes even people in software engineering management roles feel they [cannot spark change]( without formal authority. To catalyze change, he suggested identifying allies, inviting people to participate in the change, and creating and sustaining engagement through storytelling. The Creative Act: How Staff+ Is More Art than Science In this QCon NY talk recording, [David Grizzanti]( discusses [his path to Staff+]( and how he views it as more art than science. He examines the parallels between creating art, creating software, and dealing with organizational dynamics. Grizzanti will present at the upcoming [InfoQ Dev Summit in Boston]( on June 24th and 25th. He also participated in a recent podcast related to this topic that explored how the Staff+ role is evolving to provide a [clearer career path]( and options for mentorship within complex technical landscapes. QCon London: A Tale of Team Topologies at m3ter InfoQ editor Matt Saunders recently summarized a QCon London talk from [Ricardo Nuno Almeida]( that focused on [adapting Team Topologies at m3ter](. This company helps B2B software scale-ups manage complex pricing by automating bill calculation. The key takeaway from the talk was that the evolution of engineering topologies is not a sign of failure but a successful response to changes in the business. Almeida emphasizes the importance of regularly reassessing and aligning team structures with organizational goals. Transparent communication and collaboration, facilitated by shared roadmaps and active involvement in decision-making processes, are fundamental to building trust and operational efficiency within teams. You Can Go Your Own Way: Navigating Your Own Career Path In this talk recorded from QCon London 2023, [Erin Schnabel]( shared what she [learned on her journey to becoming a Distinguished Engineer](. Topics discussed included insights and ideas that can be used to find and shape opportunities and create careers. Sponsored [Exploring Enterprise AI: An Introduction to LLMs, Vector Databases, and More - Sponsored by Sponsored by HPE Ezmeral Software and Intel]( [Exploring Enterprise AI: An Introduction to LLMs, Vector Databases, and More]( This white paper illustrates the significant potential of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) and Large Language Models (LLMs) in revolutionizing business operations. By integrating these advanced AI tools, businesses can harness the power of intelligent data analysis and drastically empower their decision-making with their data. Download this white paper to learn the fundamentals of LLMs and neural networks, how vector databases and RAG work, and more. Download the white paper “[Exploring Enterprise AI](”, sponsored by HPE Ezmeral Software and Intel Case Study How to Build and Foster High-Performing Software Teams: Experiences from Engineering Managers Software organizations are built around teams, where professionals work intensively together daily to deliver software. Although teams are preferably self-managed and autonomous, managers must [establish conditions and guidance and foster high-performing teams](. One area they often need to work on is balancing team autonomy and responsibilities with alignment between software teams and other parts of the organization. Engineering managers can enable software teams to learn, improve, and help them move problems and impediments out of the way. A recent panel with Dr. [Olga Kubassova](, President @IAG, Image Analysis Group, [Michael Gray](, Principal Engineer @ClearBank, and [Hannah Foxwell](, Product Director @Snyk, provided several key takeaways: - Tech leaders can support and guide different kinds of autonomous teams by communicating the organization's core values, mission, and vision, giving them authority within boundaries, fostering visibility and trust, and aligning on priorities - not by standardization. - As a leader or manager, you should know when to step in to resolve a team problem and when to guide the team toward finding a solution themselves. Don't interfere when a new team is finding their way or solving technical issues; be careful that the team doesn't become dependent on you through interventions. - Leaders can support diversity and inclusion in teams and foster psychological safety by actively seeking out and elevating the perspectives of every team member, adapting themself to each individual to meet their needs, and allowing people to fail and celebrate what they learned through that failure. - Engineering managers can support teams on their journey toward high performance by delegating, trusting people, being curious, creating safety, and understanding what level of support their teams need. - Encouraging knowledge and experience sharing across teams is crucial for boosting innovation, efficiency, and overall organizational success. "Town hall" or "all hands" type meetings can be an excellent way to publicize achievements to a wider audience. This content is an excerpt from a recent InfoQ article by Ben Linders, "[How to Build and Foster High-Performing Software Teams: Experiences from Engineering Managers](". To get notifications when InfoQ publishes content on these topics, follow "[Leadership](", "[Team Collaboration](", and "[Staff Plus](" on InfoQ. Missed a newsletter? You can find all of the [previous issues]( on InfoQ. Sponsored [Developing without live disruption: safe strategies for modifying production code (Live Webinar June 25th) - Sponsored by AWS Marketplace]( [Developing without live disruption: safe strategies for modifying production code (Live Webinar June 25th)]( As the demand for agile application development increases, developers require a wider variety of methods for safer application testing and deployment. Join this webinar to learn how to implement and comparatively analyze seven low-risk code deployment strategies in AWS environments, ensure that new code can be tested safely and securely in production, and enhance deployment capabilities with tools like Amazon QuickSight, AWS CodeDeploy, AWS CodePipeline, Amazon EKS and more. [(Live Webinar, June 25th, 2024)](. Register for the June 25th webinar “[Developing without live disruption: safe strategies for modifying production code](,” sponsored by AWS Marketplace Upcoming Events InfoQ and QCon: For practitioners, by practitioners [InfoQ Dev Summit Boston 2024, June 24-25]( Join industry peers from leading companies such as Duolingo, Flutter International, Getty Images, Amazon, Klaviyo, Bank of Canada, Reddit, and Cisco. Gain insights from senior software practitioners on today's most critical development priorities. Don't miss out - [reserve your place now](! [InfoQ Dev Summit Munich 2024, Sept 26-27]( Gain actionable insights on today's most critical software development challenges. Learn how senior software developers are navigating topics like LLMs, efficient DevSecOps workflows, software supply chain security, and more. Save up to 60% with our Summer Sale. Limited to 150 tickets until June 18. [Register now](. [QCon San Francisco 2024, Nov 18-22]( Elevate your team at QCon San Francisco 2024! Gain insights, stay ahead of trends, and boost team collaboration. Exclusive group discounts available for teams of 3+ attending from the same company. [Secure your place by June 18 to save with our early bird pricing](. About InfoQ Senior software developers rely on the InfoQ community to stay ahead of the adoption curve. One of the main reasons software architects and engineers tell us they keep coming back to InfoQ is because they trust the information provided and selected by their peers. We've been helping software development teams adopt new technologies and practices for over 15 years through InfoQ articles, news items, podcasts, tech talks, trends reports, and QCon software development conferences. We hope you find this newsletter useful. If not, you can unsubscribe using the link below. [Unsubscribe]( Forwarded email? Subscribe and get your own copy. [Subscribe](   Follow InfoQ on: [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [LinkedIn]( You have received this email because you subscribed to "The Architects' Newsletter". To stop receiving the Architects' Newsletter, please click the following link: [Unsubscribe]( - - - C4Media Inc. (InfoQ.com), 705-2267 Lake Shore Blvd. West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M8V 3X2