How to Leverage a Non-Technical Background in Engineering Leadership | Melissa DePuydt

In this episode, host Conor Bronsdon talks with Melissa DePuydt, Sr. Director of Engineering at Upstatement. Melissa discusses how her background in journalism has uniquely positioned her to excel in engineering leadership roles. She highlights how thinking like a journalist has enhanced her ability to lead engineering teams effectively, particularly in planning, risk management, and decision-making.The conversation covers the importance of preparing for disruptions, conducting pre-mortems to anticipate challenges, and incorporating broad perspectives for effective problem solving. Melissa also shares insights on continuously learning and adapting by embracing one's unique background and experiences.Episode Highlights:00:20 Why do engineering leaders need to think like journalists?04:46 Preparing for disruptions as an engineering leader08:44 How pre-mortems work in practice: an example from the Atlantic12:47 How to get buy in from other leaders when changing processes 17:59 Eliciting buy-in from team members on pre-mortems22:15 How do we train engineers to think in a team sport mentality?26:51 Why is career switching a superpower?Show Notes:Melissa DePuydtUpstatement | A digital brand and product design studioOFFERS Start Free Trial: Get started with LinearB's AI productivity platform for free. Book a Demo: Learn how you can ship faster, improve DevEx, and lead with confidence in the AI era. LEARN ABOUT LINEARB AI Code Reviews: Automate reviews to catch bugs, security risks, and performance issues before they hit production. AI & Productivity Insights: Go beyond DORA with AI-powered recommendations and dashboards to measure and improve performance. AI-Powered Workflow Automations: Use AI-generated PR descriptions, smart routing, and other automations to reduce developer toil. MCP Server: Interact with your engineering data using natural language to build custom reports and get answers on the fly.

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