Strategies for Working with Others in Tech

(Photo credit @johnschno)

1. Knowing how to coach peers is an important skill. The article below had some great tips on how to transition from giving unsolicited advice to co-workers to helping provide peer coaching instead. 

   • The art of giving good workplace advice

2. Consider employing the ‘radical candor’ approach as a manager

   • I enjoyed Kim Scott’s book Radical Candor and the framework she employs to help explain how great managers can give guidance to their team members. 

   • When the managers I worked for and with employed this approach, it generated challenging conversations that offered huge growth opportunities.

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How would you manage working if you didn’t have access to broadband internet?

(Photo credit @hjbarraza)

I spend my days listening to the “dulcet” tones of construction noise. Our local gas company is tearing large holes up and down my street in order to install new gas lines for the entire neighborhood. While I appreciate the infrastructure upgrade, I am exhausted from listening all day long to the low hum of construction machines for the past 2 weeks. (Reminds me of when the floor would vibrate under me during the Google Cambridge construction & why our team often re-located to new environs during the day!) However, it also got me thinking about other ‘basic infrastructure rails’ that we take for granted, like high-speed internet connections that not everyone can access. These days, this lack of access has huge impact on how and whether communities can thrive in a post-pandemic world. 

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#techtopic

Imagine what it would be like to try & do your job if the internet disappeared whenever it rained. (True story: this used to happen to my family all the time when they were on DSL). Imagine having to drive to a library every time you wanted to do your homework or check your email. The digital divide in the US is in sharp focus right now with those who are required/requested to work from home or educate from home. 

The rural poor and BIPOC communities in the US are the ones being left behind, with estimates ranging from 21 million to 142 million Americans without access to high-speed internet. It doesn’t help that the FCC has been underestimating the problem, which affects the federal funding set aside to improve the issue. Cost is one of the biggest barriers to access, and in the US, we pay more for internet access than many other countries. And as we are designing educational policies to decide if schools will reopen, there is often an implicit assumption that these kids will have easy access to the high-speed internet required to run Zoom calls. 

As internet-dependent people move from densely populated to more suburban or rural areas to escape covid19, this is a great opportunity for small towns/rural regions to launch their own independent broadband networks to expand high-speed internet access and affordability. More states need to pass legislation to allow it (as 21 states have laws against it, due to influence from the large ISPs). Surprising and worrying to see Microsoft and HP are the only tech companies associated with the American Connection Project Broadband Coalition.

Want to learn more? Check out this recent in-depth report from New America. 

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#randomreads

• Ode to Cornell: Here’s a fun personality test from the Cornell Ornithology Lab: What Bird Are You Most Like? Tell me what you get, and I’ll share my results with you!

• Snappy dressers: check out these octagenarians who model other people’s forgotten laundry

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Want a Career in Tech but aren’t sure where to start? Take a look at MY COURSE, ‘TECH SEARCH COMPASS’ FOR STEP-BY-STEP SUPPORT

Networking Advice for Tech

(Photo credit @brookecagle)

1. Work to build a network of contacts that are diverse in background, location, industry, and more. The wider and more diverse your network, the wider net you can cast in finding a new job. 

   • Studies show that many jobs and other opportunities come from ‘weak ties’ versus from direct connections. We all turn to those we trust in our social network (family, friends, and colleagues) for job help -- but we need to remember that weak ties are valuable too (acquaintances, or new people who share an affinity like a cultural or alumni background).

   • How to diversify your network? Join new groups on LinkedIn, try out LunchClub, and ask your friends/colleagues for introductions to new & interesting people.

2. Tech networking tip for students: try to work together with classmates to do small-group networking

   • MBA students hate when I give them this tip (as they have heard 1:1 is the ‘best’ engagement), but tech alumni *love* it. 

     • (1) it recognizes that tech people appreciate efficiency & that you are saving them time & repetition

     • (2) it highlights that there are multiple people who could benefit from a contact’s insights & advice, which is a nice confidence boost for them

   • Action: Send an email to a contact and mention that you have 3-4 other friends who would also love to hear from the contact about x topic, and that you will do all the work to coordinate the call. Make sure to set expectations with your friends that you’ll serve as point person for questions during the call (and that you can all rotate that role on other calls). Ensure that it's clear how to follow-up (so that thank-yous or future networking can happen).

   • Let me know if you try this one, and how it goes!

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