Scarlet Ink

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More Engineers = Less Output? The Costs of Growth.
Growing quickly is lauded as a great thing in the news. But is it always a great thing?
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Dave Anderson
1
Wishing for a Better Outcome Isn't a Mechanism. The COE Approach to Continual Improvement and Avoiding Blame.
Focus on what you can control, and move past your narrow focus on outcomes. When mistakes happen, the right question is: Why did your system allow it…
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Dave Anderson
The Hidden Cost of Process: A Guide for Tech Leaders
Building processes is a mechanism for resolving issues fully. But they're also bottlenecks which slow your organization down. How do you navigate this…
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Dave Anderson
10
13 Tech Career Misconceptions — Things I Wish I'd Learned Earlier
Misunderstandings about performance, promotions, influence, and leadership that most people only realize late in their careers.
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Dave Anderson
4
RTO is a lie, 3rd party misinformation, the source of my anecdotes, and how (not) to make decisions. An article of many topics!
Sometimes writing about one topic just isn't good enough.
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Dave Anderson
3
4 Common But Insidious Patterns That Derail Software Projects
With experience, you can recognize the less obvious patterns which lead to costly disasters.
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Dave Anderson
8
How I Transformed Amazon's Internal Transfer Process
Anecdotes, ranting, and some personal philosophy.
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Dave Anderson
12
4 (More) Good Things and 2 (More) Bad Things and 2 Misunderstandings About Working at Amazon: From 12+ Years in Management
A continuation of my previous article about my experiences at Amazon. What they do well, what they don't do well, and in this article, I also mention a…
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Dave Anderson
15
3 Good Things and 3 Bad Things About Working at Amazon: From 12+ Years in Management
Line manager to Senior Manager to Director. It was a great place to work, but I have a pretty balanced view of what Amazon does well, and what it…
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Dave Anderson
6
Stories of Good and Bad Feedback Dave Received From His Managers
A few anecdotal stories of times I received feedback from the senior leaders in my life
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Dave Anderson
12
9 Simple Actions You Can Take to Build a Culture of Empathy
You can build an accidental culture, or a purposeful culture. Take action to build a culture of empathy, and reap the rewards.
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Dave Anderson
2
How Frugality Creates Innovation in Products and Apparently Movies
Frugality isn't simply about saving money. It's about focusing your attention on what matters.
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Dave Anderson
6
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