Master The DSA Interview [Part 13] - You Must Be Fast

Quality is important, but quantity is too, which is mainly demonstrated with velocity. This lesson teaches you:

- Why raw speed is so important with data structures and algorithms interviews in particular
- The quantity bar you need to hit to pass a data structures and algorithms interview the vast majority of the time
- Why interviewers often ask 2 data structures and algorithms problems in a single round
- How an interviewer asking you a harder data structures and algorithms could actually mean that they're trying to save you
- Tips for getting faster at data structures and algorithms

Become An Open Source Master [Part 10] - How To Evaluate A Project’s Health

We can evaluate potential open-source projects by examining their issues and community interactions:

- **Analyze the Issues tab**: Look for a healthy ratio of solved to open issues, evidence of tagging and triage, and positive community engagement. Check for responsiveness to older issues.
- **Observe conversations around issues and pull requests:** Get a sense of the community's dynamics, code quality standards, and how welcoming they are to new contributors.
- **Check the Discussions tab (if available):** See how the community debates future changes and get a feel for the project's overall vibe.
- **Utilize the Insights tab:** Look at statistics like open and closed pull requests, active issues, and contributors to gauge the project's activity level.

Connect with James: 

- GitHub: <https://github.com/jamesgpearce>
- Twitter (X): <https://twitter.com/jamespearce>

DSA Crash Course [Part 54] - Has Path Walkthrough

In this lesson, Alvin walks through the python implementation for the *has_path* problem.

Code along and test your work in the following editor workspace: <https://structy.net/problems/has-path?language=py>

If you need additional support taking these DSA skills and actually applying them, take [**Alvin's**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/) *complete* data structures and algorithms course on [**Structy**](https://structy.net/?utm_source=taro). You can try out the concepts yourself in their interactive code editor and learn advanced DSA patterns like stack exhaustive recursion.

Use [**this link to get 20% off**](https://structy.net/purchase?promo_code=taro20) the entire Structy DSA learning experience.

Follow Alvin on LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/>

Here's How To Identify A Superstar Leader

[**Ethan Evans**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethanevansvp/) is a retired Amazon VP who led teams of up to 800. Here are his two criteria to see your manager is worth working for.

**1\. Investing in people:**

- Look for a manager with a track record of **growing and promoting their team members**.
- Signs of this include:
  - Do reports of your manager often get promoted or take on higher responsibilities?
  - Does your manager actively create opportunities for your development and growth?
  - Does your manager provide good mentorship and guidance?
  - Managers with a loyal following strongly indicate their leadership qualities.

**2\. Personal trajectory:**

- Assess your manager's **career progression**.
- Look for:
  - Consistent upward movement and promotions.
  - A history of exceeding expectations and taking on greater challenges.
  - Faster-than-average advancement compared to peers.

**Reasoning:**

- A manager who invests in their people will more likely create a supportive and growth-oriented environment for you.
- A manager on a consistent upward trajectory signifies their competence and ability, potentially opening doors for their team's growth as well.

Explore more: 

- [Turning the Spotlight on Unsung Efforts: How to Be Perceived as Important and Impactful?](https://www.jointaro.com/question/G91Qd0GbID5AtnRbfGJE/turning-the-spotlight-on-unsung-efforts-how-to-be-perceived-as-important-and-impactful/)
- [How to manage a team towards high performance?](https://www.jointaro.com/question/O8vtGxsrwZebiSSlOlRd/how-to-manage-a-team-towards-high-performance/)
- [**\[Taro Top 10\] Software Engineer To Engineering Manager (IC -&gt; M Track)**](https://www.jointaro.com/playlist/oz0mnJvHHgM8NfVF7rgp/)

Amazon Behavioral Interview [Part 5] - Stakeholder Management (Answer)

This video segment focuses on the interviewee's approach to stakeholder management.

- **Experience:** The interviewee highlights their experience managing global and cross-functional teams, emphasizing their ability to navigate complex situations with multiple stakeholders.
- **Example: Prioritizing Customer Support:** The interviewee describes a specific example at Tableau where they led an initiative to change the customer support prioritization system. This involved gathering input from various stakeholders (sales, support, finance) and addressing their concerns.
- **Challenges:** The interviewee acknowledges the challenges of balancing the needs of different stakeholders, particularly the conflict between prioritizing high-value enterprise customers and maintaining support for smaller businesses.
- **Strategies:** To address these challenges, the interviewee emphasizes the importance of:
  - Understanding the goals and priorities of each stakeholder.
  - Using data and facts to support decisions.
  - Building consensus through clear communication and collaboration.
  - Seeking support from key leaders (e.g., the Chief Revenue Officer) to help address resistance from certain stakeholders.
- **Key Takeaway:** Effective stakeholder management requires strong communication, active listening, and the ability to navigate conflicting priorities while maintaining a focus on overall business objectives.

Learn more about Alan's job search program, Kadima Careers, using this [discount link](https://signup.kadimacareers.com/mQBsDvu).

Grow From Junior To Mid-Level Engineer [Part 18] - Done Is Better Than Perfect

We all make mistakes. In fact, we'll all make a lot of mistakes as software engineers, especially when we're junior. This lesson teaches you:

- The many types of dumb things you will inevitably do as a junior engineer (and continue doing as a mid-level/senior/staff/principal engineer)
- The simple growth mentality and formula you should follow to speed run the junior to mid-level engineer
- Why it's awesome to be the dumbest person in the room
- A simple mathematical way to understand the difference between a fast-growing junior engineer and a slow-growing junior engineer

Learn how to learn from your mistakes here: ["How to turn a string of silly mistakes into a mature positive outcome?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/JybGyc935lsYbM8dAo7Y/how-to-turn-a-string-of-silly-mistakes-into-a-mature-positive-outcome/)

Grow From Junior To Mid-Level Engineer [Part 13] - Be A Feedback Sponge

We all have blind spots, and you need feedback to see them. Getting feedback is especially important as an engineer given how information-dense the software field is. This lesson teaches you:

- Why a surprising amount of junior engineers are terrible with feedback
- Why you should almost never push back against feedback you disagree with
- How not being good with feedback can severely damage your career, explained with an in-depth example
- The differences between junior and mid-level engineers when it comes to handling feedback

For additional inspiration on truly becoming a feedback sponge, check out the words of wisdom from OpenAI ChatGPT engineer [Philip Su](https://www.linkedin.com/in/suphilip/) here: ["What's the core insight behind quick growth?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/nJ762p255cGyuth36H6w/whats-the-core-insight-behind-quick-growth/)

Grow From Senior To Staff Engineer [Part 13] - Bring Teams Together

Just because you're leading a team's worth of engineers doesn't mean that you're a staff engineer. This lesson teaches you:

- The difference between senior and staff engineers when it comes to the number of stakeholders on their projects
- The difference between senior and staff engineers when it comes to the depth of their XFN (cross-functional) collaboration
- How to align multiple teams, even those you aren't very familiar with

How To Maximize Your Peer Feedback Impact And Build Stronger Relationships

- Like everything else in life, peer feedback follows The Golden Rule: If you want good feedback from your peers, you should write good feedback for them.
- If a peer feedback request doesn't have a specific ask, proactively ask your peers what they want your feedback to focus on. This really shows your peers that you care deeply about them as performance review is such a core part of every employee's life.
- Writing very powerful, salient feedback for your peers on this crucial stage of performance review is one of the effective ways to build immense social capital.

15 SWE Years In 1.5 Hours [Part 12] - System Design

System design is a crucial interview round, because it's both technical and actually needed on the job (unlike data structures and algorithms). This lesson teaches you:

- What a system design interview is looking for
- What not to do in a system design round
- How to learn system design organically

To dive deeper into system design interviews, take our course here: [How To Crack System Design Interviews As A Software Engineer](https://www.jointaro.com/course/how-to-crack-system-design-interviews-as-a-software-developer/)

DSA Crash Course [Part 44] - Tree Sum Walkthrough

In this lesson, Alvin walks through the python implementation for the *tree_sum* problem.

Code along and test your work in the following editor workspace: <https://structy.net/problems/tree-sum?language=py>

If you need additional support taking these DSA skills and actually applying them, take [**Alvin's**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/) *complete* data structures and algorithms course on [**Structy**](https://structy.net/?utm_source=taro). You can try out the concepts yourself in their interactive code editor and learn advanced DSA patterns like stack exhaustive recursion.

Use [**this link to get 20% off**](https://structy.net/purchase?promo_code=taro20) the entire Structy DSA learning experience.

Follow Alvin on LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/>

Nail Your Promotion As A Software Engineer [Part 20] - Quality Of Delivery

Anything worth doing is worth doing right, and this applies to software engineers as well. This lesson teaches you:

- Why quality of delivery is such an important project axis when it comes to promotion, especially to senior levels and beyond
- The immense value of smooth delivery when it comes to your perception among engineering leadership
- Concrete angles to consider when maximizing your quality of delivery

This Is What A Good Promotion Plan Looks Like

One of the most crucial ingredients for a successful promotion is a clear plan. However, the engineering career matrix that most big companies have isn't nearly enough. This video covers what a quality promotion plan looks like.

Here are the core points from the video:

- **Show the delta** - Just giving someone a concept isn't enough. Growth comes when you progress from a lower state to a higher one. To best facilitate that, you must outline exactly what that lower state and higher state are so people can understand the difference and work towards bridging the gap.
- Here's an example showing what it means to outline the delta when growing a mid-level engineer on their code review axis:
  - **Bad promotion plan:** *"Have a bigger influence in code review"*
  - **Good promotion plan:**
    - E4 (mid-level): *"You are extremely thorough catching issues within your own domain, finding architectural issues (sometimes challenging the entire diff/diff stack), performance problems, and several edge case misses."*
    - E5 (senior): *"Instead of mainly reviewing stack-specific diffs within product domains you have worked on, you review diffs across the entire stack for your org (M2+ scope). You are able to review diffs for areas that you have never worked with before, quickly absorbing the context of the diff and its surrounding ecosystem to leave genuinely insightful feedback in a relatively short period of time.”*

Related resources:

- [\[Taro Top 10\] Software Engineer To Engineering Manager (IC -&gt; M Track)](https://www.jointaro.com/playlist/oz0mnJvHHgM8NfVF7rgp/)
- [\[Masterclass\] What Software Engineers Should Look For In Their Engineering Manager](https://www.jointaro.com/lesson/oeY7ncZhzJ5NO6dij5e7/masterclass-what-software-engineers-should-look-for-in-their-engineering-manager/)
- [\[Taro Top 10\] Getting Promoted Faster In Tech](https://www.jointaro.com/playlist/eZOEUatYEe7BBAZByuha/)

This Is The Easiest Way To Get Better At Debugging

Before you go into any bug, it's important to write down all the relevant details into a task or ticket. Here's why:
- It makes it easier to get your bearings and start looking into the right places for debugging
- If you need to pass the bug to someone else, the knowledge transfer is much smoother as you have this artifact
- The written context will be very valuable for retrospectives

Here's the information you should put down:
- Steps to reproduce the issue
- The blast radius
- Relevant code pointers
- Priority of the bug

This video is a clip from our debugging masterclass. You can watch it here: [[Masterclass] How To Become A Debugging Master And Fix Issues Faster](https://www.jointaro.com/lesson/ioR6WzamAIUTpySLAr7o/masterclass-how-to-become-a-debugging-master-and-fix-issues-faster/)

Related resources:
- [[Case Study] Solving A Multi-Million $$ Instagram Bug](https://www.jointaro.com/lesson/WYk4J05iBqOuPtD0CYKX/case-study-solving-a-multi-million-dollardollar-instagram-bug/)
- ["How can I become more independent and better at unblocking myself with tricky technical issues?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/QhqQQGrDgFjZbqohpKe0/how-can-i-become-more-independent-and-better-at-unblocking-myself-with-tricky-technical-issues/)
- ["What is the effective way to understand new repository in order to make the required changes in that repo?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/KoxB3UU2zWC9pdYU6Rx0/what-is-the-effective-way-to-understand-new-repository-in-order-to-make-the-required-changes-in-that-repo/)

[Timeless Career Advice] The Soft Skills

DSA Crash Course [Part 86] - Array Stepper Walkthrough

In this lesson, Alvin walks through the python implementation for the *array_stepper* problem.

Code along and test your work in the following editor workspace: <https://structy.net/problems/array-stepper?language=py>

If you need additional support taking these DSA skills and actually applying them, take [**Alvin's**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/) *complete* data structures and algorithms course on [**Structy**](https://structy.net/?utm_source=taro). You can try out the concepts yourself in their interactive code editor and learn advanced DSA patterns like stack exhaustive recursion.

Use [**this link to get 20% off**](https://structy.net/purchase?promo_code=taro20) the entire Structy DSA learning experience.

Follow Alvin on LinkedIn: [**https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvin-zablan-b73a92117/)

MassMutual Case Study: The Ultimate Guide To Navigating A PIP

This was a new grad engineer who joined MassMutual, a 100+ year insurance company in Massachusetts.

- **Before**: First job out of college, shared a project with another new grad engineer which lacked support

- **During**: Shocked to receive it (did not know what a PIP was). Told not to ask for help to test his velocity

- **After**: Chose to leave the company, since the manager lost faith

Grow From Senior To Staff Engineer [Part 22] - Go Deeper: Follow Through

Related courses:

- [Nail Your Promotion As A Software Engineer](https://www.jointaro.com/course/nail-your-promotion-as-a-software-engineer/)
- [Managing Up: Build Effective Relationships With Your Boss](https://www.jointaro.com/course/managing-up-build-effective-relationships-with-your-boss/)
- [Effective Communication For Engineers](https://www.jointaro.com/course/effective-communication-for-engineers/)
- [System Design Masterclass: Shipping Real Features To Production](https://www.jointaro.com/course/frontend-system-design-masterclass-building-playlists/)

Grow From Senior To Staff Engineer [Part 12] - Become The PM Right Hand

As a staff engineer, you need to have far more influence on the direction of the product, especially if you work on a product-facing team. This lesson teaches you:

- The difference in the depth of collaboration with the product manager between a senior engineer and a staff engineer
- Why staff engineers often need to partner closely with their product manager
- Which teams place more value on the engineer &lt;-&gt; product manager relationship
- What you should do to deepen your relationship between you and your product manager

The Engineering Manager "Partner In Crime": The Tech Lead

This video explains the essential partnership between an engineering manager and a tech lead in high-performing engineering teams. It emphasizes how effective delegation, complementary strengths, and role clarity between the two can drive both team productivity and individual growth.

- **Strong engineering managers have a “partner in crime” tech lead**: Effective managers often work alongside tech leads who handle the majority of technical responsibilities, allowing the manager to focus on team support, operations, and growth.
- **Clear level pairing by role**: At Facebook, there’s often a leveling alignment—e.g., M0 managers paired with L5 (senior) engineers, M1s with staff (L6), and M2s with senior staff (L7)—ensuring balanced responsibility and decision-making.
- **EMs stay hands-off but connected**: Engineering managers are expected to stay informed on technical topics but are not expected to be hands-on with code or architecture decisions.
- **Tech leads drive technical execution**: Responsibilities like leading engineering meetings, driving design reviews, setting development processes, and ensuring engineering culture are primarily handled by the tech lead.
- **Shared mentorship responsibility**: While managers typically mentor through one-on-ones, tech leads also provide mentorship, especially for junior and mid-level engineers. This dual support system ensures continuity and growth even when the manager is unavailable.

Tech Career Growth Videos

Our instructional videos provide software engineers with insights needed for career growth. Masterclasses go incredibly in-depth on a specific tech topic while case studies are real examples from established engineering leaders.