Wes Hummel

One-on-ones have been one of the tools I’ve relied on most consistently as a manager. They’re not just about updates—they’re about building trust, aligning on priorities, and creating space for real conversations that drive growth. In my latest post, I share insights from over 1,500 of these meetings, inspired by Andy Grove’s High Output Management and my own experiences in engineering leadership. It’s a practical look at how to make one-on-ones a cornerstone of effective management. If you want to make your one-on-ones truly impactful, take a look: 👉 https://lnkd.in/g-R2uhVv #EngineeringLeadership #OneOnOnes #Management #TechLeadership #CareerDevelopment #EmployeeEngagement

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Building a great work environment isn’t just about perks or fancy office spaces, it’s about creating a culture where everyone feels valued, supported, and empowered to grow. I believe in open communication, fostering diversity, and recognizing the hard work. We all need to be self aware that our 2 cents will count on making a lasting impact for the ones around us. Because when people thrive, the business thrives. #Leadership #WorkCulture #TeamSuccess

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There are two kinds of failure. 1. "We're failing now and need to change strategies to succeed" 2. "This is a failure; let's not do this again" If you talk about failure, make sure your listeners understand which kind you mean! And, recall how powerful that first kind of failure is! It has given us basically anything worth having or inventing. If your children haven't given you the gift of asking to watch this clip 235,826 times already, I invite you to take the lesson straight from the sages: https://lnkd.in/gAyN3E9b

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Among the predictions for work in 2025, human-centered leadership is one that shines through. This year, we can expect automation to be the norm, so human connection will have to be much more intentional. Skills like communication, empathy, relationship-building, self-awareness, and inclusivity will become more valuable. This year, focus on being human-centric AND tech-forward. How are you planning ahead? #Leadership #Empathy #HumanCentric

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Sam's Club CTO leaves the company due to return to office policy. It's hard to interpret all of the news about RTO through the lens of "remote is good" or "remote is bad." It's not that simple. Nvidia supports remote work. Spotify supports remote work. Are these companies struggling due to these policies? Many companies are using return to office policies as an "alternative" to layoffs. In my personal experience, the "cost" of remote is worth the payoff of access to global talent and 2-3 additional hours of labor per day saved from a commute. https://lnkd.in/gxXdMJ6h

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Excited to share a blog post from my team about modernizing Yelp's legacy billing system. Upgrading something this critical (without breaking things!) was a massive challenge, but we pulled it off with some creative thinking, teamwork, and a lot of learning along the way. The blog covers: 💡 The hurdles we faced while modernizing. 💡 How we kept things running smoothly during the upgrade. 💡 Lessons we learned that might help others tackling similar projects. Shoutout to the awesome team who made this happen—couldn’t be prouder! Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/gZGKrEeP If you’ve had experience modernizing legacy systems, I’d love to hear your war stories or tips! #Teamwork #TechUpgrades #LegacySystems #YelpEngineering #Tenacity

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Leaders, ask not what your reports can do for you but what you can do for your reports. Maximize your impact by fostering environments where people can do their best work. Great post from John Cutler about shifting a reactive perspective and getting clarity on how to respond when things seem too complex. #Leadership #ProductDevelopment #PeopleFirst #Empathy

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This is a long article which doesn't have much to do with my day to day job but once I started reading it, I could not stop. This guy, who spent a long time in the banking and electronic payments world, is a great writer and he drills down into the current controversy around "debanking" people involved with crypto. Prepare to learn about Enhanced Due Diligence, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Politically Exposed Persons, Suspicious Activity Reports, the Banking Secrecy Act, the various shenanigans of FTX and Binance, the crashes of Signature and Silicon Valley Bank and much more... https://lnkd.in/eCNfBEH9

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🌟 Leadership Insight: The Power of Deep Care in Leadership 🌟 As leaders, our role extends beyond managing projects to truly caring for our people. Throughout my career, I've observed that while projects will come and go, the lasting impact we have on our team members remains vivid in our memories. This realization underscores the importance of showing deep care in leadership, a concept that resonates deeply with me. Leadership is not just about guiding projects but nurturing people. Here are practical ways leaders can show deep care: 1) Quality Time: Invest in one-on-one time with team members. This can be as simple as regular check-ins or casual coffee meetings where the focus is on listening and understanding their personal and professional goals. 2) Empathy: Show genuine empathy. Acknowledge the challenges they face and be there to support them. This means being approachable and available when they need guidance or simply someone to listen. 3) Personal Attention: Pay attention to the small details that matter to them. Celebrate their birthdays, acknowledge their work anniversaries, and be present in moments of personal significance. 4) Open Communication: Foster an environment where open communication is encouraged. Let your team know that their ideas and opinions are valued and that it’s safe to express themselves without fear of judgment. 5) Supportive Feedback: Provide constructive feedback in a way that encourages growth and improvement, not fear or resentment. Recognize their efforts publicly and offer guidance discreetly. Each interaction is an opportunity to reinforce how much you care. The true essence of leadership lies in building trust and fostering a safe environment where team members feel seen, heard, and valued. I encourage every leader to reflect on this: "Did you remember to show deep care for your team? How can you make your team members feel truly valued today?" The best leaders focus on leaving a lasting positive impact on our people. After all, at the end of the day, it’s the people and our relationships with them that we’ll remember most. #TechLeadership #Leadership #Teamwork #ShowDeepCare

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I recently interviewed Product Management expert Jessica Hall. In this snippet, Jessica articulates the hidden drawbacks of Agile’s short-term focus on product and design teams. She explains why incremental delivery fails to capture the comprehensive strategic planning required for long-term success to realize your full vision. Jessica Hall, co-author of “The Product Mindset”, is an accomplished product, design, and AI strategy leader.   If you're a Product Manager, Product Leader, or Engineering Leader, I'd also like to interview you for my upcoming book "Product-Oriented Software Engineering". If you'd like to schedule an interview, please message me on LinkedIn.   #AgileInsights #AgileChallenges #IncrementalDelivery #Scrum #ProductManagement #AgileCoaching #ScrumInsights #ScrumChallenges

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I appreciated the insights here. Great steps to make sure you engage and ties back to most articles that really focus on follow through. https://lnkd.in/eevjDWXa

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U.S. digital bank Chime is launching a product that will allow customers to access up to $500 of their wages before payday, the latest move by a financial technology company to enter the fast-growing "earned wage access" market. The product, which will be rolled out in coming months, comes as Chime is preparing to become a public company in the "not too distant future," CEO Chris Britt said in an interview with Reuters. #chime #neobank #us #digitalbank #reuters #fintech #fintechnews #kostyuchenok

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Being able to balance the polarities like clarity with complexity, change and stability, are key when driving change to turn organisations around. Common gaps in organisations looking to create shifts: 1. Lack of an in-depth understanding of the problem where the value is created - Talk to the people in a trusted and trusting manner 2. Rushing to solve an unclear problem - See #1 and map out the connects to see the disconnects 3. Clear framework for problem-solving to make the shift - Communicate this widely, not just in paragraphs of words in a mass email to staff, have the digestible visuals. Now, time to experiment with this 💫 #changemanagement #leadership

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This post sheds light on the notion of not fixing things that aren't broken. While facing initial resistance to new ideas, embracing change has proven beneficial in the long term. Through these experiments, high-performing teams have been cultivated, emphasizing continuous improvement as a core practice. #Innovation #ContinuousImprovement

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Leading a remote engineering team of 28 has taught me one thing—connection isn’t optional. It’s not just about keeping operations running; it’s about intentionally creating moments of connection and trust. As this article points out, remote leadership goes beyond virtual meetings and structured check-ins. Remote work doesn’t mean distant work—it’s just different. #RemoteWork #EngineeringLeadership #RemoteTeamManagement #Startups #WorkLifeBalance #TeamVibes

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Struggling to find work-life balance? Check out these practical tips from working parents at Mastercard for a more harmonious life. ⚖️ https://lnkd.in/g4heTA6c #WorkLifeBalance #Flexibility #WeAreMastercard

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