Day 7: Managing Expectations: Focusing on Skills, Impact, and Attitude
Be Better Engineering Leader, a 30 Days Series
This is the second week of a series of daily lessons on how to Be a Better Engineering Leader. I recommend spending up to an hour on each lesson to gain insights into Product, Technology, and People—areas critical for every Engineering Manager.
Welcome to Day 7! Today’s focus is on a critical aspect of leadership: managing expectations effectively.
Many leaders fall into the trap of equating hard work or sheer output with performance. However, what truly matters is the outcome—how much value is being delivered to the team and the organization.
Shifting from Effort to Impact
In environments without a clear progression framework, it's easy for team members to believe that high performance means working hard and closing tasks. However, this can lead to confusion and frustration when it’s time for performance reviews, promotions, or compensation discussions.
Here’s how you can pivot the focus from effort to outcomes using a structured approach.
The Three Core Aspects of Performance: Skills, Impact, and Attitude
Skills: This includes both hard skills (technical abilities) and soft skills (communication, collaboration). While these are crucial, they must be applied effectively to make an impact.
Impact: This is the value delivered to the organization. Are the skills being used to solve high-impact problems, or are they just being spent on tasks that don’t move the needle?
Attitude: Willingness to learn, openness to feedback, and proactiveness. A great attitude can amplify the impact of skills, while a poor attitude can negate it, regardless of skill level.
Aligning these three elements is key to achieving desired outcomes. A person with high skills but a poor attitude can become a “high-performing jerk.” Conversely, a great attitude without sufficient skills means they may be dragging the team down. And even highly skilled individuals can become ineffective if they’re not focusing on impactful work.
Action Points: Setting and Communicating Expectations
In your next 1:1, focus on setting and clarifying expectations related to three core aspects - Skills, Impact, Attitude.
Here's how you can structure that conversation:
Define Expectations:
Skills: What technical and soft skills are necessary for their current role? Are there gaps that need to be addressed for future roles?
Impact: How does their work contribute to the team’s and the company’s goals? Are they focusing on high-impact areas or just keeping busy?
Attitude: Are they proactive, open to feedback, and willing to learn? How do they respond to challenges and setbacks?
Discuss the Current Role vs. Future Potential:
Clearly outline what’s expected in their current role and what’s needed for future progression. Identify the gaps they need to fill to grow.
Link Their Work to Organizational Success:
Connect their individual performance to broader company goals. Use the company’s scorecard metrics (covered in Day 6) to explain how their role fits into the bigger picture.
Create a Personalized Development Plan:
Identify 1-2 focus areas for each category (Skills, Impact, Attitude) that they can work on over the next quarter.
Set specific goals and timelines for each area and plan to review these in future 1:1s.
Further Reading and Resources
Premium Article: Intro to Expectations Management
Premium Workbook: First Ten 1:1s for Engineering Leaders (Chapter 4 - Expectations, Competencies)
Taking the time to set and communicate clear expectations using this framework will align your team and empower them to achieve more impactful outcomes.
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