After almost six years of employment at Facebook, Shuhong decided to seek out new opportunities elsewhere and expand his career. He was away from the company for a year, but he eventually returned because he realised that only Facebook would provide the environment to make the impact he desired. This was due to the organisation’s engineering-oriented culture.
Businesses can take advantage of platforms such as Works to easily locate and recruit the most talented software engineers for their company. However, the challenge of retaining these engineers and ensuring that they stay with the organisation for a prolonged period of time is an entirely different matter.
To establish trust and promote employee engagement and retention, you must concentrate on the professional development of your engineers.
If your engineers do not feel appreciated, they will seek for companies that care about their professional development.
Shuhong W., currently employed as the Enterprise Engineering Manager at the Meta office in Singapore, recently published an article outlining the key features of the Facebook culture and environment that organisations can utilise to promote both personal and professional development for engineers.
An engineer’s career advancement is largely influenced by the business culture
Shuhong remembers feeling overwhelmed when he initially joined Facebook as a relatively inexperienced individual contributor. He described the company as being populated with “extraordinary people doing incredible things.”
He immediately recognised, though, that the atmosphere at Facebook brought out the best in individuals.
Shuhong emphasises that a firm that focuses on recognising the skills of its engineers, providing them with opportunities to reach their full potential, and offering chances for professional progress, will be successful in fostering an environment that enables everyone to thrive.
Your software engineers do not have to be knowledgeable in all areas of their field; rather, they should focus their efforts on honing their core skills. This intensive commitment from your engineers will be beneficial to their professional development and lead to a prosperous future for your organisation.
Trust your engineers to make the right judgments
While allowing employees to make their own decisions may initially appear to be a productive strategy, it can ultimately lead to a hostile and uncooperative work environment. Furthermore, talented engineers may feel pressured and undervalued, negatively impacting their motivation and job satisfaction.
As an engineering manager, you need release control and empower your team to make choices on their own.
Most businesses have a painfully lengthy pipeline of decision-makers, which impedes the company’s development, autonomy, and innovation.
According to Shuhong, the establishment of Facebook’s enterprise engineering team was underpinned by a philosophy of taking risks, demonstrating courage, and, above all, fostering mutual trust.
If you trust your engineers to make choices on their own, they will step up and complete the assignment to your satisfaction.
It is important that your staff understand that you are behind them, no matter the outcome. This will give them the confidence to make sound decisions and will help them to learn from any mistakes they make.
Despite the importance of maintaining trust and respect among team members, being a successful leader requires more than just fostering good relationships with those beneath you. It is equally important to establish a solid rapport with those in positions of authority. When you have strong opinions about something, do not be afraid to communicate them to your superiors. While it may seem that they may take offence to your words, this is often not the case.
By asking questions and challenging their decisions, you can demonstrate your faith in their leadership and ensure that they are making informed and well-thought-out decisions for your team. This can help to build trust between you and your team leader and bolster your confidence in their ability to manage your team effectively.
Conclusion
In the current business climate, investing in software development is essential for the success of any organisation. Creating a culture that fosters the professional growth of employees is an effective way to ensure they are content in their roles and remain with the company. Offering opportunities to develop their skills, along with recognition and reward for their efforts, are key components of successful employee engagement.
Shuhong’s time at Facebook can serve as an example of how to create a company culture that promotes personal and professional development for software professionals. By utilising the methods he discovered, you can ensure that your organisation provides an environment that encourages growth and success.
You can read the complete article here.
If your organisation is in need of talented software developers, Works is the perfect solution. Works is an extensive job platform that allows businesses to easily find qualified and experienced software engineers from all around the world. With the help of this platform, companies can quickly and efficiently recruit the right candidates for the job.
