Tech Lead Journal Henry Suryawirawan

“Three characteristics of an organization that is operating with maximal effectiveness are value, clarity, and flow."

Are you feeling the strain of growth? Struggling to maintain alignment and efficiency as your organization scales? In this episode, I sit down with Steve Pereira and Andrew Davis, authors of the groundbreaking new book, “Flow Engineering”.

Learn why traditional scaling methods focusing on rigid coordination can actually hinder progress and how flow engineering offers a solution. We delve into the challenges and paradox of scaling, the core principles of flow engineering, its five primary mapping techniques, and the leadership mindset shift required to create a culture of flow engineering.

If you’re looking to overcome misalignment and optimize performance as you scale, this episode is a must-listen!  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:33]
The Problem with Scale - [00:07:12]
The Dangers of Increasing Coordination - [00:14:49]
The Paradox of Scale - [00:19:58]
Flow Engineering - [00:23:34]
5 Primary Maps - [00:27:50]
The Biggest Impact Maps - [00:32:31]
All Maps are Wrong - [00:38:23]
5 Principles of Flow Engineering - [00:40:11]
Leading Flow Engineering - [00:46:00]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:52:53]

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Steve Pereira’s BioSteve Pereira has spent over two decades improving the flow of work across organizations. He’s worked through tech support, IT management, build and release engineering, and as a founding CTO for enterprise SaaS. After shifting to consulting large enterprises on value stream performance improvement, he created Flow Engineering to make value stream mapping simple, quick, and actionable. He serves as lead consultant for Visible Value Stream Consulting, as a board advisor to the Value Stream Management Consortium, Chair of the OASIS Value Stream Management Interoperability technical committee, and co-founder of the Flow Collective to bring flow-focused professionals together.

Andrew Davis’s BioAndrew Davis is a Salesforce DevOps specialist who’s passionate about helping teams deliver innovation, build trust, and improve their performance. After studying engineering at Virginia Tech and Johns Hopkins he became a Buddhist monk, teaching and building meditation communities for almost 15 years. Since 2014, he’s focused on the Salesforce platform as a developer, consultant, and architect. He launched Wipro’s Salesforce DevOps practice, and focuses on promoting modern development practices for Salesforce. He is the Chief Product Officer for AutoRABIT, helping people understand the importance of DevOps for scaling Salesforce implementations. He lives in San Diego with his amazing wife and very cuddly dog.

Follow Steve and Andrew:


Website – flowengineering.org
Steve’s LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/devopsto
Andrew’s LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/andrewdavis-io
Andrew’s Twitter/ X – @AndrewDavis_io

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.



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Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/173.
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“The quality is connected to the risk, and the risk is connected to the testing. If we don’t keep an eye on quality, our testing and development will drift, because we are no longer building the thing that people care about anymore."

Mark Winteringham is a quality engineer and the author of “Testing Web APIs”. In this episode, discover how holistic, risk-based testing strategies can transform your software quality. Mark explains how to prioritize our testing by understanding what users truly value and translating that into different risk-based testing strategies, such as testing API design, exploratory testing, automated testing, and acceptance test-driven design (ATDD). Mark also reveals the testing Venn diagram as our testing strategic roadmap. Finally, get a glimpse of Mark’s upcoming book “AI-Assisted Testing” and learn how AI will evolve the roles of testers and developers.  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:24]
Writing “Testing Web APIs” - [00:05:17]
Holistic Testing Strategy - [00:07:48]
Start With Understanding the Problem - [00:11:02]
Testing Venn Diagram Model - [00:14:11]
Risk-Based Testing - [00:18:22]
Defining Quality & Quality Attributes - [00:22:29]
Testing API Design - [00:26:41]
Exploratory Testing - [00:32:08]
Automated Testing - [00:36:18]
Acceptance Test-Driven Design (ATDD) - [00:41:54]
“AI-Assisted Testing” Book - [00:45:51]
Evolution of Developer and Tester Roles - [00:48:46]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:53:51]

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Mark Winteringham’s BioMark Winteringham is a quality engineer, course director, and author of “AI Assisted Testing” and “Testing Web APIs”, with over 10 years of experience providing testing expertise on award-winning projects across a wide range of technology sectors. He is an advocate for modern risk-based testing practices, holistic based Automation strategies, Behaviour Driven Development and Exploratory testing techniques.

Follow Mark:


LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/markwinteringham/
Twitter / X – @2bittester
Website – mwtestconsultancy.co.uk

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.



Like this episode?

Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/172.
Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

“Bureaucracy in itself is neither good nor bad. However, it often gets in the way and prevents important things you need to do. A good bureaucracy is lean, learning, and enabling."

Mark Schwartz is an Enterprise Strategist at AWS and the author of multiple books from IT Revolution. In this episode, we discuss his two latest books on the topics of bureaucracy and ethics. Mark begins by sharing his perspective on the impact of bureaucracy on digital transformation. He explains the definition of bureaucracy and why it tends to have a negative connotation. Mark describes the characteristics of a good bureaucracy and how leaders can play an important role in managing bureaucracy.

Next, Mark shares his reasons for writing about ethics in his latest book, why it is becoming more relevant in the digital world, and how leaders can make better ethical decisions in the current fast-paced business world.  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:22]
State of Digital Transformation - [00:04:33]
Bureaucracy - [00:08:31]
Bureaucracy and Process Improvement - [00:13:14]
IT as the Biggest Bureaucrats - [00:15:30]
Bureaucracy Creates Business Value - [00:18:09]
Characteristics of Good Bureaucracy - [00:20:40]
Leaders' Roles Towards Bureaucracy - [00:26:05]
Writing About Ethics - [00:34:10]
How to Make Ethical Decisions - [00:41:12]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:54:21]

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Mark Schwartz’s BioMark Schwartz is an iconoclastic CIO and a playful crafter of ideas, an inveterate purveyor of lucubratory prose. He has been an IT leader in organizations small and large, public, private, and nonprofit. As an Enterprise Strategist for Amazon Web Services, he uses his CIO experience to bring strategies to enterprises or enterprises to strategies, and bring both to the cloud. As the CIO of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, he provoked the federal government into adopting Agile and DevOps practices.

Mark speaks frequently on innovation, bureaucratic implications of DevOps, and using Agile processes in low-trust environments. With a BS in computer science from Yale, a master’s in philosophy from Yale, and an MBA from Wharton, Mark is either an expert on the business value of IT or else he just thinks about it a lot.

Follow Mark:


LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/innovativecio

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.



Like this episode?

Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/171.
Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

“Soft skills are always going to be those ladders for you to climb in your career, whereas your tech skills can turn into snakes, meaning you’ve got to start again with another skill."

Jacqui Read, author of “Communication Patterns,” joins in this episode to discuss why strong communication skills are crucial for developers and technical leaders, often surpassing the importance of merely technical expertise. We delve into four key communication areas: visual communication, multimodal communication, communicating knowledge, and communicating remotely. During the discussion, Jacqui suggests several practical patterns you can immediately implement to level up your communication skills, such as knowing your audience, the big picture comes first, and perspective-driven documentation.  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:40]
Architecture Kata - [00:03:17]
Writing Communication Patterns - [00:05:03]
Importance of Soft Skills - [00:07:33]
Visual Communication - [00:09:24]
Visual Communication Essentials - [00:12:12]
Visual Narrative - [00:17:46]
Multimodal Communication - [00:21:09]
Verbal & Non-Verbal Communication - [00:26:29]
Encoding & Decoding - [00:29:58]
Communicating Knowledge - [00:32:22]
Tips for Capturing Knowledge - [00:40:14]
Get Feedback Early & Just-in-Time - [00:43:05]
Communicating Remotely - [00:48:59]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:54:23]

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Jacqui Read’s BioJacqui Read is an internationally-recognised solution and enterprise architect, and author of Communication Patterns: A Guide for Developers and Architects. She teaches public and private workshops and speaks at international conferences on topics such as architecture practices, technical communication, and systems design. Jacqui specialises in untangling and extracting value from data and knowledge, helping businesses to determine direction in complex environments.

Her professional interests include collaborative modelling, knowledge management, Domain-Driven Design, sociotechnical architecture, and modernising enterprise architecture practices. Outside of work she enjoys gardening and strumming her ukulele while singing at the same time.

Follow Jacqui:


Personal Website – jacquiread.com
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/jacquelineread
Book’s Website – communicationpatternsbook.com

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.



Like this episode?

Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/170.
Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

“As technology has become more and more pervasive, experience has become more and more important. And if companies don’t think of the experience, then users don’t think of the company."

Satyam Kantamneni is the CEO of UXReactor and the author of “User Experience Design”. In this episode, Satyam delves into the power of user experience design to drive business growth and value. Satyam explains why user experience design is paramount for success and reveals the common gaps that prevent companies from truly becoming user-centric. He dissects the concept of Experience Value Chain, illustrating the levels of UX (user experience), PX (product experience), and XT (experience transformation).

Satyam provides insights into how experience-driven organizations establish strong business moats and unlock incredible business values. He defines the concept of experience debt, urging organizations to prioritize a relentless pursuit of magical user experiences. Satyam also shares the PragmaticUX playbook and mindsets, providing a roadmap for organizations seeking to embark on the transformative journey towards XT.  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:13]
State of UX and Design - [00:02:35]
The Gap for Being User-Centered - [00:04:51]
Experience Value Chain - [00:09:09]
Moving Beyond Just UI - [00:12:30]
Trinity of Collaboration - [00:15:30]
3 Levels of Experience - [00:18:58]
Experience Debt - [00:21:40]
Experience Transformation (XT) - [00:24:16]
XT & Business Moat - [00:28:04]
PragmaticUX Playbook - [00:30:58]
PragmaticUX Mindsets - [00:34:14]
Organization’s Empathy - [00:40:14]
Getting User’s Feedback - [00:43:24]
Tips to Get Started - [00:45:04]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:47:10]

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Satyam Kantamneni’s BioSatyam is the Chief Experience Officer at UXReactor. In less than 7 years, UXReactor has become the fastest growing specialized experience design firm in the US, with a team of 50+ employees spread over three continents. Through UXReactor, Satyam demonstrated that UX can and should drive enterprise-wide innovation and business outcomes. UXReactor has enabled its clients-partners to generate hundreds of millions in additional revenue from user-centered innovation. Satyam is passionate about user-centered innovation, and he authored a book titled User Experience Playbook: A Practical to Fuel Business Growth.

Follow Satyam:


LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/kantamneni
UXReactor – uxreactor.com

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.



Like this episode?

Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/169.
Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

“If you can outsource it and if it’s not something that makes you different, you should use a service, because you’ll always be asked to do more things than you can build that are differentiated to your organization.”

Are you ever frustrated by your software development team getting bogged down doing undifferentiated tasks, leaving less time for innovation? In this episode, Joseph Emison, co-founder and CTO of Branch Insurance and author of “Serverless as a Game Changer,” suggests how serverless technology can streamline the way we do software development.

Joe starts by explaining the existing gap between the best and average software development teams, highlighting how teams often prioritize undifferentiated tasks instead of focusing on what truly sets them apart. He challenges the conventional wisdom that code is an asset and explains why it can be a liability.

Joe breaks down the definition of serverless technology and delves into the real costs of software development. He addresses a few of the most commonly raised objections to adopting serverless: lock-in, security, and uptime. You’ll also learn the Branch development principle and how they successfully implement serverless architecture and gain many benefits from the approach.

This episode is a must-listen for any developer or engineering leader looking to gain an understanding of serverless technology and revolutionize the way we approach software development.  

Listen out for:


Career Journey - [00:01:09]
Writing “Serverless as a Game Changer” - [00:04:25]
Software Development Teams Gap - [00:11:07]
Differentiated vs Undifferentiated - [00:14:52]
The Real Costs of Software Development - [00:19:57]
The Serverless Mindset - [00:24:58]
Code is a Liability - [00:27:44]
Infrastructure as a Code - [00:31:06]
Serverless Definition - [00:32:29]
Serverless Security Objections - [00:36:22]
Serverless Uptime Objections - [00:40:30]
Branch Development Principle - [00:45:22]
Hiring Junior Developers - [00:48:39]
Branch’s Cloud Bill - [00:54:06]
3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:55:27]

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Joseph Emison’s BioJoe Emison is the co-founder and CTO of Branch Insurance, a B corporation and insurance carrier that makes it simple to bundle home and auto insurance. Previously, Joe founded BuildFax (acquired by Verisk), Spaceful (acquired by DMGT), and BluePrince (acquired by Harris Computer). Joe is also the author of “Serverless as a Game Changer: How to Get the Most out of the Cloud”.

Follow Joe:


Twitter / X – @JoeEmison
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/joemastersemison
Serverless as a Game Changer: How to Get the Most Out of The Cloud – https://www.amazon.com/dp/0137392621/

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Our Sponsors

Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats.





Like this episode?

Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/168.
Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
Buy me a coffee or become a patron.