Performance Management As An Engineering Manager
In this episode, we’ll dig into how managers can balance output, impact, and quality, set meaningful goals, and coach engineers toward growth — not just manage them. We’ll also tackle how to handle underperformance, keep top talent motivated, and build teams that stay engaged without burning out.
Sponsors.
A huge thank you to our sponsors for supporting the Ladybug Podcast! Interested in becoming a Ladybug Podcast sponsor? Head over to our Sponsorship page for more details.
Neo4j
NODES 2025 is a free online conference focused on graph-driven innovations, with content for all skill levels. Its 24 hours are packed with 140+ interactive technical sessions from top developers, AI engineers, and data pros worldwide, covering a broad range of topics and use cases.
The event tracks include:
AI Engineering– Build software with AI. Delve into the latest AI-driven software development trends, from knowledge graphs to multi-agent systems.
App Dev – Discover tools and best practices to create graph-powered applications and APIs with any software stack and programming language.
Data Intelligence – Explore how data scientists and ML practitioners drive innovation through better data, smarter algorithms, and graph-powered insights.
Knowledge Graphs – Uncover new ways to create, visualize, integrate, and analyze knowledge graphs with powerful tools and scalable techniques.
Don’t miss your chance to hear about the latest graph-powered implementations and best practices for free on November 6 at NODES 2025. Go to Neo4j.com/NODES to see the full agenda and register.
Show Notes.
02:04 - Why do we measure engineering performance?
03:40 - How to measure engineering performance
11:08 - SMART goals
18:39 - Handling underperformers
27:00 - Motivating and retaining high performers