Engineering Manager/Technical Project Manager Books

From time to time I get requests about what books to read for a novice team lead, engineering manager, PM, etc. - so I just decided to write a post on that matter :)

This is an Evergreen post.

If you are a novice try to read first 1-3 books in each category before moving deeper.

Software Development Methodologies

Most companies adopted agile in one way or another, so 95% chance that you will be dealing with either Scrum or Kanban (to be precise - with some variations of them as I don’t think I ever saw 100% “from the book” implementation - there are always some modifications).

Scrum

“Classic” agile methodology, I think it was THE most popular methodology(except places with no particular methodology at all) in the world at some point in time.

1. Scrum and XP from the Trenches by Henrik Kniberg - very good field manual on how to SCRUM
2. Official Scrum Guide by Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland - RTFM :) Note: this guide gets eventual updates and changes over time to adopt current practices in the Scrum community, so it is always helpful to read the most recent version of the guide
3. Optional: Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time by Jeff Sutherland
4. Large-Scale Scrum: More with LeSS // added 09.01.24 - I highly recommend this book for any kind of technical management role

Kanban (Kanban Method, to be precise)

Not new, but trending methodology which I prefer nowadays as a default choice for new projects.

1. The Official Guide To The Kanban Method by Kanban University - RTFM
2. Kanban: Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business by David J. Anderson - the BLUE (it’s actually RED in Russian translation - WTF?!) book of Kanban - must read

Project Management

1. Mythical Man-Month by F. Brooks - must read for any kind of IT manager. Quite old book but still very valuable and enjoyable
2. The Deadline: A Novel About Project Management by Tom DeMarco - another classic novel on project management
3. PMBOK - at least skim through it
4. Waltzing With Bears: Managing Risk on Software Projects - classic book on risk management
5. The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt - must read on Theory of Constraints (TOC)
6. Critical Chain: A Business Novel by Eliyahu Goldratt - another novel on TOC in Project Management
7. Critical Chain Project Management by Lawrence Leach - more TOC applications to Project Management

General/Team Management

1. Managing Humans by Michael Lopp - amazing stories on engineering management
2. The Manager’s Path: A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change by Camille Fournier - very good book for fresh engineering managers
3. An Elegant Puzzle: Systems of Engineering Management by Will Larson
4. High Output Management by Andrew Grove (Intel’s CEO) - absolute must read for any manager and maybe an entrepreneur
5. The New One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard, Spencer Johnson - short, clean and practical one-minute guide on how to be a manager
6. Peopleware by Tom DeMarco, Tim Lister - classics on productive teams and projects
7. The Practice of Management by Peter Drucker - old, but very valuable book from one of the most (or THE most?) influential management thinker
8. Out of the crisis by Edwards W. Deming - famous 14 points for Management
9. Measure What Matters: OKRs: The Simple Idea that Drives 10x Growth by John Doerr - must read on organizational goal setting (THE OKR guide)
10. Team Topologies - great book on team structuring, see my review

Coaching

1. The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever by Michael Bungay Stanier - short, practical guide on performance coaching
2. Coaching for Performance: The Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership by Sir John Whitmore - long guide on performance coaching

Strategy

1. Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works - very good and practical guide on strategy - try to read it even if you are not in an executive role

Leadership

1. Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink - one of the best books on leadership, see my review

Software Architecture

1. Software Architecture in Practice - all concepts and practices you need are in this book
2. Domain-Driven Design by Eric Evans - very influential book on software design
3. Software Architect’s Handbook: Become a successful software architect by implementing effective architecture concepts - broad range of topics, but without deep dives
4. Enterprise Integration Patterns: Designing, Building, and Deploying Messaging Solutions - the Bible of integration patterns, because we all love integrations, aren’t we?

DevOps

1. The Phoenix Project: A Novel about IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win by Gene Kim, et al - amazing business novel on DevOps, clearly inspired by The Goal
2. Accelerate: The Science of Lean Software and DevOps: Building and Scaling High Performing Technology Organizations by Gene Kim, et al