Always learning

In this episode, Si and Neil dive into learning as engineering managers, how they approach it personally, how teams respond to it, and why it’s weirdly hard to make time for something everyone claims to value.

They chat about learning budgets, 10 percent time, hackathons, internal conferences, external speakers, audiobooks, Blinkist, reflection time, and why inspiration often hits when you’re nowhere near your laptop. They unpack different learning styles, the pressure to deliver, how to support engineers who don’t know what to learn next, and why rest is just as important as active learning.

Links mentioned in the episode

Here are the references we talked through:

• Wardley Mapping: https://learnwardleymapping.com

• LeadDev Conference: https://leaddev.com

• Blinkist: https://www.blinkist.com

• LinkedIn Learning: https://www.linkedin.com/learning

• Agile Cambridge: https://agilecambridge.net

• R&D tax credits: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/corporation-tax-research-and-development-rd-relief

Connect with us

Tell us what you think about the episode or learning yourself:

• Si on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sijobling/

• Neil on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/neil-younger/

Chapters

• [00:00] Setting up episode two and the learning theme

• [01:39] Why learning matters to us as engineering managers

• [03:30] Budgets, 10 percent time and the reality of making space

• [07:14] Internal learning, conferences and hackathons

• [09:01] External training, facilitators and different learning styles

• [13:14] Conferences, insights and the value of being in the room

• [17:51] Making learning visible and building a culture around it

• [20:20] Books, audiobooks, Blinkist and how we actually consume content

• [25:18] Reflection time, walking, swimming and idea generation

• [33:03] Helping people choose what to learn next (including AI pressure)

• [34:25] Rest, burnout, and why taking breaks is part of learning

• [44:05] Community budgets, experts and learning that sticks

• [47:09] What we both learned this episode and wrapping up

Credits

Produced by Unstyled Studios

Hosted by Si Jobling & Neil Younger

Audio editing by Si Jobling

Made with Descript

Hosted on Pinecast

Check out our podcast host, Pinecast. Start your own podcast for free with no credit card required. If you decide to upgrade, use coupon code r-b0b82e for 40% off for 4 months, and support Managing Engineers.

Read transcript