phildini, while reading reviewed Staff Engineer by Will Larson
Fundamentals, padded out
3 stars
There are not a lot of great books on how to be a Staff+ Engineer, because there are not a lot of books on being a Staff Engineer, period. I really enjoyed Larson's book on Engineering Management (An Elegant Puzzle) and so was hopeful I'd get a similar volume equally packed with good strategies and information.
This is... not that. It's not bad by any means, and the first third, the section that synthesizes everything gleaned in interviews with Larson's own thoughts, was excellent and insightful. The issue is that the Staff Engineer interviews, making up somewhere around the back two-thirds of the book, started feeling repetitive to me very quickly. Were there insights there? Yes. Were they worth the time spent reading them? Unclear. The book does make it clear that Staff Engineering is more art than science, more ✨vibes✨ than a clear path, and I think the book's …
There are not a lot of great books on how to be a Staff+ Engineer, because there are not a lot of books on being a Staff Engineer, period. I really enjoyed Larson's book on Engineering Management (An Elegant Puzzle) and so was hopeful I'd get a similar volume equally packed with good strategies and information.
This is... not that. It's not bad by any means, and the first third, the section that synthesizes everything gleaned in interviews with Larson's own thoughts, was excellent and insightful. The issue is that the Staff Engineer interviews, making up somewhere around the back two-thirds of the book, started feeling repetitive to me very quickly. Were there insights there? Yes. Were they worth the time spent reading them? Unclear. The book does make it clear that Staff Engineering is more art than science, more ✨vibes✨ than a clear path, and I think the book's structure tries to reflect that.
As with An Elegant Puzzle, the collection of Resources in the back of the book makes up for a lot, and makes this a solid reference for anyone interested in Staff Engineering. Do I recommend reading it cover to cover? No.
