Glen Thomas

Software / Platform Engineer

4 minute read Leadership

Transitioning into a leadership role as a software engineer is a personal and often messy process. It’s not like flipping a switch. You don’t suddenly become “a leader” one morning. It’s a gradual, ongoing expansion of your impact, mindset, and responsibilities.

This post isn’t a blueprint for success. Rather, it’s a reflection on the patterns, surprises, and hard-won lessons that come with scaling yourself to meet the demands of leadership.

From Builder to Multiplier

In the early stages of your engineering career, success is tied closely to what you build. You write code, fix bugs, ship features. Your value is visible and measurable.

Leadership, however, shifts the focus from direct output to enabling others. It’s less about shipping code and more about building environments where others can do their best work.

The mindset shift: From “How much can I do?” → “How much can I help others do?”

This can feel unnatural at first. You might feel like you’re not “doing enough” because your IDE isn’t open all day. That’s normal.

Your Time Is No Longer Your Own

As an individual contributor, time is often your most flexible resource. Leadership introduces a new constraint: you are now interrupt-driven. Your calendar fills up fast with 1:1s, hiring interviews, incident reviews, strategy sessions, and more.

You’ll need to become ruthless about:

  • Protecting deep work time (for thinking, not coding)
  • Saying “no” or “not now” without guilt
  • Delegating work that others can (and should) own

A helpful trick: block “thinking time” on your calendar just like you would a meeting. Guard it.

Feedback Becomes a Mirror

As a leader, you are often someone else’s context, permission, or pace. Your words carry more weight, even if you didn’t mean them to.

The hard truth: you will receive less honest feedback, just when you need it most.

Counteract this by:

  • Regularly asking for feedback, especially from your team
  • Making it safe for people to disagree with you
  • Reflecting on how you show up, not just what you do

If you’re not hearing dissent occasionally, it may not be because your ideas are perfect, it may be because people don’t feel safe to speak.

You Can’t Scale What You Don’t Delegate

One of the biggest risks for new leaders is becoming a bottleneck. If everything important flows through you, your team will slow down.

Look for opportunities to:

  • Push decisions down to those closest to the work
  • Grow “leaders within” by giving others real ownership
  • Accept that things may be done differently than you would

Delegation isn’t dumping work; it’s distributing ownership and trust.

Leadership Isn’t a Job Title

Some of the best leaders I’ve worked with didn’t have “Manager” or “Lead” in their title. They led by:

  • Creating clarity in chaos
  • Mentoring others quietly
  • Raising the bar through example
  • Advocating for good ideas (regardless of whose they were)

Leadership is a posture, not a promotion.

Scaling Yourself Is Continuous

There’s no finish line. Scaling yourself means:

  • Evolving your communication as the team grows
  • Adapting your decision making as the stakes increase
  • Continuously recalibrating where you spend your time

What worked last year may not work next year. That’s not failure, it’s growth.

Practical Tips for New Engineering Leaders

If you’re stepping into leadership for the first time, here are a few actionable strategies that helped me (and others) navigate the transition:

1. Build Relationships Intentionally

Your influence as a leader is built on trust. Invest time in getting to know your team as people, not just as engineers. Ask about their goals, frustrations, and what energises them. Relationships are the foundation for effective feedback, motivation, and collaboration.

2. Communicate Early and Often

Over-communicate, especially during times of change or uncertainty. Share context, explain decisions, and repeat key messages. What feels obvious to you may not be clear to others. Err on the side of transparency.

3. Embrace the Uncomfortable

Leadership will stretch you. You’ll have tough conversations, make unpopular decisions, and face ambiguity. Growth happens outside your comfort zone—lean into it. Seek out mentors or peers who can offer perspective and advice.

4. Prioritise Your Own Growth

Don’t neglect your own learning. Read books, attend workshops, and reflect regularly on what’s working (and what isn’t). Leadership is a skill like any other—it gets better with practice and feedback.

5. Celebrate Wins—Big and Small

Recognition is a powerful motivator. Celebrate team achievements, individual milestones, and progress toward goals. A simple “thank you” or public shout-out can go a long way.

Final Thoughts

Leadership isn’t about being the smartest, loudest, or most technical person in the room. It’s about enabling others, holding space for ambiguity, and constantly scaling your own habits to meet new challenges.

You don’t need permission to start leading. Begin by showing up differently.

If you’re looking to go deeper, here are a few books and articles:

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