{"id":23623,"date":"2026-08-24T14:08:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T14:08:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scannn.com\/good-culture-is-the-biggest-productivity-hack-not-ai\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T14:08:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T14:08:28","slug":"good-culture-is-the-biggest-productivity-hack-not-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scannn.com\/lv\/good-culture-is-the-biggest-productivity-hack-not-ai\/","title":{"rendered":"Good Culture is the Biggest Productivity Hack, Not AI"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!XhMq!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F739ac7e0-a0d3-4bfb-9794-71f7aa57d86d_1600x773.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!XhMq!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F739ac7e0-a0d3-4bfb-9794-71f7aa57d86d_1600x773.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!XhMq!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F739ac7e0-a0d3-4bfb-9794-71f7aa57d86d_1600x773.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!XhMq!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F739ac7e0-a0d3-4bfb-9794-71f7aa57d86d_1600x773.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!XhMq!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F739ac7e0-a0d3-4bfb-9794-71f7aa57d86d_1600x773.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>This newsletter is sponsored by <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823&amp;1\">Unblocked<\/a><\/strong><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>[Webinar] How to stop babysitting your agents<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Agents can generate code. Getting it right for your system, team conventions, and past decisions is the hard part. You end up wasting time and tokens in the correction loops. <\/p>\n<p>More MCPs, rules, and bigger context windows give agents access to information, but not understanding. The teams pulling ahead have a context layer to give agents exactly what they need for the task at hand.<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823&amp;2\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png\" width=\"1456\" height=\"819\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:819,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:272266,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823&amp;2&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!qoff!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F946868db-4a34-4f20-8435-dd76f5c19f9e_1600x900.png 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823&amp;3\"><span>Join live on Sep 2 (FREE) <\/span><\/a><span>to see:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><span>Where teams get stuck on the AI maturity curve and why common fixes fall short<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>How a context layer solves for quality, efficiency, and cost<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>Live demo: the same coding task with and without a context layer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-attrs=\"{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Register now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}\" data-component-name=\"ButtonCreateButton\" class=\"button-wrapper\"><a href=\"https:\/\/getunblocked.com\/events\/how-to-stop-babysitting-your-agents\/?utm_source=engineeringleadership&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=primary_20260823\" class=\"button primary\"><span>Register now<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Thanks to Unblocked for sponsoring this newsletter. Let\u2019s get back to today\u2019s thought!<\/p>\n<p><span>This is something that has been on my mind for quite a while now. It seems like everything these days revolves around \u201cAI\u201d, \u201cAI tools\u201d, \u201cAI productivity\u201d.  <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>\u201cYou need to use this AI tool\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>\u201cYou need to be using this AI workflow\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>\u201cYour engineers should be 2x, 5x, or even 10x more productive with AI\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And I get it. AI is changing how we build software, and I use AI tools myself every day as well.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>But we\u2019re focusing too much on AI tools alone and not enough on the environment in which the tools are being used. Because there\u2019s something a LOT more important than AI tools, and that\u2019s a great culture.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Throughout my 13+ year career in the engineering industry, I\u2019ve seen both the negative effects of bad culture and the positive effects of a good one. I even felt it myself as an engineer and an engineering manager, when departments spent whole days blaming each other for problems.<\/p>\n<p>So, I am a big believer that everything starts with a good culture, and I\u2019ll tell you all about it in this article.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s start!<\/p>\n<p><span>This is a sentence that breaks a good culture and makes people believe that their job is not important. Especially if it comes from an executive, e.g., a CEO, CPO, or even worse, a CTO.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The problem with it is that it totally decreases psychological safety, and everyone starts wondering whether they&#8217;ll still be needed or not.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But here is an important thing that many people forget:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>There is no better productivity hack than a great culture. No AI tools will provide bigger productivity gains.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I\u2019ve unfortunately seen and heard this sentence quite a few times, either directly or from an engineer or engineering leader who has reported that to me.<\/p>\n<p>I think things have gotten a bit better this year, but in 2025 and in early 2026, I heard this many times. <\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s go more into why this is really problematic.<\/p>\n<p>Many executives believe that AI will just magically increase the productivity of everyone. But the reason that often doesn\u2019t work is Conway\u2019s law. It states:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Organizations which design systems (in the broad sense used here) are constrained to produce designs which are copies of the communication structures of these organizations.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I mention this law quite a lot in different articles, because it\u2019s just so important. And the reason why it\u2019s particularly relevant in this case is that the overall productivity and the \u201cend product\u201d mimic the overall culture of the organization.<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"621\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/c3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:621,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:119754,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!y39n!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc3d137b8-9b60-43b5-8deb-7fe12fb7d5ac_1600x682.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>If the culture is bad, the end product will be bad as well, because people just don\u2019t work together well and they don\u2019t communicate properly. But if the culture is good, then often the end product will be good as well.<\/p>\n<p>So, you should always think about good culture as a prerequisite for everything else. And I like to make an analogy to what health is to us, humans. Without health, we can\u2019t do anything else well.<\/p>\n<p>And the same is true for organizations with bad culture, everything else won\u2019t be good as well.<\/p>\n<p><span>Now, here comes the problem that many people fall into, especially CEOs and other executives. They see either a competitor or some other company reporting 10x higher productivity using a certain AI tool.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>They start to panic, they start feeling FOMO (fear of missing out), and they start blaming people around them: \u201cWhy don\u2019t we have that same amount of productivity as well?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>A lot of the CEOs are unaware of what kind of problems this may bring. Especially to the culture of the organization. When you start actively \u201cblaming\u201d, it shows to everyone that they are not doing their job well, and that you don\u2019t trust them to make good decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>And this especially falls hard on engineers and engineering leaders, as they are often viewed as people who should be initiating AI adoption.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>What many CEOs don\u2019t realize is that a lot of the \u201creporting\u201d of AI increasing productivity by 10x is more or less selling a certain AI product, or a certain partnership where they are promoting the other product.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>So, many of the CEOs fall for the trick and make their company culture a lot worse.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>My recommendation: Always take a look at what the incentives are behind people saying something, that says a lot about whether it\u2019s true or not.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Here is another really important point, and many people seem to forget it. As we mentioned, good culture is a prerequisite for everything else. But when it comes to AI, it amplifies everything you already have.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>So, both AI and good culture go hand in hand really well together. AI makes bad communication even worse, it also makes bad architecture even worse as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But if you have a good culture and good architecture, people will be more productive because they will help each other, and AI will also have a better blueprint of what good looks like because of good architecture.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"1322\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1322,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:166205,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!2IMV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F745a0c51-dd4c-40df-afda-d4f210e6b680_1600x1453.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Always keep this in mind. Just starting to use AI for everything just makes things worse if you don\u2019t have good processes, architecture, and people don\u2019t work together as a team.<\/p>\n<p>Everyone just goes in the wrong direction faster.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re wondering whether you have a great culture inside your team or organization, here are some useful questions to answer:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Do people know what they are responsible for?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Can they make decisions without unnecessary approvals?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Do they feel safe challenging leadership?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Do teams trust each other?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Are priorities clear?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Can people disagree constructively?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Do we reward outcomes?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Do people understand why they are building something?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Do we learn from failures, or do we look for someone to blame?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If the answer to these is \u201cYes\u201d, then you are on a good track to have a good culture. Additionally, here is my personal checklist that I look at when doing an assessment of a certain engineering culture:<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"816\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:816,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:128012,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!xQr5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F10b073fd-9d85-44c6-8cdb-60e001adff03_1600x897.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>You can find my full checklist for assessing whether a certain engineering organization is great or not.<\/p>\n<p>You can use the same checklist in your case as well. This checklist provides you with a guide on what you should focus on in order to create a great engineering organization where everyone can thrive.<\/p>\n<p>It works for organizations with multiple teams or smaller organizations. You can also use this for a specific team that is part of the bigger organization as well.<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/100-discount-code-for-products\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:720,&quot;width&quot;:1280,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:92715,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/100-discount-code-for-products&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!Fh0C!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4c26fa18-33af-4eea-a4df-4fe917180c0f_1280x720.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Paid subscribers, you can get it here: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/100-discount-code-for-products\"> Products for paid subscribers<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Additionally, take a look at how I do a full engineering organization audit in this article:<\/span><\/p>\n<div data-component-name=\"DigestPostEmbed\" class=\"digestPostEmbed-flwiST\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/this-is-how-i-do-a-full-engineering\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-16 pc-reset\">\n<div style=\"width:70px;height:70px;\" class=\"pencraft pc-reset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!_IRg!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F3483c10d-737c-40a6-ac7c-3389d112f006_1600x743.jpeg\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!_IRg!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F3483c10d-737c-40a6-ac7c-3389d112f006_1600x743.jpeg\" sizes=\"100vw\" alt=\"This is How I do a Full Engineering Org Audit\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" class=\"img-OACg1c smSquare-NGbPBa pencraft pc-reset\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"pencraft pc-display-flex pc-flexDirection-column pc-reset\">\n<h4 class=\"pencraft pc-reset color-pub-primary-text-NyXPlw line-height-24-jnGwiv font-display-nhmvtD size-20-P_cSRT weight-bold-DmI9lw reset-IxiVJZ\">This is How I do a Full Engineering Org Audit<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<p>Now, let\u2019s go to a very important thing next. How to actually message AI adoption correctly, so that you keep a great culture and have everyone excited about using AI tools.<\/p>\n<p><span>The best messaging I saw (and has worked well) is the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>What great engineers and engineering leaders do is learn and utilize all different tools that help them do the work better. This hasn\u2019t really changed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>AI is like any other tool that has come out over the years. Use it in your favor to help your team, organization, and the business. That\u2019s what great engineers and engineering leaders do. And it hasn\u2019t changed with AI.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Don\u2019t ever mention something even close to \u201creplacing\u201d or something along the lines of \u201cYou are not important anymore, because we have AI\u201d. Those are just going to completely diminish morale and break the entire culture.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>When it comes to AI adoption, it only works bottom-up, it never works top-down, and the reason for that is that things are changing so fast, new AI tools are coming out every day, and there needs to be constant exchange of knowledge between everyone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Always keep this in mind. Trying to \u201cforce\u201d people will only result in bad outcomes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Many people believe that AI adoption happens just by introducing a new tool, and people will just magically become 2-5x more productive. Well, it doesn\u2019t work like that.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>AI adoption is not a tooling problem, it\u2019s a leadership problem.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>And at the same time, if your goal is to just increase AI usage amongst everyone, you\u2019re basically losing. The goal should always be business success and overall outcomes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As we mentioned, AI is like any other tool, and we need to treat it that way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I wrote the article called: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/companies-should-hire-more-engineers\">Companies should hire more engineers in the age of AI<\/a><span>, back in July, 2025. And it\u2019s now more true than ever. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>I fully believe that the best companies hire more engineers, not fewer, and the reason is that with more people, you exponentially increase your productivity as well.<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp\" width=\"1456\" height=\"645\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:645,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:25818,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/webp&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!MIv_!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F120ab0e4-49ca-4f49-9933-9859f9631fde_1456x645.webp 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Of course, the prerequisite is that the company culture is on point. Without it, it won\u2019t work.<\/p>\n<p>Time to market (TTM) is a very important metric in the age of AI, and I strongly believe that the best companies in a specific industry are going to be the ones that are going to move the fastest, make adjustments based on market needs, and provide the best experience for the users.<\/p>\n<p>This was true before the age of AI, and now it\u2019s even more important as things are progressing faster than ever.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>So, knowing this, why would you actually restrict yourself with less productivity and less talent?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s a huge competitive advantage to be more productive. And I believe being less productive (that you can be) is actually a huge liability, which would result in an overall decrease in market share percentage long-term, in my opinion.<\/p>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg\" data-component-name=\"Image2ToDOM\" class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg\" width=\"1456\" height=\"1322\" data-attrs=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/images\/08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:1322,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:128007,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image\/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/i\/212323454?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 424w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 848w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 1272w, https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!8QIq!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F08a1436a-2e21-4dea-b14d-6220d42e2900_1600x1453.jpeg 1456w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"sizing-normal\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>If you believe that \u201creplacing engineers with AI\u201d is a good bet. You\u2019re actually making your company a lot worse that way. That\u2019s my opinion.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Let\u2019s end this article with the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I DON\u2019T think the biggest question for leaders should be: \u201cHow do we get everyone to use AI?\u201d The biggest question is:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>\u201cHow do we build an organization where great people can do their best work, and then use AI to multiply them?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>This is the real question that organizations should be asking and focusing on. Great culture is the biggest productivity hack.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Liked this article? Make sure to  click the like button.<\/p>\n<p>Feedback or addition? Make sure to  comment.<\/p>\n<p>Know someone that would find this helpful? Make sure to  share this post.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><span>Interested in sponsoring this newsletter? Check the sponsorship options <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/calico-cabinet-fbf.notion.site\/Sponsor-Engineering-Leadership-fa0579535d6f4422a6da350580a54546\">here<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>Check out my book \u201cThe Multiplier Mindset\u201d coming out later this year, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/announcing-my-book-the-multiplier\">here<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>Take a look at the cool swag in the Engineering Leadership Store <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/store.eng-leadership.com\/\">here<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span>Want to work with me? You can see all the options <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/calico-cabinet-fbf.notion.site\/Work-with-Gregor-Ojstersek-1147b66fdc24809b86b1fb0467b60318\">here<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>You can find me on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/gregorojstersek\/\">LinkedIn<\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gregorojstersek\">X<\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/yt.openinapp.co\/kw2oi\">YouTube<\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/gregorojstersek.bsky.social\">Bluesky<\/a><span>, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gregor_ojstersek\/\">Instagram<\/a><span> or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@gregor_ojstersek\">Threads<\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>If you wish to make a request on particular topic you would like to read, you can send me an email to info@gregorojstersek.com.<\/p>\n<p>This newsletter is funded by paid subscriptions from readers like yourself.<\/p>\n<p>If you aren\u2019t already, consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive the full experience!<\/p>\n<p data-attrs=\"{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/about#\u00a7paid-subscribers-get&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Check the benefits of the paid plan&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:&quot;button-wrapper&quot;}\" data-component-name=\"ButtonCreateButton\" class=\"button-wrapper\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/about#\u00a7paid-subscribers-get\" class=\"button primary button-wrapper\"><span>Check the benefits of the paid plan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p>You are more than welcome to find whatever interests you here and try it out in your particular case. Let me know how it went! Topics are normally about all things engineering related, leadership, management, developing scalable products, building teams etc.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async defer src=\"https:\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/newsletter.eng-leadership.com\/p\/good-culture-is-the-biggest-productivity?utm_source=tldrdev\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This newsletter is sponsored by Unblocked. [Webinar] How to stop babysitting your agents Agents can generate code. Getting it right for your system, team conventions, and past decisions is the hard part. You end up wasting time and tokens in the correction loops. 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