The honest view from inside technical leadership
Podcast episode

From the CTO chair

Long-form conversations with the people running technical organisations.

Episode 005 · Strategy & Business

Engineering Management & Culture Beyond the ZIRP Era

Shreyas BalakrishnaEngineering Manager, Culture Amp, Melbourne

Shreyas works at Culture Amp — a company built around people analytics — and has thought carefully about engineering culture when growth capital dries up. He covers maintaining technical engagement as a manager, why feedback is the most underinvested leadership practice, and why psychological safety matters more, not less, during constraint and uncertainty.

What we covered

  • post-ZIRP engineering
  • psychological safety
  • feedback culture

What I took away

  • Post-ZIRP engineering requires doing more with stable teams — culture becomes the multiplier
  • Managers who stay technically engaged make better decisions and earn more trust
  • Psychological safety is highest-leverage in environments where people fear being wrong
  • Feedback culture requires modelling: managers who receive feedback well create teams that give it honestly

← All episodes · Listen on Spotify