Managing humans
Michael Lopp
Read hilarious stories with serious lessons that Michael Lopp extracts from his varied and sometimes bizarre experiences as a manager at Apple, Pinterest, Palantir, Netscape, Symantec, Slack, and Borland.
Score based on developer article recommendations — not sales data or reviews.
🟢 Developer Verdict
Practical lessons on tech leadership and team dynamics are delivered through engaging, humorous stories from a veteran manager's diverse career.
Read this if
- ✓ You are navigating the challenges of tech management.
- ✓ You prefer learning management lessons via humorous anecdotes.
- ✓ You want insights from a manager with diverse big-tech experience.
Skip this for now if
- ✗ You seek a theoretical framework for management principles.
- ✗ You need hands-on technical guidance for coding tasks.
- ✗ You prefer a dry, academic textbook on organizational behavior.
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📊 Why Developers Recommend
It develops engineering leadership and management skills.
Cited by 11 different developers, each bringing their own experience and perspective.
Valued for its practical approach — concepts connect directly to real-world engineering decisions and daily work.
💬 What Developers Say
"This book belongs on your bookshelf and will have you referring back time and time again, even if it’s just for the wit and wisdom packed within the pages."
— rogerjin12 · Top 10 Books Every CTO Should Read · Aug 17, 2017
"No matter where you are in your career, read this book."
— karllhughes · The Best Software Engineering Books · Apr 29, 2021
"I recently finished reading Managing Humans: Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager by Michael Lopp and found it both entertaining and useful enough that I wanted to share it with all of you."
— rachelsoderberg · Book Review: Managing Humans by Michael Lopp · Jul 12, 2019
Based on 9 developer article mentions
👤 Who Should Read This
Best for
- • Tech leads making technology and architecture decisions
- • Developers looking to grow their careers
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Michael Lopp
Mentioned in 11 articles · #63 overall
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Recommended in 11 Articles
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