Nice things people have said about me as an engineering manager and leader.
From my direct reports:
Adrienne is an outstanding team builder and manager of creative software engineers. She has the rare talent to motivate her engineers with her direct communication and empathy for others. In the Python community, the Django community, and the Write The Docs community, Adrienne has transformed and grown each project that she has taken on. Her PyCon Orientation sessions have been standing room only, and their popularity has opened the door for many into the Python community. Given the opportunity and support to bring her excellent communication and management skills to a team and organization, she makes everyone around her better and more productive. After over 30 years of work, I can honestly say Adrienne has been the best engineering manager that I have ever had. I highly recommend her to any organization that has a commitment to their employees, productivity, and ethics.
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Adrienne is a great communicator and has a keen understanding of what it takes to effectively run an engineering team. She is focused on empowering the team to achieve their growth goals and aligning them with the goals of the organization. She is tireless in removing any obstacles and facilitating interactions to keep us on track and moving forward.
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Since the day Adrienne was brought on board, she has been a transformative force for our team. She’s introduced many new practices into our operations that have helped us so immensely that I can barely remember how we functioned without them. Her ability to take a vaguely defined priority and work with the team and leadership to craft it into a precise plan is unparalleled. Within all aspects of our team, from technical planning to interpersonal support, Adrienne has removed friction and helped us do our best work. I know that I can always count on her to keep me on track and in focus, while still giving me the space I need to be successful. I will definitely be using her playbook as a reference point in the future.
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It’s rare to work for a manager who both able to drive forward through difficult projects and be empathetic; however, Adrienne does both with ease. I had the pleasure of working under Adrienne for six months at Juice Analytics. By renovating our sprint and ticket processes and implementing a culture of 1 on 1s, Adrienne had an immediate impact on her team as soon as she arrived. She also is an amazing purveyor of baked goods and wonderful notes of encouragement. Any employee would be lucky to have a manager as motivated and understanding as Adrienne.
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From conference organizers and folks who have heard me keynote:
Adrienne is one of the most pragmatic, practical and human focused technical leaders I have met. Her talks consistently drive home a deep, meaningful and clear message, but somehow also invariably include incredible levity and energy. Rarely have I seen an audience as deeply rapt in a conference presentation as the attendees in her talks. She is a font of sage advice and I am continually amazed by her ability to move from one challenging area of focus to the next, seemingly with ease and speed (but in reality, with lots of hard work). She is constantly lifting those up around her, and I have experienced firsthand the joy she brings to the communities she has made her own.
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When Adrienne Lowe speaks on stage, you had best buckle in. I’ve seen her twice, once as a keynote, and both experiences had me in laughter and in tears. Her talks take an experience that resonates with the audience, for example concern about how authentic to be at work, and bring you on a journey. A journey of discovery, introspection, incredulity. And when you reach the end, it is somehow both revelatory and in retrospect, obviously inevitable. You know just how you got there, but you wonder if you ever could have made it on your own. It’s beautiful. It’s been life-changing, at least for me. Adrienne is a Django person through and through, from her very beginning, up through increasing levels of responsibility and authority. And she wants to keynote for you. You should take her up on it. You won’t regret it.
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I’ve observed Adrienne in action as a writer, speaker, conference organizer, and engineering manager. She has risen to prominence in the Python community in just a few years, through her energy, intelligence, and generosity. But her approach to management is what most sets her apart: she is attuned to the needs of her team, and mixes firmness with kindness in exactly measured portions.
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As a conference organizer I can wholeheartedly say that Adrienne is a joy to work with. She is always prepared, helps others, and engages the audience in a unique and thoughtful way before, during, and after her presentation. Any event would be lucky to have Adrienne in their lineup.
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Adrienne’s organizing, speaking, and community contributions to the Python and Django communities over the past few years have been an inspiration. Every time I’ve had the chance to hear Adrienne speak, I’m always filled with inspiration. Her skill in sharing her journey from “I’ll learn to code” to “I’m an engineering manager” combined with her steadfast principals of being genuine to herself and others in the process is something that anyone can find a lesson in.
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From a mentee:
‘Remarkably dynamic’ is the phrase that comes to mind when I think about Adrienne. She demonstrates not only mastery for her core role, but also the ability to take on new projects that are both difficult and critical to the team’s growth. As a leader, Adrienne is committed to inspiring and empowering others towards success. I was always in awe of Adrienne’s ability to command a room and get people on board with ideas—even people with diversity in thinking.
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From an engineering colleague:
Adrienne strikes a rare balance as Director of Engineering: First, she is a natural champion for each member of her team, whether direct report or not. From the brand new development intern to the most seasoned of the senior engineers, Adrienne knows how to empower and encourage people – and it never feels forced or disingenuous. Second, Adrienne has years of experience in software development… *as a developer*. During the times that we have collaborated directly, her experience is self-evident. It is meaningful to me to have a leader who is not only actively seeking ways to improve our development process and looking out for the best interest of her engineers, but can also talk the talk and understands the finer points of the work that is being done every day. Adrienne brings to our team a natural combination of technical prowess, a very people-focused mentality, and empathetic leadership – the result is something that sets the bar high, and continually challenges me to be a better developer and better teammate.
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Read more and connect with me on LinkedIn.
Leading with Spoons 