3 ways Senior Engineers can lose your trust (and how great managers respond)

When your most experienced team members become your biggest challenge.

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They got promoted because they were great. They solved the hard problems. They knew the codebase inside out.

But something’s changed. The engineer you counted on most has become the person you trust least. And honestly, you’re wondering if maybe you’re the problem.

I strongly believe that senior engineers break trust differently than junior ones. Junior engineers mess up because they don’t know better. Senior engineers mess up because of the choices they’re making. That’s what makes it so damn hard to fix.

Let me walk you through the three patterns I have identified within the past decade working as an Engineering Manager, and w…