Still Building.
The leadership playbook is being rewritten. You can watch it happen.
I'm a VP of Engineering managing 30 people, and the playbook I learned on doesn't work anymore. So I'm rewriting it in real time. Flattening teams, removing management layers, figuring out what engineering leadership looks like when the rules change every month. This isn't a finished framework. It's a living playbook that evolves as I learn. And I'm sharing all of it.
No spam. Just signal.
The old playbook is dead. Nobody's written the new one yet.
The org chart you inherited was designed for cheap capital and big teams. That era is over. AI changed what one person can build. The coordination layers you staffed up? They're friction now. But nobody hands you a manual for what comes next.
I'm writing that manual. One week at a time. From inside the thing, not from the sidelines.
Still building products.
AI changed what one person can build. The leaders winning right now aren't delegating from a distance. They're hands-on again. Building prototypes between meetings. Shipping alongside their teams.
Still building teams.
Flatter structures, more autonomy, fewer layers. The teams that move fastest are designed for what's next, not what worked five years ago.
Still building builders.
The best thing a leader can do is make themselves unnecessary. Give engineers agency. Give them AI. Give them space to own their work. Then get out of the way.
This is for you if
- Your team is slower than it should be and you know the structure is the problem
- You're trying to figure out how AI changes your team, not just your product
- You're a builder at heart who got pulled into management and never quite let go
- You want practical, honest advice from someone in it, not someone who left five years ago to consult
Who's behind this?
I'm Jamie. VP of Engineering at Kajabi. Managing 30 people and still writing code between 1-on-1s. I've been building software since 2007 and leading teams since long before I had the title.
I didn't set out to be a manager. I got pulled into it because I was good at building things, and eventually the job became helping other people build things too. That part stuck. But I never stopped wanting to build.
Now AI is changing everything about how we staff, structure, and lead engineering teams. I'm figuring it out in real time and sharing what I learn along the way.
I'm building it in real time.
What Still Building becomes (newsletter, course, community) depends on what engineering leaders actually need right now. I'm figuring that out through conversations, not assumptions. Sign up to be one of the first to get access when it's ready.
