[disclaimer: I haven’t been a people manager for too long, so take it with a grain of salt]
I block off some time each day to do ‘something technical’. Sometimes it’s making something pretty that was ugly before. Sometimes it’s learning a new tool my team is considering to pick up. Generally these are things that are important, but not urgent.
For larger projects, I often attend the design reviews. Sometimes I help on the designs, especially if it’s a new product altogether.
All managers on our team are also required to participate in the on-call rotation.
Between those three, I feel like I am still “in the trenches” enough to not forget what it’s like.
I block off some time each day to do ‘something technical’. Sometimes it’s making something pretty that was ugly before. Sometimes it’s learning a new tool my team is considering to pick up. Generally these are things that are important, but not urgent.
For larger projects, I often attend the design reviews. Sometimes I help on the designs, especially if it’s a new product altogether.
All managers on our team are also required to participate in the on-call rotation.
Between those three, I feel like I am still “in the trenches” enough to not forget what it’s like.