What this book covers
Chapter 1, Fundamentals of a Technical Program Manager, is an introduction to what a TPM is and where the role originated.
Chapter 2, Pillars of a Technical Program Manager, sets out the three pillars of a TPM: project management, program management, and the technical toolset.
Chapter 3, Introduction to Program Management, covers the key management areas that will be covered throughout the book: plan management, risk management, and stakeholder management. It also introduces a case study that will be used for all examples throughout the book.
Chapter 4, Driving Toward Clarity, elaborates on the recurring trait that defines everything a TPM does: being clarity-driven.
Chapter 5, Plan Management, dives deeper into the plan management best practices and goes over scenarios that are common in the tech industry.
Chapter 6, Risk Management, explores the risk management best practices and goes over scenarios that are common in the tech industry.
Chapter 7, Stakeholder Management, discusses the stakeholder management best practices and goes over scenarios that are common in the tech industry.
Chapter 8, Managing a Program, explains the differences between managing a program and a project and how program management builds on top of project management.
Chapter 9, Career Paths, examines the career paths available for a TPM using interviews and job data from across the Big 5 tech companies.
Chapter 10, The Technical Toolset, is all about the three fundamental tools in a TPM’s technical toolset: programming fundamentals, system design, and architectural design.
Chapter 11, Code Development Expectations, is an outline of the programming fundamentals that a TPM is expected to understand and draw upon.
Chapter 12, System Design and Architectural Landscape, clarifies the system and architectural design patterns and principles that are useful to a TPM.
Chapter 13, Enhancing Management Using Your Technical Toolset, covers the technical toolset and dives deeper into how and where in a TPM’s day-to-day work it can be used to enhance their career.
