#422 Managing Developer Teams in the AI Era: A Conversation with Will Blackburn

The CTO Show with Mehmet Gonullu

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we’re joined by Will Blackburn, co-founder of DevClarity, to explore how AI is transforming the management of developer teams. From his journey as a first-time CTO to building tools specifically for engineering leaders, Will shares invaluable insights into leveraging AI for productivity, managing software teams effectively, and navigating the future of development leadership.

“Developers are the most highly leveraged employees in organizations today, and AI is amplifying that leverage even further.” – Will Blackburn

What Listeners Will Learn:

• How AI tools like Copilot and Cursor are reshaping software development.

• Key skills engineering leaders need to acquire to thrive in the AI era.

• The role of context and structured workflows in achieving better AI-driven outputs.

• The future of software development and the increasing role of prompting in programming.

About DevClarity: DevClarity is a platform designed to help software development leaders better manage their teams by providing structure and insights for developer-specific management functions, from one-on-ones to team-wide skill assessment.

Website: https://devclarity.ai

About Will:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/willhblackburn/

Episode Highlights:

• [00:02:00] Will’s journey from developer to CTO and co-founder of DevClarity.

• [00:06:00] The inspiration behind DevClarity and the lack of tools for engineering leaders.

• [00:11:00] How AI is transforming productivity and creativity in software development.

• [00:24:00] The evolving role of engineering leaders in the AI era and new skills required.

• [00:30:00] Predictions on the future of software development with AI and prompting.

• [00:32:00] Will’s advice to CTOs and founders: “Lean into the tech and form strong opinions.”