HR NEWS

Being a Lead at Behaviour: What you need to know

Behaviour has a couple of options for those who want to assume Lead responsibilities: A Team Lead or a Technical Lead. 

These two roles have much in common, from their deep impact on our production and high level of collaboration to their role as mentors for our team members.  

There are also a few fundamental differences between the two roles. To paraphrase Behaviour’s Executive Vice President & CTO, Stephen Mulrooney, our Team Leads answer two main questions: Who and When. Our Technical Leads answer the Why and How. 

TEAM LEAD 

Being a Team lead at Behaviour is a people-first role: you are no longer an individual contributor to the team but an orchestrator. It is about bringing out the best in people by exercising positive leadership and structuring your team’s schedule so everyone can achieve their main goals.

Who – as a Team Lead, you will be the one responsible for defining clear roles and responsibilities within the team. You will allocate tasks based on skills, preferences and other considerations. Last but definitely not least, you will be responsible for developing, supporting and motivating your team.

When – you will follow up on all topics related to your project (sprint planning, tasks progression, bug sorting when applicable). You will participate actively in building the production timeline. Two of the main challenges of the role will be to prioritize the tasks and to juggle the “live” management and the development of future milestones/updates. All in all, you will ensure the accurate planning and scoping on your project and its delivery on time and under the defined budget. 

For most disciplines, the Team Lead works closely with their (Associate) Producer* and the Leads from other disciplines to ensure a solid understanding of the production as a whole and what’s at stake. If there’s any human or technical issue involving your team, as Team Lead you will be the one to flag it and offer relevant solutions so there’s no negative impact on the release schedule. 

Finally, being a Team Lead also involves taking care of “HR duties”: handling 1:1s, helping your team members in their career growth and personal development, and managing their performance. It’s about always keeping the lines of communication open with your team and working with its individual members to achieve their long-term personal goals.

As to your own goals, Team Leads have a few different  opportunities for growth: either as a more experienced Team Lead or as Producer / Associate Producer (switching to a cross-discipline team role). 

TECHNICAL LEAD 

As a Subject Matter Expert (SME), a Technical Lead is the guardian of a project’s architecture and technical quality. In this role, you will make sure that the systems shipped meet our standards and are both performant and reliable. You will also be responsible for anticipating and managing the technological risk on a project. When there’s a technical challenge, the team will rely heavily on you to get to the bottom of it and propose the right solution. 

You will make sure that our processes and tools are optimal and are in constant evolution. Your role will also involve building tools and methodologies so we can work more efficiently and reduce the risk of each production.  

Communication and coordination are key. You will discuss with other disciplines to ensure proposed solutions answer their needs and specific constraints. In most disciplines, you’ll also be in constant touch with your Team Lead and (Associate) Producer* to plan milestones and keep them updated on a project’s technical progress. When we work with external clients, you will have to keep them in the loop about our choices, constraints and technological updates.

As to the Why and How Stephen Mulrooney mentioned earlier, here’s how they apply to the role of Tech Lead:

Why – our Technical Leads are always asking questions and analysing: why are we using those tools, technologies, platforms? Is this the best solution based on our needs? Is there an alternative option that has not been considered? They ask the right questions in their pursuit of the appropriate solution. 

How – after questioning the why, Technical Leads will make sure that we can meet the requirements and implement them correctly. They will work on the architecture and the documentation. They will share their knowledge and support the team in their most complex tasks. 

Our Technical Leads will usually grow into more experienced Technical Leads or take over Technical Director responsibilities.  

If those roles are of interest for you consult our jobs page. We are hiring! 

*please note that for some disciplines – data and community & player experience for example – you might interact with the Director in charge instead of a Producer and/or Associate Producer.