Domo's Champion Process

Life at Domo

Many people, and more specifically, many engineers, peer into the fishbowl that is Domo, and wonder what kind of crazy things go on here. Surely, there must be something in the water. 

When we talk about what life at Domo is like for the average Software Engineer, there are an array of things to consider. Many times people will focus on a handful of the really cool cultural norms and perks that exist in this amazing environment. The free meals and open kitchen are what certain layers of people want to talk about. Others are more interested in exploring the unknown world of stock options and vesting cycles. While others will more directly focus on the specific problems that we are trying to solve, and which machetes we are using to cut through the forest of unknowns that we face on a daily basis. And while each person who inquires will ask a different set of these questions, there are a smaller set of questions that almost all curious engineers will ask. A top that list is "What's it like to work with such a smart group of people? People like Merrick and the Geddes brothers [1][2][3]." And the one that never fails is "What is Josh James really like?". 

I have spent hours dishing out explanations to these, and loads of other questions about what engineering life is like at Domo. These are important and exciting questions, otherwise people wouldn't ask them. And the answers to the same are equally important and exciting. At the same time, there are other questions whose answers, IMO, will give you a more-real understanding of what life is like for a Domo Software Engineer. Here are some of the questions that I find myself asking as an engineer.

In the Domo environment, how is it possible to work with so many talented people, and not get completely lost in the crowd? How can you help and teach others when you are so busy learning from them, and being helped by them? How can you stand out and make a name for yourself, when everyone else is just so darned good?! It is a paradox that exists at Domo, and hasn't existed anywhere else I have ever worked. At Domo, I think that we have solved this problem.

The Champion Process

It's no lie when I say the group of folks I currently work with are the most capable people I've ever worked with. This can be a problem, however. To quote the famous line from the movie The Incredibles, "When everyone is special, no one will be". In a place where everyone is great, it is hard to lead out and make a difference that will affect the entire team, not just you. It can be hard to not "blend in". We needed a way to allow individuals to be great again, and to uses their excellence to improve life for all of us here. Our answer to this was the Champion Process. 

The Champion Process allows the team to decide as a group that certain changes need to be made to our tech stack or to our project. Anyone can submit an idea to the group. To submit an idea to the group, you go to our Github repo and create an issue and tag it as a Champion idea. Then people will comment on it and the idea can take on a more clear shape as the team grows the idea together. Once the idea is agreed upon (which can take a few minutes, or it can take a few weeks, depending on the size of your proposed change) the group will ask if anyone wants to be the champion for that change. Usually the person proposing the idea wants to be the champion, and will get preference. Once a champion is selected, the champion can run with their process and has the backing of the team, as well as our management. 

One of the beautiful parts of the Champion Process here is that anyone can be a champion. Let's me say it again: ANYONE CAN BE A CHAMPION. We have proven that. Part of the reason that the process was created was because we have a smattering of developers who are much less vocal than other of us, but who also have great (if not fantastic) ideas that should be implemented. Just because their voice isn't as loud as the next person's shouldn't prevent their ideas from being adopted by the group. We want, no, we need their ideas in order to be successful as a whole. Simply having them check code in daily is not enough. 

Since we began running the Champion Process, we have been able to accomplish so much more than we used to accomplish as a team. Having a team of individuals who are each leading disparate championships has made for an exciting environment. Not to mention that we have really learned a lot about each others' skills and abilities. The mutual respect of the group has soared even higher than it used to, which is saying something. 

Management is Onboard

One of the best leaders we have here is Paul Navasard (@peanav). Certainly he has made my time at Domo more enjoyable. Beyond being the most winningest Hack Night programmer ever, he has been pivotal in the Champion Process. Just like any other change we make, the Champion Process itself has a champion assigned to run it. That is Peanav. As the champion of the Champion Process, one of the most important things that he has done is to get management onboard with the process. If a change needs to be made that is part of the champion process, the directors and even the Sr. VP have committed their support to this process, and are invested in it's success.

When you combine the passion of a Software Engineer with the syndication of our management, I am not sure if there is anything that we can't do. 

Conclusion

We are very far from perfection here at Domo. Rarely do we end up working in the direction that we started out towards. Rarely do we end up taking the steps we set out to, instead of constantly correcting course. With as much as we are biting off, sometimes it's great to simply see some progress at the end of an iteration. 

If you are someone who wants to have meaningful impacts on a team of powerful engineers, you should be here with us. In complete sobriety I can say: we need you too.