Matt Nohr's README
Personal readme page for Matt Nohr, Engineering Manager, Code Creation, GitLab
Matt Nohr’s README
I’m an Engineering Manager at GitLab for the Code Creation team.
I’ve previously worked on these teams at GitLab:
- Create:Code Creation
- Ecosystem
- Create:Editor
- Create:Knowledge
- Monitor:APM and Monitor:Health
My Links:
Work Style
- I believe in the servant leadership model
- I tend to follow a mindset like: “If you are running, I’ll let you run. If you trip, I’ll be there to help you back up.”
- I have a Defender personality
- I prefer a bias towards action.
- I respond well to being asked for help (“Can you help with X?”). I don’t respond well to being told what to do (“Do X!”)
- I have worked for Fortune 100 companies and small startups. They each have advantages and disadvantages.
- I look for small, incremental deliveables and a willingness to work on any task.
- I prefer to automate repetitive tasks.
- I believe managers are not the only leaders.
Work Patterns
- I live and work in the Central Time Zone.
- Central Standard Time (UTC-6) in the winter
- Central Daylight Time (UTC-5) in the summer.
- I spend time with my family before school in the mornings and in the evenings, and I am typically not available during these times. I will sometimes break this rule, especially if I have advanced warning.
- Fridays are reserved for focused aschyrnous work, not meetings in alignment with GitLab’s Focus Fridays
- Even if I am working a bit on weekends, I never expect anyone else to work outside of regular work hours.
- I take vacations where I do my best to disconnect (or travel places where there is no access to internet).
Communication Preferences
- You can slack or email me at any time, but I likely will only respond during my working hours. My devices are on “do not disturb” mode overnight.
- I may slack or email you during non-working hours, but I do not expect a response until your next work day. I sometimes just need to write something down so I don’t forget.
- If you need a response in a certain time, please let me know. For example, “Can you review this before our meeting?” or “Can you let me know before the end of the day?”
- In GitLab, I only get notified of mentions of
@mnohr
Feedback
- I welcome feedback from everyone and I see it as a way for me to learn and improve.
- Please provide feedback to me, in private, and specifically indicate it is feedback. It will work best if you are clear and specific.
Book Recommendations
- Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us - Also watch this video overview
- Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders - This also has a corresponding video
- The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter
- Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration
There is also a good book list in our handbook if you are looking for more suggestions.
Personal
- I enjoy spending as much time as possible with my wife and 3 kids.
- I have a dog named Chaco.
- In the summer I like to be outside, hike, camp, and spend time on one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes.
- In the winter you can often find me on the ice curling.
We all do better when we all do better - Paul Wellstone
Last modified February 13, 2025: Update my very out-of-date README (
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