Tech Lead - a Key Role in Every IT Project. What Is Their Mission?

For an IT project to run as efficiently as possible, the development team needs a kind of superhero who can appear out of nowhere to solve a technical puzzle, set a course of action, oversee the architecture, and offer advice. We mean here a tech lead who plays a vital role in the project, standing out with their knowledge and managing skills. Let's take a look at who exactly this specialist is, what skills they should have, and how they act at Droptica. 

What is a tech lead?

A technical lead, commonly called a tech lead, combines technical expertise with good communication and management skills. It’s a significant mixture considering that this person – as the name suggests – is responsible for leading the work on IT projects and mentoring the team.  

As the Droptica tech leads say, such a person should primarily have the most knowledge of all team members. A specialist with years of experience is expected to support others and perform some actions – e.g., set the project's direction, visualize the entire architecture, ensure the code quality, take care of web development safety, and help developers find technical errors and solutions to problems. 

Source: geeksforgeeks.org

Contrary to appearances, however, this doesn't mean the tech lead is omniscient. They can’t know the answer to every question about the project because they aren’t always involved in the smallest detail. Instead, they have insight into the overall work course and offer technological know-how. 

The tech lead usually comes up through the ranks, starting as a programmer or trainee. This is valuable because they have shared the fate of their teammates, know the standards and procedures from their own experience, and can look at the tasks from various perspectives.

What is the role of tech lead in IT projects?

A tech lead is essential in a development team. Together with a good project manager, they organize work in the software division, but the first specialist focuses more on technical aspects. Depending on the project, they cooperate with developers, QA testers, and product designers. Let’s take a closer look at the roles and responsibilities of a tech lead. 

Setting the technical direction for the project 

From the very beginning of the project, the tech lead is present alongside the PM. The project manager is in the foreground at client meetings, plans the overall work and monitors general progress. The tech lead, in turn, prepares the team technically, performs estimations, and answers specialized questions (e.g., How can we solve problem X? or How long can it take to work on task Y?). 

The tech lead is aware of the project’s key features, requirements, and used technologies. Early in their work with the client, they review the code, analyze potential risks, write recommendations on what needs to be done, and create technical documentation for the project that serves the team throughout the process.

The TL also checks the scope of required hours for the project and ensures that all necessary development tasks are included. At Droptica, we use Jira for IT project management. This system enables us and our clients to oversee what is happening within the project, divided into specific tasks and performed in defined periods (sprints). And it’s the tech lead who participates in sprint planning with the project manager.

Source: Jira.com 

Organizing tasks for specialists 

As a technically oriented person, the tech lead is responsible for organizing team tasks. In order to plan it accordingly, they first conduct the project analysis, determine what activities need to be performed, and select the technologies, languages, and frameworks to use.

Based on this knowledge, the tech lead assesses who should be involved in the project and to what extent. They break down the tasks for the team and add tips on how to approach a problem. However, at our company, it's common for a tech lead to allow developers to plan their own work. The leader simply prepares the task outline to address the problem and align operations with the product architecture, and the programmer creates their own agenda.

The same goes for task execution. For specialists to grow, they need to perform various activities, so a good tech lead delegates essential activities – e.g., deployment and code review. At Droptica, we strive to ensure that everyone achieves their tasks from start to finish. If they begin writing code for a particular functionality, they will also implement the changes on the client's website. 

The TL can verify the process and provide advice at any time. They also coordinate the execution of tasks in Jira and change their statuses regularly. Together with the other technical members of the web development team, they determine the time to work on given activities and the capacity of individual specialists. 

Technical support for the team

The tech lead acts as a guiding light for their less experienced colleagues, helping them navigate through technical challenges and find innovative solutions.

They make sure the team follows good coding standards. Their deep understanding of programming best practices allows them to point their teammates to relevant documentation and resources quickly. By doing so, they empower developers to write clean and maintainable code, reducing technological debt and enhancing the efficiency of the development process.

The tech lead also takes care of keeping the technical project’s integrity. They ensure that the team attaches to established procedures and follows the determined direction. By monitoring the project's technical aspects, they make certain that all modifications align with the overall architecture.

Ensuring software quality and system security is another critical aspect of the tech lead's responsibilities. They conduct thorough code reviews, examining the codebase for vulnerabilities or potential issues. This detailed review process helps identify areas that need improvement, enhancing the overall stability and security of the system. By providing constructive feedback and guidance, the tech lead fosters a culture of continuous learning and improvement within the team.

It’s also worth noting that a tech lead is still a developer actively programming. As a result, they don't fall out of the loop and always have up-to-date knowledge of changing technologies. For example, the TL working with Drupal modules at our agency can quickly assess whether the requested functionality is covered by contributed modules or requires custom code. 

Client consulting and communication

Throughout the project, the tech lead can keep in touch with the client to consult on technical topics that arise during the work or discuss some critical changes which need to be deployed. They also very often step in when problems occur or the team discovers bugs in the application they’re working on. 

As an experienced developer, the tech lead​ is not only great at dealing with problems or ad hoc topics. They bridge the communication gap with non-technical people and find the best way to explain to them some confusing matters. This professional shares technical expertise with business partners, provide advice while building or developing a website, and educate and suggest optimal solutions. In this way, they participate in building long-term relationships with clients. 

Our company's tech leads value team spirit, so they often encourage other team members to take necessary actions independently. This is precisely what happens with client communication. Developers can often consult directly with the client about issues they are working on, but of course, the TL is always on guard nearby.

Taking care of teamwork

Effective communication is also crucial within the team. Since the tech lead is the first go-to person for colleagues, they must ensure a good flow of information. At Droptica, our specialists have defined special rules for the development unit to make everyone's work better and more efficient.  

Tech leads make sure that every member of the team:

• formulates the questions with attention to every detail so that it’s easier to convey all possible information, 
• raises threads on a shared channel on Slack, rather than in private messages, so that each person involved in the project sees the question and the answer and can expand their knowledge,
• discusses topics in specific time slots so as not to disturb others from concentrating on the tasks. 

This approach makes all the professionals working on the project feel like they are striving for the same goal and are equal partners in the conversation.

What is a tech lead - summary

The tech lead's expertise and guidance significantly contribute to the success of the development department. Their technical support ensures the team operates smoothly, enabling each member to reach their full potential and deliver high-quality software solutions. 

By combining their know-how with leadership skills, the tech lead becomes an invaluable asset, driving innovation within the team. If you need such a person and other experienced professionals in your project, our team of Drupal developers will help you achieve your business goals.