[nonrandomstring]

Going from SE toward SEM I'd suggest you get into s/w metrics. Nothing is better for decision making and advancing good arguments at meetings than being able to give numbers.

- Fenton: Software Metrics

Obviously there's a ton of pop management stuff. A few of my favourites:

- Horowtz: The Hard Thing About Hard Things

- Pink: Drive

- Evans: The Trousers of Reality

- Gall: General Systemantics

[SkyPuncher]

> Nothing is better for decision making and advancing good arguments at meetings than being able to give numbers.

I strongly disagree with this.

While there is a fact/data side to being a manager, the key skill is understanding the human/soft side of it.

[jdlshore]

Strong disagree. Metrics-based management leads to so much dysfunction. Read Robert Austin’s Measuring and Managing Performance in Organizations for the details, but the short version is that metrics distract people from things that are important but non-measurable.

[aprdm]

I haven't found s/w metrics to be useful.