In the fast-paced world of technology, continuous learning is crucial but finding the time and motivation to delve into technical books can be challenging. That's why I have been leading a tech book club at Comply Advantage for the last 2 years, and the benefits have been far greater than I initially imagined – not just for the participants, but for my development as well.

This article will outline my approach to leading a book club, including tips for selecting books, scheduling meetings, facilitating discussions, and keeping members engaged. I'll also highlight some of the advantages a book club can offer to both participants and organizers.

More Than Just Reading: Fostering Growth and Deeper Understanding

A tech book club is more than just a casual discussion about a book, it offers a great framework for shared learning and discussion. Here’s why it works:

  • Sustainable pace and deeper dive: Technical material can be dense. A book club helps tackle complex topics at a manageable pace. Regular discussions encourage consistent reading and lead to a deeper understanding. Different viewpoints shared during discussions can spark new insights I wouldn’t have reached on my own.  Hearing different perspectives and interpretations truly enhances understanding.
  • Developing valuable soft skills: Beyond the technical knowledge, the book club has unexpectedly helped me hone valuable soft skills. Organising meetings, creating agendas, facilitating discussions, and summarising key takeaways in reports – these are all skills I’ve been actively developing through running the club. It's a practical application of project management and communication skills, which are essential for any developer.
  • Connecting across departments: One of the most rewarding aspects has been connecting with colleagues from other departments. These are people I likely wouldn’t interact with regularly in my day-to-day work. Hearing their perspectives on how technology impacts their side of the business provides invaluable context and fosters a greater sense of shared purpose within the company. It's truly eye-opening to understand how different parts of the organisation function and how we can all work together more effectively.
  • Tangible Learning: From Theory to Practice: Our book club has covered a wide range of topics, providing valuable insights into various aspects of software development. For example, reading Martin Kleppmann's "Designing Data-Intensive Applications" gave us a much deeper understanding of distributed systems, allowing us to critically evaluate their benefits and drawbacks in different contexts. We explored coding best practices and strategies with classics like Martin Fowler's "Refactoring," David Farley's "Modern Software Engineering," and Kent Beck's "Tidy First?," leading to insightful discussions about code quality and development workflows. We also delved into the world of Domain-Driven Design (DDD) with Vaughn Vernon's "Implementing Domain-Driven Design," gaining valuable tools for tackling complex business domains. John Ousterhout's "A Philosophy of Software Design" provided thought-provoking concepts for creating maintainable and understandable codebases. Finally, Mariana Bellotti's “Kill it with fire” has given us strategies to deal with legacy applications, a common challenge in our industry.

Keeping the Momentum: Our Meeting Format

One of the biggest challenges with any long-term group activity is maintaining consistent engagement. Let's be honest, it's not always easy to keep everyone involved for the entire duration of a book. Life happens, priorities shift, and sometimes, a particular book just doesn't resonate with everyone. We've experimented with a few different approaches to maximise participation and found a format that works well for our group.

  • Finding the Right Cadence: We've tried various meeting frequencies – every three weeks, every two weeks, and weekly. What we found the most effective is meeting weekly for an hour and committing to a manageable chunk of reading, usually around 30 pages. This frequent interaction keeps the material fresh in everyone's minds and maintains momentum.
  • Selecting Our Next Read: To keep our book club engaging and relevant, we maintain an open and democratic process for selecting our books. At any time, anyone can suggest a book on our tech book club Confluence page. When it's time to choose our next read, I create a Slack poll where all employees can vote for their favorite among the suggested titles (or even propose a new one). In the event of a tie, we give a slight advantage to the preferences of our regular book club members, ensuring that their consistent engagement and commitment are recognized.
  • Lean Coffee Approach [1]: Our meetings follow a consistent format inspired by the Lean Coffee methodology. At the beginning of each session, participants write down the topics they'd like to discuss on sticky notes. We then group similar topics, vote on our favorites, and discuss them in order of priority. This approach puts the participants in charge of the agenda, ensuring the discussions are relevant and engaging. While we sometimes struggle with strict timekeeping (a key component of the Lean Coffee method), the overall framework has been invaluable in keeping our meetings focused and productive. The benefit of this approach is that the participants feel more invested in the discussion because they choose the topics.

Personal Growth: A Surprising Benefit

I've discovered that leading the book club has been a fantastic opportunity for my professional development in several unexpected ways. Discussing the book with others forces me to articulate my understanding, identify gaps in my knowledge, and consider alternative viewpoints. This process strengthens my own grasp of the material and sharpens my mind. It's surprising how often the concepts we discuss in the book club resurface in my daily work. I've found myself naturally quoting these authors and referencing their ideas during refinement sessions, design discussions, and even while coding, which highlights the practical application of our learning.

Beyond technical skills, the book club has become a valuable training ground for developing my leadership and mentoring abilities. Facilitating discussions, guiding conversations towards key learning points, and ensuring everyone feels comfortable contributing are all crucial aspects of effective leadership. By creating a supportive and collaborative environment, I’m not only helping others learn but also honing my ability to guide and mentor. Furthermore, the book club has significantly broadened my professional network within the company. Connecting with colleagues from diverse teams, tribes, and departments has created valuable relationships that extend beyond the book club itself. This expanded network provides new avenues for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and career growth.

Join the Movement?

If you're thinking about starting a tech book club, I urge you to take the leap. If your company already embraces initiatives like this, you're in a great position to get started. If there's some hesitation, I hope this post has provided you with compelling arguments to showcase the long-term value of a tech book club – not just for individual employees but for the entire organisation. The potential for growth, connection, and innovation is immense.

[1]: More about lean coffee: https://agilecoffee.com/leancoffee/