How to Build Teams with a Human Touch

“Well, if I could answer briefly who I am… I’d say I’m an engineer. Like, just as a lifestyle. As a mindset, in general. I’ve been building things as an engineer - software engineer, but not only that until eventually I asked myself: how do I scale myself? How do I scale the impact I can bring? And this is how I became an engineering manager. That’s who I’ve been for the last four years. You stop building just products… and start building the people and environments that make those products possible.”

We’re speaking just after a big move in his life. He’s recently relocated to Spain and is about to start a new chapter as a Senior Engineering Manager at Factorial - a European HR tech company with a multicultural, remote team. He’s calm. Reflective. Not trying to impress. Just walking me through his journey.

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^{Becoming a manager (by curiosity, not ambition)}

A lot of engineers hesitate when it comes to leadership. Managing people can feel like stepping into a world that doesn’t follow logic. But Aleksandrs didn’t see it that way.

“Definitely, it was challenging,” he says, “but for me, it came from a natural desire. I was open to it.”

He tells me about trying out more technical growth paths, tech lead, architecture, and liking them. But what really shifted his path was becoming a father. “I got more interested in people. Human psychology. Let’s call it human engineering,” he smiles.

He realized that helping other engineers grow was a way of scaling himself. And for someone with a strong sense of curiosity, the learning curve of leadership was a challenge worth taking on.

At one point, Aleksandrs shared something that stopped me. “Before engineering, I studied at an Academy of Arts,” he said. “And later I learned that both artists and engineers use the same part of the brain.”

He sees engineering as a creative pursuit. Not just problem-solving, but meaning-making.

“That’s why office perks don’t motivate engineers. It’s not about pizza or ping pong tables. It’s about having the space to create something meaningful.”

This insight applies to everything about how he hires, leads, and builds culture. You’re not managing tasks, you’re working with people who think deeply and who care about purpose.

When I asked if he had a book recommendation for other leaders, Aleksandrs mentioned Radical Candor by Kim Scott, calling it a strong starting point for building trust and giving direct feedback with care. But then he added something unexpected. “Honestly, I’ve learned just as much from parenting books. They teach you how to create safe environments, guide growth, manage conflict… all things that apply to adults too.”

He smiled as he said it. 

“If you can work with a child in a meltdown, you can probably handle a hard one-on-one with a teammate.
It’s still human behavior. Just different vocabulary.”

^{The question that tells you who someone really is}

We talk about hiring, what makes a great candidate, what tells you someone will work well in a team. And Aleksandrs brings up one question he asks at the end of almost every interview.

“If I gave you a magic wand,” he says, “and you could change one thing about yourself, anything, what would it be?”

It always lands with a pause.

“It’s powerful because it’s open. And it tells me how a person reflects on themselves. Are they honest? Are they mature enough to admit weaknesses or areas for growth? Are they comfortable being vulnerable?”

He doesn’t ask it to trick anyone. He asks it to understand them.

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^{‍Culture fit isn’t about being the same}

The idea of “cultural fit” comes up next, and I ask how he evaluates it , especially when so many engineers are perfectly skilled, but might not get along well with the team.

“That second part you’re asking is really important,” he says. “You have to do some homework first, like, really understand what your company’s culture actually is. Because it can differ, and that’s okay.”
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Once you understand the values and collaboration style of the team, then you can create questions or scenarios that reflect those things. He often uses behavioral questions. But he also watches for something more: does this person bring something that could enrich the culture, not just fit into it?

“I’ve had people who were great technically, good people, but maybe their collaboration style didn’t match our team. Doesn’t mean they’re wrong. Just means they might be better somewhere else.”

He also makes a point to include others in the process.

“You shouldn’t rely only on your own judgment. I try to get teammates involved, to get different perspectives.
What one person misses, another might catch.”

^{Removing meetings and regaining energy}

I ask if there’s anything he’s done as a leader that noticeably improved performance.

“Removing meetings. Not completely, but challenging the need for them.”

He explains how meetings often interrupt deep focus, especially for engineers. “Nowadays it’s so easy to collaborate asynchronously. Shared docs. Comments. You don’t need to pull people out of their work every time you want input.”

This wasn’t just about productivity. He says the team’s mood improved. People were more engaged when they had control over their time and weren’t drained by back-to-back calls.

“I think engagement suffers when people feel stuck in meetings they don’t need. Async gives them space.”

^{Reconnecting when the team feels flat}

I ask if there was ever a moment when the team felt like it might fall apart. He pauses.

“Not like a crisis, maybe. But yeah, there were moments when I could feel something wasn’t working. Like the vibe was off. People didn’t feel like a team.”

In those moments, he steps back from the work itself.

“Sometimes you just have to pause. Reconnect. Go for a walk, do something not work-related. Even a silly game. Anything that reminds people they’re humans together, not just workers.”

He created monthly sharing sessions for engineers, not tied to the product or project. Just space to talk about whatever’s in their minds.

“Sometimes it’s a weekend story. Sometimes a tech topic. But it reminds people they belong to a group.”

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^{A shift in how he sees hiring}

When I ask about how his hiring philosophy has changed, he doesn’t hesitate.

“At first, I focused mostly on hard skills. What people know how to do. But over time, I’ve realized the soft skills, such as collaboration, ownership, communication, they matter more, especially long-term.”

He says he’s changed how he runs interviews, focusing more on real situations, potential, and maturity. He’s also quicker to make hiring decisions than many managers.

“Some companies keep roles open for months. Reject lots of candidates. But I think you have a probation period.
If you see potential, give someone a chance.”

He’s seen it work.

“Some of the best people I hired were the ones others were unsure about. I saw something in them and they delivered.”

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^{The leadership mistake that stayed with him}

I ask if there’s a moment in his leadership journey that really shaped him. He nods slowly.

“There was one. When I had just started as a manager. I joined a company-wide strategic initiative. And I disagreed strongly with the decision. I saw it was going to fail. I pushed back.”

And he was right — the decision did fail. But that wasn’t the real story.

“The problem was, I hadn’t built trust yet. No credibility. So my voice didn’t land. And instead of helping, I lost even more influence.”

That moment hit hard. He ended up working with a coach for a full year to better understand perception and influence.

“You can be right, but if people aren’t ready to hear you, it doesn’t matter.”

As we near the end of our talk, I ask one final question: what’s something you said to your team that had a positive impact?

“I try to always admit my own mistakes. To be honest about what I don’t know.”

He says that leadership isn’t about being the smartest person in the room. It’s about creating a space where people feel safe to fail and to learn.

“If I’m open, others feel safe to be open too. That’s how you build a team where people grow.”

Aleksandrs now works at Factorial as a Senior Engineering Manager. New country, new team, new culture, but the same mindset: engineer first, always learning, always building.

When asked who inspired his leadership style, he mentions a former teammate:

“He let us try, even when we were wrong. He held back when he could’ve stepped in. That built something in me I still carry.”

And maybe that’s the real takeaway from this conversation. That engineering and leadership aren’t opposites. They’re just different kinds of building. One focuses on systems. The other? People.

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