81: The Culture Playbook for High-Performing Engineering Teams — with CTO Pasha Jam
Tue Feb 03 2026
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact.
What if the strongest part of your engineering organization isn’t your tech stack, but the culture you protect every day?
In this episode, I’m joined by CTO Pasha Jam, who has grown an engineering team from three people to 110, expanded internationally, and navigated company acquisitions while keeping culture a central focus. We define what a healthy engineering culture looks like, and why it consistently outperforms strategy and process.
Culture became a priority after working in environments that were difficult to enjoy, even when the products and compensation were strong. Psychological safety is explored through the lens of engineering teams, including the ability to ask questions, raise risks, challenge decisions, and fail without fear.
Culture’s impact on hiring, onboarding, and communication across teams in multiple countries is explored, along with why people who leave often say they miss the culture and sometimes choose to return.
If you’re responsible for engineering teams and want to think more intentionally about culture, leadership, and long-term team health, this episode offers practical perspective grounded in lived experience.
You’ll Learn:
[00:00] Introduction
[05:18] Why job dissatisfaction often traces back to culture instead of pay or products
[06:42] What psychological safety looks like when engineers challenge decisions without fear
[11:07] How empowerment leads teams to take ownership without being pushed
[24:21] Why fixing incidents together matters more than assigning blame
[28:36] How putting people before process changes commitment and delivery
[30:14] Why micromanagement quietly erodes trust and culture
[33:09] What it looks like when leaders carry culture forward without seeking credit
[35:27] Why culture must evolve as teams scale and contexts change
Resources Mentioned:
Agile Manifesto | Website
Need car repairs but not the upfront cash? If you're in the UK, get approved in seconds and pay interest‑free over time, apply with Bumper today and stay on the road.
You can connect with Pasha Jam on his Linkedin
Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company here.
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Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. What if the strongest part of your engineering organization isn’t your tech stack, but the culture you protect every day? In this episode, I’m joined by CTO Pasha Jam, who has grown an engineering team from three people to 110, expanded internationally, and navigated company acquisitions while keeping culture a central focus. We define what a healthy engineering culture looks like, and why it consistently outperforms strategy and process. Culture became a priority after working in environments that were difficult to enjoy, even when the products and compensation were strong. Psychological safety is explored through the lens of engineering teams, including the ability to ask questions, raise risks, challenge decisions, and fail without fear. Culture’s impact on hiring, onboarding, and communication across teams in multiple countries is explored, along with why people who leave often say they miss the culture and sometimes choose to return. If you’re responsible for engineering teams and want to think more intentionally about culture, leadership, and long-term team health, this episode offers practical perspective grounded in lived experience. You’ll Learn: [00:00] Introduction [05:18] Why job dissatisfaction often traces back to culture instead of pay or products [06:42] What psychological safety looks like when engineers challenge decisions without fear [11:07] How empowerment leads teams to take ownership without being pushed [24:21] Why fixing incidents together matters more than assigning blame [28:36] How putting people before process changes commitment and delivery [30:14] Why micromanagement quietly erodes trust and culture [33:09] What it looks like when leaders carry culture forward without seeking credit [35:27] Why culture must evolve as teams scale and contexts change Resources Mentioned: Agile Manifesto | Website Need car repairs but not the upfront cash? If you're in the UK, get approved in seconds and pay interest‑free over time, apply with Bumper today and stay on the road. You can connect with Pasha Jam on his Linkedin Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company here.