The Bowling Alley

One of my strongest beliefs as a leader is that I want to create an environment where everyone has the chance to excel. Over the years, the best way I’ve found to explain this is through the bowling alley analogy.

This is one of two analogies I’ve come to depend upon, the first was Icebergs.

Lessons from early mistakes

When I first started managing teams, I made a classic mistake: I built roles around individuals. At the time, it felt like the right thing to do. You have a strong performer, you shape the role to fit them perfectly, and it works brilliantly! Until one day they decide to move on…

The first time that happened, I was gutted. My plans suddenly fell apart, and instead of being happy for their career move, I was left trying to pick up the pieces. It taught me a painful but important lesson: building around people doesn’t scale.

In small teams, you sometimes don’t have a choice. You take risks, you stretch roles, and you make do. But if you want to build something sustainable, you need a different approach.

Why career frameworks matter

This is where career frameworks and job descriptions come in.

Done badly, they are dry HR documents that sit in a drawer. Done well, they are aspirational and clarifying. They show what is expected of each role, either as a target or a baseline, and they give people something to aim for.

Attrition happens. People will leave. That’s not a failure, it’s part of life. With a strong framework in place, you’re not thrown back to square one when someone hands in their notice. Instead, you have a defined lane to hire into, adapt, and tailor for the next person.

For new starters, a career framework isn’t just a checklist; it’s a guide to help them get up to speed, understand what good looks like, and start shaping their own growth path.

The bowling alley analogy

So how does this tie back to a bowling alley?

Think of the lane as the career framework. Everyone has their own style of bowling; some curve the ball with flair, some roll it straight down the middle, some throw with a bit of chaos but still knock the pins down.

The job of a leader, whether you’re a CTO, HoE, PE, or manager, is to set up the bumpers.

The bumpers stop people veering completely off track.
They provide support to those who are still learning, without making the game unwinnable for those already skilled.
The real art is in tailoring the bumpers so they meet someone where they are today, and then using 1:1s and personal development to evolve that support as their skills, confidence, and career progress.

The risks

There are two dangers with bumpers:

People can become dependent on them, never learning to bowl straight.
If they’re too intrusive, they get in the way of your strongest bowlers.

A good leader recognises both risks and knows how to balance them.

My philosophy

This is how I think about leadership. My role isn’t to bowl for people, or to micromanage every move. My role is to create the conditions where everyone can aim at the pins, try their best, and learn from the game.

Some will strike quickly. Others will take longer. My job is to make sure the environment is safe, the framework is clear, and the support is tuned to the right level so that everyone can grow and excel.

That’s what the bowling alley means to me. It’s not just a metaphor, it’s how I approach building teams, shaping roles, and helping people do their best work.

The Bowling Alley