Share
The Secret Engineer
Our anonymous blogger casts his (or her) eye over the day-to-day issues that face engineers in the office and on the shop floor, where she (or he) plies his (or her) trade
Do engineers make good managers?
I remember an occasion, some years ago, when we had to prepare for some important visitors. Everyone had been busy cleaning, painting and tidying up for weeks. The visit was now imminent and there was a final push to make sure everything would be perfect. The Manufacturing Director decided to visit the shop-floor. This was quite a rare event. He wandered about, wiping his finger over surfaces and looking for something amiss. Oddly, he was carrying an apple. After a while he spotted a labourer sweeping up. He marched over to him and said, “Well done, that looks very good.” He then presented him with the apple, turned on his heels and marched back to his office. The labourer was left dumbfounded with the apple, and the rest of us wondered what planet the Director was on.
On another occasion, more recently, a manager asked me to pick him up after he had left his car for a service. I told him I didn’t know where to go, so he instructed me to follow him. He then drove off at speed. I leapt into a pool car and did my best to keep up with him. Not only did he seem to have no consideration for the fact that I was trying to follow him, but through multiple round-abouts and junctions he never indicated once. This seemed to be a perfect metaphor for his management style. No indication of future direction and a lack of consideration for those he was leading.
Now I had a great deal of respect for both of those individuals as engineers, and at face value engineers should make good managers. Usually analytical, good at managing risk, innovative and excellent with figures, engineers possess many attributes required of a manager. So why do so many engineers, like my two examples, seem to struggle?
In my experience, successful managers are good with people. They are usually approachable and get the best out of individuals and teams by being good at listening, giving clear direction and praising good results. They need to be firm but fair and they need to make clear decisions in a timely manner.
Some of these attributes don’t seem to come naturally to engineers, but I think if an engineer can develop good communication skills and the ability to make timely decisions, rather than waiting for additional information, then they can make excellent managers.
View results 10 per page | 20 per page | 50 per page
Readers' comments (28)
Neil Lewin | 17 Apr 2012 10:53 am
I would say that your experiences are not uncommon. But why do we expect that engineers should be good managers?
A passion for providing solutions can be enough to inspire some engineers to start up their own business but this passion is often soon extinguished by the pain of having to cope with dealing with people and the issues that they bring to the task.
Their own drive and ability to understand problems quickly and resolve them is more of a hindrance when they dont perceive the same speed of response from their employees – 'how many times do I need to explain it to them' is a question they frequently ask themselves.
We are also our own worst enemy. How many of us simply nod in agreement or tell them exactly what they want to hear so we can get on with our day?
But I feel that management is a skill and as such can be learnt and the key is communication. This starts with knowing our own strengths and weaknesses, ensuring we know our teams in the same way and then managing the differences.
In my experience the difference between managers and really good managers is Leadership.
Leadership to me is a manager who takes the time to explain why, someone I can trust and who sets strong standards and who enables me to grow in my role.
There has been a great deal of research done on how strong leaders impact on their teams, driving down absence, improving output and securing key skills/people within an organisation – all very important in todays market.
There is a great white paper discussing this topic further and which also features a quick self assessment tool to check if you are a manager or a leader – drop that on your managers desk!!
http://www.festo-didactic.co.uk/gb-en/thought-leadership/white-papers/?fbid=Z2IuZW4uNTUwLjE3LjEwLjU2OTMuMzM0NQ
artcile is at the bottom of the page.
Hope you find it interesting.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
mark smith | 17 Apr 2012 1:21 pm
In my experience, it tends to be the not so good engineers that take on management rolls when they realize their engineering skills don't shine above their colleagues.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
CMG | 17 Apr 2012 1:22 pm
Only speaking from personal experiences the quality of a manager is not inherently based on the education & training they’ve quite often it’s due to their personal experiences & background that makes a manager good at being manager. A good engineer may or may not make a good manager but then not all managers are good managers.
Some managers are just not as good at some aspects of the job however they may be exceptional at other aspects of the job.
I have had a 22 year career in the engineering industry, some of the best managers I have had the good fortune to work under have been engineers.
The main point to my comment if that you cannot tar every manager with the same brush.
For example:
Would a manager from a supermarket be able to manage an engineering firm or would an engineer who has worked in the firm and knows the business inside out be better at the job???
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 17 Apr 2012 5:48 pm
Remember, without Engineers you usually have nothing to manage.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Galathumpian | 17 Apr 2012 8:22 pm
Only engineers can make good managers in the manufacturing industries. Japanese companies are good examples of this.
Amateur, non-engineer managers are simply unable to understand and grasp what is important. I have observed this throughout the World; Japan in particular. I have worked with major successful Japanese companies who would never entertain anything else..
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Martyn Wilson | 18 Apr 2012 4:31 pm
I've worked with and for a range of businesses, and in my experience some engineers make good managers, some engineers make bad managers. But you could say the same about any other discipline - marketing, accountancy, HR, sales and so on.
Managers need training in management, and in particular need to be honest enough to get advice from specialists whose skill set and knowledge is different from, and greater than, their own. And that is something which some managers are very bad at.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 20 Apr 2012 2:08 pm
This is a pointless question. There are so many variables and scenarios that it's impossible to conclude anything. It would be better to ascertain the personality traits that 'good' managers should have and then ask whether or not engineers 'generally' possess these.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 20 Apr 2012 2:41 pm
I agree with Anonymous who says: 'This is a pointless question.' I don't think the engineering profession has a monopoly on bad managers. Try publishing!
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 21 Apr 2012 11:39 am
We need to look at it from the very basic,
Engineers ..while they are studying to become an engineer have to learn a lot of things ...the time is short and there is a lot to be done and discovered during the schooling period... it somewhat makes them a recluse ( not all) but majority would agree,the minds and brains are oriented towards finding solutions and answers..... and duing such a time people are just specimen of the same species....and they exists...where as rational thinking and learning the laws of the nature and putting it to use of the Entire mankind (not just immediate team or immediate comapany) becomes the driving force for them.
The people management aspects relates to more of managing their expectations their needs and their wants...and at the same time administering them as well... this calls for more long term engagement with friends, relatives,football team , college mates and all the people around ....But this DOES NOT necessarily say that a person who whiles his /her time with friends and buddies becomes a good people person.
Moreover when an engineer becomes a Manager he/she needs to balance between the delivery management and people management both aspects of the job and it is no surprise that he/she might put his/her head in technical aspect since that is what comes more naturally .... should 10 engineers makes a team then they too would be engrossed in finding solutions which has more Wider audience then the immediate team.... The people person on the other hand would not delve into technical aspect leading to disastorous outputs ...since they are busy pleasing a motley group of immediate higher bosses or sub-ordinates....
Hence one must understand that an Engineers job is not to please or take care of the immediate bosses or peers but have a Higher purpose which affects Millions. And look around there a thousands of examples where an engineer's exemplery work affects all...since from phones to computers to bridges and dams.... Had they been possible if a person would have focussed and pleased and listened to the team, bosses or subordinates... Think !!! and Chill before making one sided decision.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Viswanathan | 24 Apr 2012 6:01 am
In my opinion, Engineers can become good managers provided they take pains to learn about certain management skills. Whether the field of Engineering or the field of Management managing people skill is the best trait one can possess to get things done.
In Indian Administartive service (IAS) many Engineers enter and as far as I know they are successful because of their analytical skills gained during their engineering studies and management training during their one year orientation program.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment