What should be the responsibilities of an Engineering Manager to those reporting to him? 15

[Careful]

What do you feel the responsibilities and duties of an engineering manager should be to the people reporting to him, and to the company he works for, for that matter? It seem there are lots of people in engineering management who aren't engineers. How do you know if the people you manage are doing a good job and following best practices, never mind offer direction, if you know nothing about what they do? They can explain it to you, but you don't know if that's the right or best way to do it.

Edited to add: Conversely, how would the manager know when his workers are overload, or have unrealistic project time frames?

 

[MotorCity]

I think it is imperative that the engineering manager has experience w/ the tasks at hand before he/she can manage others who perform those tasks. He/she gains experience as they work their way up through the ranks and sees the difficulties that can arise and what questions to ask along the way. There is a higher standard expected from managers, that's why they are in the position they are in, because they are more of an expert at the subject that those they manage. To further the sports analogy, some managers start their career on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple.

 

[geesamand]

some managers start their career on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple.

Agree that this is a major problem.

I think it is imperative that the engineering manager has experience w/ the tasks at hand before he/she can manage others who perform those tasks.

I believe this is unrealistic. It's a helpful trait, and in technical situations, very important, but not the answer to the problem above.

Bigger picture, the sports analogy is perfect because not all former players fit in with a new role. Yet in business, some people expect to be promoted upward when the position above them opens up. In a high performing organization, the reality is that the personality, skills, and experience must match the position. Executives must be willing to compete, innovate, and develop new opportunities, and it must be in their blood. Middle managers must gravitate toward handling their people, building seamless processes within their team and among the other teams. "Do'ers" such as Engineers must naturally focus on the task of Engineering. These people must speak each others language on some level to convey what their perspective means to the organization. If you're wondering where you fit in, consider the work matters that roll through your mind in the car or in the shower. This is an indication.

On a related note, there are countless small technical companies run by Engineers or machinists who grew up in the business. These are the companies that just continue to exist without growth or realignment until the market dies and they go with it. A company that doesn't want to die at the hands of inevitable market change has to see past the value of their one or two technical solutions and look to find new ways to help their customers. Great companies collect customers, not technical solutions.

The answer, for me, about the know-it-all manager is to remove them. Organizations with 360 reviews for example help expose this problem. A key person quitting and giving the reason as their manager, helps expose this problem. Whether the company then takes the necessary steps is a test of the company culture. Those topics are bigger than this thread.