While working on engineering projects, I was often frustrated by the fact that many great engineers didn’t want to become leads or engineering managers. This stuck me as a bit odd since they have great people skills and are well regarded by their peers. What stops a engineers from wanting to become a leader?
1. People Problems Are Not Engineering Problems
The skillset of a great technical manager and a great engineer are quite different. Most great engineers need skills to solve problems in a specific domain and get immediate feedback that they either are correct or are not. Great people managers solve ambiguous people problems that rarely have a clear correct or incorrect answer. It’s a long game of keeping the ship pointed in the right direction with shifting winds pushing the sail.
Take a look at the 10 qualities of each below to understand how little overlap there is.
10 Qualities of a Great Manager
- A great coach for team members
- Empower the team while not micromanaging
- Creates an Inclusive Team Environment, Showing Concern for Success and Well-Being
- Productive and Results Oriented
- Is a Good Communicator by Listening and Sharing
- Support Career Development and Discuss Performance
- Set a clear vision and strategy for the team
- Provide key technical skills to advise the team
- Collaborate across the entire organization
- A strong decision maker
10 Qualities of a Great Engineer
- Natural Curiosity
- Logical Thinking and Reasoning
- Communication Skills
- Attention to Detail
- Creative and Innovative
- Team Player
- Good Math Skills
- Problem Solving Skills
- Technical Knowledge
- Constantly Learning New Skills
2. Managers Work With Relationships, Not Politics
Management is relationship problems, engineering is technical problems.
These are clearly different skills and some engineers would think that it’s all about politics and wrangling people to ensure you can win, or that you crush that other team so you can win.
None of that could be farther from the truth. Being a great manager is all about RELATIONSHIPS by nurturing and growing them. One of the most common mistakes that people assume is that politics are a game. I win, you lose. Politics are really about relationships. Having many high quality relationships with your team, your company, and people you depend on is just good common sense.
Most engineers don’t want to deal with this because relationships are not well defined problems that can be easily solved. They require constant maintenance and are necessary to get anything done.
3. Solving Real Technical Issues Is Less than 30% Of Your Day
Many friends of mine tried out engineering management for a few months and realized that it wasn’t for them. They spent less than 30% of their day solving real technical issues and more time in meetings, 1:1’s, and felt like all they were doing was reporting status. They felt like their career prospects narrowed significantly and felt miserable.
I also know of some people that became managers and loved the role. They were able to have a real impact on the project and the org by growing members on the team, solving really complicated problems and ensuring that the project was a success by bulldozing through obstacles for the team. They still got to write code on the side, but it was limited to small sections that were not blockers for the rest of the team.