Articles
Management is as much a profession as engineering is. Excelling in a management or leadership position requires skills that have to be learnt and kept current.
There’s a perception that people are born to be managers and leaders, that these skills are innate. It’s not true. There are fundamentals that anyone can learn – techniques that can be applied to motivate people.
Some elements of management training can be done as you move up, but ideally this training should be done at the start of any career progression, so you can learn and put things into practice at the same time. The best employers will have management progression programmes that seek to continuously improve management skills.
Engineers already possess analytical and logic skills that are useful in managing projects. But the delivery of projects will be less about your project management skills, and more about how you get the best out of your team – about your leadership skills. Project management skills have to go hand-in-hand with motivating and deploying people in the right way. It’s not just about man-hours and schedules – it’s also about setting clear objectives, inspiring people and getting the best out of them.
Unfortunately, management skills are in a bad way in the UK. A recent survey by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) showed that 43% of line managers rate their own manager as ‘ineffective’. At the CMI, we believe this is because too many managers have had no training and development to support them.
Communication is fundamental. A more consensual, open and democratic style of management results in more growth and success for a business. Being directive, commanding and controlling doesn’t inspire people.
If you think you are a bad manager, have an honest conversation with those you manage about your performance, making clear it’s part of your development. Make sure you are open to feedback. Talk to your manager.
When considering your own management effectiveness, consider three simple questions. Ask yourself: “What should they start doing? What should they stop doing? What should they continue doing?” It’s a great exercise, because it brings out the positives as well as the negatives.
For more information, visit: www.managers.org.uk/engineers