The cost of poor leadership in engineering

Studies shows that a high number of engineering graduates leave university with high academic achievements but lacking essential workplace skills such as leadership, teamwork and communication, which creates a challenge when it comes time to transition to management from technical roles.

Many employers believe that employees leave their jobs due to pay dissatisfaction or because they feel they are not cut out for the job. However, research shows that the lack of non-technical skills in management is one of the major causes and also contributes to one of the main issues for modern engineering businesses: that is, loss of engineering talent.

Gallup, the polling company, reports that around 75% of people have left jobs because of a problem with their manager or manager’s leadership style. And that’s not different in the engineering sector.

Potential costs of loosing engineering talent

1. 'Hard' costs
   Paying for recruitment agencies to replace staff, advertising jobs, funding training courses for new recruits
2. 'Soft' costs
   Time spent ‘onboarding’ new employees, time taken out interviewing candidates, organisational knowledge the leaver takes with them, loss of project continuity and more. 

Why people leave poor leaders

If you have ever had a bad line manager, you will appreciate just how demotivating that can be. A bad manager does not need to be a tyrant – if they’re disorganised, don’t know how to support you, or keep giving you work you don’t enjoy; it can make your working life very frustrating.

A bad leader can be a real drain on employees and make their lives difficult. Employees can become disillusioned with their work and, unsurprisingly, this pushes them to begin job hunting. 

Issues that employees often cite include:

• Problematic leadership styles such as micromanagement
• Lack of support which hinders their ability to reach potential
• Inability to motivative employees
• No opportunity for advancement
• Lack of recognition

Take the risks of poor leadership seriously

Poor leadership has a negative impact on companies in the engineering profession. Besides the costs of replacing staff, it’s also important to consider that unmotivated engineers will not give you their best work.

However, all is not lost as Blanchard Companies Research estimates that at least 9% and possibly as much as 32% of an organisation’s employee turnover can be avoided through better leadership skills. 

At the Institution, we focus on how the engineering industry can foster better leaders. Through understanding the many paths to leadership, we design and deliver training solutions to suit the development needs of individuals and organisations. 

To learn how we can help you and your organisation, visit imeche.org/goodleadership.