Who
are Engineers? The term is derived from the Latin root
"ingenium," meaning "cleverness". Technically, Engineers work
to develop economic and safe solutions to practical problems, by
applying mathematics, scientific knowledge and ingenuity
while considering technical constraints. More simply, Engineers are people
who make things work. The work and ideas of engineers make achievements
possible. They put power and materials to work.
Who
are Managers? Managers are the individual who are responsible for coordinating
and integrating activities of other people in the Organization. The classic
definition of manager is “Leaders do the right thing and managers do things
right”. Manager work to archive the organization goals by using limited resources
such as people, money etc in an efficient and effective way.
Let’s begin the discussion with a small story. There
were two brothers John and Smith. John, the elder one is a successful business
man, B.com (Honors), M.B.A. from a reputed university. Smith, the younger one
is a student in a reputed management college had done Engineering in Computer
Science. Smith during his winter vacation went home. One day he went to his
brother’s shop and found his elder brother bargaining for repairing his laptop
with the service man. The service man asked his elder brother a sum of INR
20000. But somehow, his elder brother using his management skills bargained
with the service man and they both agreed on a sum of INR 12000. His brother
was very happy and proudly described Smith how he used his management skills and
saved his INR 8000. Smith, who is an Engineer asked about the problems which his
brother faced in his Laptop. He found the problems were not as big as his
brother was charged. He then went to the service center and that service man
now found someone who has good technical knowledge. The service man realized
that now he cannot make fool of Smith like his elder brother. So, he apologized
and charged him INR 2000 for his elder bother’s laptop. Smith returned to his
brother’s shop and described how he used his technical skills and how he saved
his brother’s INR 6000 (Instead of INR 10000). He kept INR 4000 by himself that
proved his management skills too. So, who proved to be a good manager?
The
world today needs creative leadership and technological entrepreneurship. So
why do so many companies still believe that effective, science-minded engineers
invariably will fail as good managers?
"Most
engineers become managers in their careers, and typically they are unprepared
for the transition," According to a paper that appeared in Engineering
Management Journal in 2002.
Why,
after all these years, is this view so widely held? Especially in large
corporations?
Perhaps
this view flows from an assumption that engineers prefer working with things
(materials) and the laws of physics rather than managing people with their
complex mix of emotions, passions, habits and some logic. Those who hold this
perspective may not realize that many engineers enter the profession to help
people meet their basic needs for lodging, food preparation, mobility,
communication and health. Architectural engineers, food-processing engineers,
transportation engineers, biomedical engineers and many others simply wanted to
solve human problems technologically.
Engineers
can be good managers as long as they are willing to continue enhancing their
skill-set beyond academic study. On the job, an engineer can develop "a
broad understanding and a clear vision of various administrative, financial,
and psychological issues," regardless that some people feel an engineering
education hinders such learning.
"Understanding
how to recognize and evaluate market opportunities has become crucial," There
are management skills in which engineers must excel, including:
- Ability
to deal with uncertainty and ambiguity;
- Possessing
effective lateral (functional) thinking and vertical (in-depth) thinking;
- Maintaining
a team player's attitude;
- Explaining
and persuading;
- Thinking
internationally;
- Flexibility;
- Taking
reasonable risks and responsibilities;
- Possessing
knowledge of foreign values, attitudes and customers;
- Communicating
well orally and graphically;
- Using
various types of software and hardware; and
- Having
a quick grasp of new approaches and ideas.
Perhaps
most important, however, is passion and the ability to lead.
Let's
start with leadership, because "leadership is moving beyond management,"
as the Amity International Business School (AIBS) puts it.
The
real challenge was getting people aligned, getting them to function at the
highest possible level and getting them to identify with the strategy we were
following.
Ou
Shian Waei, former managing director of IBM Malaysia, recently told The
Edge Daily:
“You need
to know where the company's and even the staff's weaknesses are — you can't be
shy and defensive about that. It needs to be properly conveyed to the staff.
You can then identify your strengths and preserve as well as build them at the
same time. It's all about trust, which eventually leads to the formation of
passion. With passion, opportunities could be found whenever a problem occurs”.
This
leads us to passion in problem solving.
"The
root of passion comes from understanding," Waei said. "You must have
interest in the subject and want to explore it – and that's where your passion
comes from – exploring," Waei said. He added, "it's passion that
drives people to success."
Have
you ever known an incurious engineer?
History
is on the side that engineers can evolve into roles of managerial
responsibility. After all, it was a young engineer named Kiichiro Toyoda who
some 75 years ago founded the Toyota Motor Company. And today's Toyota
Production System, not to mention a very strong management philosophy that
exemplifies the success of engineers as managers, emerged from Toyoda's
Company.
Since
then, engineers have proven time and again that those in their profession
possess the characteristics necessary to lead, never mind to manage. Why, then,
does the view that good engineers invariably will fail as managers continue to
be held?
We've
only scratched the surface here. And while the question can only be answered
based on the individual engineer, there is no good reason for professional
engineers to imagine a glass ceiling holding them back in a management position
as long as they can prove that when they take responsibility, success will
follow.