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Geeks in Management?
Posted by
Cliff
on Tue Jan 25, 2005 02:05 PM
from the still-wearing-jeans-in-spirit dept.
from the still-wearing-jeans-in-spirit dept.
The Other Side of the Coin asks: "I've been doing a relatively interesting job until now, but they've pushed me into management recently. Although the new position is pretty boring (I manage normals), I do still have time for all the geeky stuff I used to do before. My problem is: I have no formal (or any other, for that matter) management training. Sure, I'll read a lot about it (and take some education), but what are your experiences as geeks in management? For example, I naturally started to use Borgish management methods, and this wasn't received well by people, to say the least. What are the most difficult hurdles for a manager geek to jump, and can our personality be used as an advantage in management?"
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Easy thing to do- (Score:5, Insightful)
Will solve a lot of problems that way.
Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:4, Insightful)
Anybody who's worked in the IT department for a company with a hiring freeze knows what I'm talking about.
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:4, Interesting)
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:5, Funny)
Replace coffee with electric shocks as a wake up.
Reward failure with ever increasing voltage electric shocks, administered through the seat of the minions whenever you see fit.
Reward success by allowing a minion to skip their morning electric shock.
Use the shocks, verbal abuse, and threats of layoff to convince your minions that you are superior in all ways. The ones who have become convinced can then be given tazers of their own in order to opress the rest of the office. This will lead to your eventual rise to become the SHOEO of the company (supreme high overlord executive officer).
At this point you can then install all the latest accompaniments afforded to the average SHOEO: the harem, the trap door into the pirhana pit, and, of course, the evil talisman of layoff (I know, most non-SHOEOs don't know about that - essentially, it magically steals job security from others to make it's user virtually impossible to fire, while simultaneously eliminating those pesky do-gooders).
Of course, as a geek, you can add your own embellishments. To go with my PC, I have a Beowulf Cluster of Pain, and USB Flash of lightning generator. Oh, all the cameras and devices - including the lights are hooked directly to my cluster via X10 technology so that I can make sure that nobody exceeds their light or enjoyment ration.
It's a good job if you do it right.
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:5, Funny)
These are folks who refuse to get on board unless they are the whip master in their fuedal world.
also be awake for the super polite nay-sayers, who drive everyone else batty.
Be aware: goals have their dependencies as well.
Example: PHB thinks project is almost done because the GUI is finished. Reality is that gui was done first because it's the easiest to do, now all the rest of the work has to be done.
Solution: implement a series of graphics so that the gui reflects the state of completeness. example: use color and 3d effects only for 100% done, greyscale everything else. 3d effects only on things 75% done, etc.
Example: Always send an appropriate ack to the person you are talking with to indicate you got what they were saying. An appropriate ack could be head shake, grunt, verbal, back pat, etc. Key word is appropriate.
Example: Implementing error correction at the verbal level, recheck to verify that data was received correctly on both side of a conversation. You would be surprised how badly this can go off the rails.
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:4, Insightful)
Huzzah, thank you thank you thank you. Please repeat ad infinitum to all the MBAs who've come knocking on our door recently expecting to be appointed the VP the moment they're hired.
Experience is what truly moves you up in business, even moreso in IT. MBAs are a dime a dozen, and the fact that you can throw around terms like "demand elasticity" doesn't impress me as much as someone who's had to work as part of a team (better yet, lead a team) to get a product shipped on-time and well-tested.
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:4, Insightful)
I find that I respect a manager that is demanding and tough but will take me out to a nice lunch when things get done properly.
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good god no - that's just wrong (Score:5, Insightful)
Military leadership and overstucturing is COMPLETELY INAPPROPRIATE for the vast majority of jobs. Consider it. Military leadership techniques are designed to allow people to perform a finite range of tasks with zero chance of screw up, redundancy when necesary, and replacability. If you treat an employee like a soldier, you get minimal efficiency because you're discouraging creative thinking and self-direction. Perhaps more importantly, soldiers have something that employees lack: absolute dedication. If a solider hates the job he toughts it out, that's why they call it "service." You can shoot him if he flips and decides to leave. If an employee hates it, she will quit, or at least do the absolute minimum excepted and bitch about it. And you sure as hell can't cap her for it. "Normals" aren't really that different from geeks, they like to be treated with respect too, and work harder for bosses who "get it" and respect them (or at least seem to).
The parent does make one good point: ask why you were selected. Because if you're such a far-gone geek that you belive that all "normals" need "a firm structure," then clearly your bosses just f*cked up in a big way promoting you. You're a geek, that means you have great technical skills and perhaps a unusual point of view. That menas you have some skills to apply to management, but it doesn't mean you're some sort of Neitzchian ubermenche entitled to treat everyone like idiots.
Sorry to pounce all over that post, but my god did I have a bad experince with a manager who may as well have taken that exact same advice.
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Re:Easy thing to do- (Score:5, Interesting)
The vast majority of people actually do want a structured environment that removes responsibility for decisions from them. Or at least puts their decision-making power firmly subordinate to a value framework that validates any decision that may come their way.
Cf. "religion". Also "political party". Et cetera.
The trick is to provide the framework of assumptions within which people will make decisions voluntarily that serve your ends. And, of course, to get that provision labelled positively as esprit de corps instead of negatively as cultish.
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Must Read (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Must Read (Score:5, Informative)
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Re:Must Read (Score:5, Informative)
The power of this book is not that it reveals some hidden truths that turn you into Mr Personality, but rather, it is a list of examples and a collection of reminders. Reading the book frequently to keep the suggestions in your mind, you will more easily remember to do things that you know you should probably do anyway.
For example, one chapter is dedicated to smiling. You should smile often, because it makes you seem happier, more approachable, and a nicer person in general. Our mothers always tell us we should smile more, but most people don't really think about it (I look for smiling people on the Metro when I go to and from work - people never smile who are there alone, and rarely if they are with someone).
Consider it a book of reminders that will keep your personality friendly and brighten your day and the days of those around you, and make your managerial job a hundred times easier. Highly recommended for anyone who ever has to deal with people in any fasion - which is everyone. And at $10 CDN, it's a steal.
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Re:Must Read (Score:5, Funny)
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It worked for Homer... (Score:5, Funny)
Hmmm (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Hmmm (Score:5, Funny)
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You have an advantage (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:You have an advantage (Score:5, Informative)
EVEN IF YOU KNOW HOW TO DO THE JOB, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LEAVE YOUR TEAM ALONE.
The worst thing is the engineer-turned-manager who constantly has to have his hands in everyone and the dog's work because he thinks he is still hot and knows better than those kids how to do stuff. Even if this is the case: If you find out your team is staffed with total idiots rather fire them and get better ones than try to do their work for them. Just won't work out.
You still can give a demonstration of your geek-god-like skills from time to time at chosen occasions to show them that they cannot tell you an X for an U, and you can give them good advice IF THEY ASK YOU FOR IT, but otherwise just manage them and don't do their work. Been there, done that, and it just didn't work out, neither for them nor for me.
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Re:You have an advantage (Score:5, Insightful)
An advantage, yes, but not a huge one.
What you want as your manager is a good manager. If they're a good manager then whether they're good at $YOUR_JOB is almost irrelevant. If they're a bad manager then they're a bad manager regardless of their level of knowledge of $YOUR_JOB.
Good managers know which of their staff to trust the opinions of, and which not too. They ask their staff for recomendations, and take that into account in their decision making. They know enough of the field and the language to understand those recomendations, even if they don't have the specific skills to do the job themselves (for instance, as a software developer some of the best managers I've had could code circles around me, some of them hadn't programmed in years, some of them didn't have a background in development at all).
Good managers protect their staff from the crap going on in the rest of the company, but make sure they know what they need to about what all else is going on. They make sure that their staff get the resources and training they need. They know what all their staff, and ideally staff in related groups are doing on a general level, and do a lot of "Hey, you should talk to $OTHER_PERSON, as the stuff they're doing is similar to what you're looking for." - making sure that people actually get the benefits of working together.
Good managers are like gold. When you find one, do your best to keep them. Becoming one is tricky and takes a lot of work and experience. Strive for it. Meanwhile, don't call meetings for your whole group more than once a week, keep 'em short and bring donuts. Your staff will cut you a lot of slack for donuts.
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Completely wrong (Score:5, Interesting)
You couldn't be more completely wrong. The best manager I ever had, had no idea how to do my job. He didn't need to know that, there were senior engineers who did know how to do the job that he turned me to when I needed technical leadership. However he did an excellent job of running interference for me so that I could work. I didn't have to worry about went on over my head because he did all the political fighting, and reported back to me what happened. He was smart enough to find out what would be an issue in the future, and start the political process to solve them now, before they became a big deal.
While working under him I was under some of the worst upper management I've ever seen, but my day to day job was a pleasure because I was only vaguely aware of how bad things were.
Management's job is not to get things done, it is to get others to get the job done. Sometimes management must jump in and hands on get things done, but even then the manager must never forget that the first duty is to get the others to do the work.
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Hearken to the Wisdom of Dilbert! (Score:5, Funny)
My problem is: I have no formal (or any other, for that matter) management training.
Everything I ever needed to know about management, I learned from Dilbert.
Now, granted, I don't actually have a job. . . .
Is this a joke? (Score:5, Insightful)
Nobody wants to be managed by somebody who doesn't want to and doesn't know how to be a manager or a leader. You don't need formal training, unless you want to advance to higher ranks, then it might help. But for most purposes, you just need a willingness to listen and to talk and to think about things from a non-technology-driven perspective at times.
I am not sure what "Borgish" management methods are (you must be a graduate of Starfleet Academy's MBA program?), but it certainly sounds like something that nobody would enjoy being subjected to. Not everybody is as smart as you, but if you go around treating people like they are a different species ("normals" from your own post) don't expect to develop a good working relationship with them. If this is what you mean by your "personality", then no, that won't be an advantage in a management role, period.
I think of myself as a "geek" in certain ways, I enjoy understanding and creating technology, I like to take things apart and hack on them, and I can spend hours focused on a task intently. But I realize that when I'm operating in a management role, decisions are driven by the best long term interests of the business and the team, not by technology in isolation. And you reap what you sow with the people who work for you. If your team respects your intelligence AND likes you, there is nothing they won't do for you. That's a strong, loyal team. If they think you are a smart geeky asshole and they shit on you regularly behind your back, don't expect them to achieve very good results for you, and don't be surprised when *your* manager realizes how ineffective you are and gives you the boot.
Respect (Score:4, Insightful)
Managing Complexity (Score:5, Interesting)
Good programming practices/philosophy goes beyond CS. It's all managing complexity after all.
Immediately beat up the biggest person (Score:5, Funny)
What I've found . . . (Score:5, Insightful)
1) Remember all those things that managers did that you hated? Be open to the discovery that some of them actually made perfect sense but you didn't see it. Your Geek perspective may have been more limiting than your realize.
2) After you get through #1, take the things that still don't make sense and don't do them. Your Geek perspective can also be liberating.
3) People skills, people skills, people skills. If you can schmooze, talk, flatter, cajole, comfort, query, and chat - and get results, good. If not, start working on your people skills. You will need them.
4) Business perspective. Stay informed of business issues, policies, plans, and news. If you did previously, good.
5) Your Geek past is a great building block. You have an area of strength, start with what you learned in that.
You will have to change, but coming at a job from a different perspective is also a great advantage.
A fantatic technique I was taught - go to people you respect and ask them to list
1) Your two best traits.
2) Your two worst traits.
3) The two best traits of a manager.
4) The two worst traits of a manager.
You need to query at least 4-5 people, but it'll give you a perspective on yourself, on management, and what you need to do to do it well.
Will you get widely differing answers? Yes. But reconciling those answers is part of the learning process.
Good luck.
People will hate you. (Score:5, Informative)
After being part of the "mobile work force" for more years than I can remember, the biggest problem encountered in larger companies are people that have been promoted to management based on seniority as opposed to training or skill.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want to start a flame war, because I've worked for some people that have no training that were great, and conversely I've worked from BComms where I wanted to go postal.
Managers who are technical sometimes have the tendency to still poke their fingers in where they can. DO NOT POKE. Delegate. Otherwise you are discounting your minions and taking on more than you can chew.
The best manager is the one that recognizes accomplishment, delegates, and rewards. Micromanagement is a trap many fall into - so remember what it is all about: facilitating people who work under you to feel empowered, and be empowered to do the work. The day you complain some guy is always 5 minutes late, when he is twice as productive as the guy next to him, is the day you need a smack upside the head.
I've worked for so many clueless managers that either have sales backgrounds or technical backgrounds... the sales guys always promise more and the client, not the worker, is their priority. The technical guys usually have stale skillsets and think they can do everything better with PowerBuilder.
Remember - work your people skills. Some people shouldn't be management. Some belong in the trenches.
What works for me, but I am lucky (Score:4, Informative)
After 20 years I've been pushed into management (Score:5, Interesting)
If your company is behind you and realize you are a geek but have intelligence, they'll help you. See if they can give you a psychological profile. It sounds worse than it is, and you need to be open to it. they'll tell you what you are like (although you should already know) and what is desireable in a manager/leader. But most importantly, they'll tell you what to do to go from here to there.
I also reccommend reading the books by Geald M. Weinberg, such as "Becoming a Technical Leader: An Organic Problem-Solving Approach" and "The Psychology of Computer Programming: Silver Anniversary Edition." Good luck, you'll appreciate the effort and so will your boss.
Realize that the "normals" know their job... (Score:4, Insightful)
Oh, and also, watch Office Space.
Best management advice I ever heard (Score:5, Insightful)
And here are some other principles I learned while managing and being managed:
As a manager, you cannot succeed without your employees succeeding. Any of their major accomplishments are shared with you inherently...broadcast these accomplishments and sing their praises to the masses. Recognition is a great incentive, and when your employees get credit for something, YOU get credit as a good manager.
When they do something wrong, defend them to the hilt...even if it was something stupid. Then behind closed doors let them have it and make it clear that you put your butt on the line for them. Be willing to take a personal hit on their behalf...NEVER sell them out.
Realize that to be first, you must be last. You are there to facilitate their performance as someone who works for them.
For cryin' out loud...never micromanage anything. All employees are different, but for the most part you can measure them by results and not stupid timeclock things, etc.
And I stress that all people are motivated by different things. Money, recognition, who and what they work with....learn and listen. If you reverse engineer their motivation you have very important information in your hands.
Be very careful of minority groups--and no I don't mean the legal minority groups--whoever the smallest group is in your team be they white male or indian female. The smallest subgroup tends to fight amongst themselves, or unite to destroy the rest of the group. Watch those situations carefully.
I was a programmer, then manager, then programmer (Score:5, Informative)
I was a teacher at a University and I was also a student in the 4th year. I taught first year students. They never challenged me and I was a great teacher (or so I like to think). I also taught 3rd year students. These students challenged me in every way they could. They tried to ask me questions to show that they knew more than me. In this scenario I was a terrible teacher (until I realised what I was doing) because I would either, if I knew the answer, react by putting them down or if I didn't know the answer, I reacted defensively.
2) Don't base your self esteem on knowing more than everyone else about technology. You have to accept that you now are expected to be good on something else.
I am a geek and was promoted to a manager. And I really love the technical side. I was secure in myself but after a while there were inevitably situations where people knew more about the parts of the system that we were building, and the technology we used. I started loosing the platform from where I had previously gotten my self esteem. This can be a bit painful.
3) Don't be a detail fascist, unless you really have to. You'll have people under you which are good. Don't lean over their shoulder and tell them how to do things. You should however oversee that interfaces between people work well (unless you have a guy that is responsible for that).
If you are a fascist about details, then you will have to be one forever. Noone else will step up and take responsibility for good designs.
4) Management by walking around.
There are different ways of managing people. I don't know which one is best, but I know what I prefer, both to use as a manager, and for my manager to use. Make a habit of walking around and have little informal talks with people. Talk about the NY Yankees or some interesting problem, or an actual management issue that you need to discuss with this person. The upshot with this is that you'll always stay very aware what is going on and if someone is brooding over something they will let you know before it becomes a big issue.
Well, that's what I can think of straight off the bat. Good luck. And if I had to summarize all of the above and give you one advice, then don't let your insecurity lead you to react defensively.
Focus on the important stuff (Score:5, Insightful)
The CIO was praised. Why? Because he and I focused on the important stuff. Don't worry about your guys coming in a little late. Don't pester them for
You get paid to produce results and so do your "normals". Focus on getting those results and not all the other crap that makes employment such a game. Your employees will love your flexibility and will know that you appreciate them when they meet their development schedules. Your bosses will love you because you make them look good (by getting stuff done).
Moved from Geek to Manager 6 years ago (Score:5, Insightful)
1. You will loose some of your technical skills over time. You're spending less of your day on that sort of skill. Knowing this, identify what you cherish the most and what will make you a valued staff member at another company and keep those up-to-date.
2. Recognize that when you take manager as your title, you've walked away from some mobility opportunities. Managers aren't keen to hire former managers to staff positions and there are less manager jobs around.
3. Recognize that not everyone is as productive, smart, or responsive as you are. You'll have to set a standard of performance for the positions you manage and judge your staff by that standard and not you. Keep it in perspective, if they were as good as you; you'd be doing their job.
4. Make the workplace fun. Carnation used to put on their milk "Content Cows Give More Milk". In other words, happy people are more productive.
5. Learn to let the little things go. Just because someone brings an issue to your attention doesn't mean you have to follow through on every one. Learn to establish a split between when people see you to vent and when people see you for action.
Well, this is late, but, (Score:5, Interesting)
I've got no management experience, but I've worked for enough people, good (rarely) and bad (mostly) that i've identified what i like.
The superhero of middle management is my former boss, Ron, at a now-utterly-defunct embedded linux vendor.
Ron was Not A Programmer. He wasn't even technically speaking a geek, except in the strict jargon file definition. He was an old HAM operator and a former QA manager for various semiconductor fabrication facilities. He was managing a bunch of software QA people, me among them.
So, this was the basis of his attitude:
"As your manager, I am a man who is not competent to do your job, someone who, in fact, has only a cursory understanding of how you do your job.
What i need from you is for you to get your work done. How i intend to make that happen is by making sure:
a: You know what your job is
b: You know what your priorities are
c: You have everything you need to get the job done
d: Nobody will get in the way of your doing it, even if i have to jump in front of the bullet for you."
It was great. If people from other departments interfered with my work, Ron got on their case for it and hasseled their supervisor about it - so people from other departments rarely hassled me.
I knew exactly what my #1, #2, and #3 projects were, when they were due, and what was expected from them.
This rocked. If you've ever caught flack for not delivering something that you were never given any sense of urgency about, you can appreciate this.
If i needed anything - a particular cable, a memory module of a certain type, more clarification from marketing or engineering exactly what they wanted from me, an OK to take the rest of the day off if i was getting nowhere fast, heck, a sandwitch, Ron was on it.
I probably could have asked to take his daughter out to dinner and he wouldn't have said no right away.
Ron wouldn't make me work late unless he was working late too. Often this meant that he was in the office doing nothing important, so he'd fetch dinner and send flowers to the significant others. I'm serious.
If Ron was cutting out early before a holiday, he'd send me home first.
So, it was like this. I was certain - absolutely certain - that Ron would do whatever it took to make sure i could do a good job at what he'd asked me to do.
And, lets face it, that's what job satisfaction is all about.
I was entirely sure that Ron wouldn't ask me to do something unless it honestly needed to be done. That he would never bullshit me or sell me out.
I had no doubts about the fact that if upper management asked him to have us do something that he felt was unreasonable, he'd do whatever he could to talk them out of it.
So, whatever Ron wanted, Ron got. He treated us like princes and in return we exaulted him as our king. I'd work for him again in a heartbeat.
I'm not sure I'd even ask what the job was.
Re:Easy.. (Score:4, Funny)
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Funny)
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What Helped Me (Score:4, Insightful)
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Important points of a good manager (Score:5, Insightful)
Its OK to challenge them a little, but never give them more than they can chew. You will be confronted with this when senior management gives you tasks that your team are incapable of meeting. The easy thing to do is simply delegate the tasks and put your head in the sand, but this will lead to unhappy workers, the job won't get done, you'll discipline your workers for their failure and kill morale, and you'll look like a failure to your superiors. The harder thing to do is tell your senior management upfront that you can't do it. But that's what gets you respect. If your senior management won't listen to reason, tell your team frankly what the situation is, tell them you don't expect them to be able to achieve the impossible, but that you've got to do your job, so can they do the best they can and let you make the excuses later.
2) Know what is going on.
Your manager is going to ask you things like "How long will this take" and you're going to go and ask your people the same question to enable yourself to answer. Don't make the mistake of giving people questions that they cannot answer and expecting them to do so. I don't know how many times in the past I've had a dumb manager ask me how long this task will take, and refuse to accept "I don't have enough information to answer that and here is why" as an answer. Work with your people to get the real facts, and instead of presenting a number pulled out of your teams respective asses, present a break down of knowns, unknowns, mitigating factors, etc so that you're not promising something you don't know if you can deliver.
3) Manage your planning.
You don't want to micromanage, but you do need to juggle a whole bunch of different peoples estimates and manage to coordinate peoples working together. Typically managers will either make the initial plan then let things go and remain in the dark, or they will have way too many meetings to ensure that they are up to speed. If you have too many meetings, only the few will have something to add, and it will be irrelevant to most present, with the result that everyones time is wasted and people percieve meetings as a waste of time. Not a good perception to engender in them. Instead, help each person involved understand what the red flags are that you need to be notified of and make them feel safe and welcome bringing them to you. That way you don't need to micromanage but you will always know what is going on and will know where to reallocate resources before its too late.
I'm sure I can think of more things than this, but I'd say these are the most important points.
Oh, and I don't have any formal management training whatsoever, so I don't know how this holds up with conventional wisdom. I just know it seems to have worked for me.
BTW: Don't read those books on Making Friends and Influencing People. You're not there to make friends, you're there to make shit happen. Try looking for How To Make Enemies And Infuriate People instead. Much more useful.
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Re:Important points of a good manager (Score:5, Insightful)
Some of them were simply not capable of performing 'higher level' tasks, so those are the ones you honestly cannot push - and they don't want to be pushed. They are good at mundane tasks, and enjoy those tasks. Give the higher risk - higher reward tasks to those that want to do it.
As far as 'knowing what is going on' with each person and 'manage your planning', I found it beneficial and useful to have a meeting with each person individually. This allowed me to help them work through any problems they were having, as well as get an idea of the progress they were making. If there was something that affected the entire group, then I called a 'real' meeting. But, otherwise, the one-on-one meetings worked out better for me. (Yes, unless of course they are pair programming - but you get the idea).
Ideally, as a manager, one of your main tasks is to remove obstacles to progress for those working underneath you. Sometimes that means re-arranging furniture. Sometimes it means talking extensively to the customer. It rarely means working 18 hours a day to correct one of your workers poor results. As it has been said elsewhere, your overall picture is to make sure the job/project gets done. Late night heroics usually don't get the job done - but a manager that can tell when a task is falling behind and can at least do something to change it has a much better chance of getting it done.
BTW, I also have no formal management training - but I have worked for really stupid people, and really smart people. Choose what works, discard the rest.
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Re:What Helped Me (Score:5, Insightful)
- You are NO LONGER a peer. Do not act as such, it will undermine your ability to manage
- Protect your people. I try to take the PM view I learned at IBM. I try to shield them from BS so they can focus. _I_ am the "bad cop" to outsiders who are out of line. I NEVER ask my folks to take that role.
- Listen to your folks, discipline is ALWAYS a secondary (or later) tactic for addressing issues. I have listened to a lot of screaming from my team. If they're pissed, they barge in my office and let loose. They're not disrespectful, they're frustrated, angry, and want someone to listen and help. After they're done, we figure something out. I'd rather they yell in my office than at some jackass outside the group.
- Honesty. Whether it's reviews, promotions, good, bad, whatever - be honest. Even if it's - I can't say right now.
- Your tech skills will be gone soon. You'll have exposure, but at a high level. I finally had to give up on the hands-on tech stuff. It's not easy, but it's the way it is
- Have a spine with upper mgmt. This doesn't mean shoot your mouth off, but be ready and able to say "no" in a firm but calm manner and help them "make better decisions" when appropriate. Holding my ground and remaining calm has helped me a LOT. You will be granted precieved authority beyond your title which can make life easier.
- Look long term and don't get shaken my short term events. Your team will react in a similar manner to your reaction to news (merger, layoffs, uppermgmt change, etc).
- ALWAYS remember - Karma is easier lost than gained.
- Listen to older SUCCESSFUL managers who offer advice
That being said, I'm not totally certian I like this role, but I'm getting used to it.It's better than unemployment. Bonuses are better
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:4, Informative)
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Informative)
Peopleware : Productive Projects and Teams, 2nd Ed. [amazon.com] by Lister and DeMarco -- probably THE book you want to get
First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently [amazon.com] by Buckingham -- based on extensive surveys of what makes employees happy with their jobs and bosses, and what they need to do their job effectively
and I've heard good things about Becoming a Technical Leader: An Organic Problem-Solving Approach [amazon.com] by G. Weinberg and How To Win Friends And Influence People [amazon.com] (seen both cited by numerous successful entrepreneurs) but haven't been able to read them yet.
(BTW, those are all non-referrer links, I'm not link-whoring.)
I suggest reading a bunch; you'll start seeing overlap and will understand the basics after the first few. Good luck!
-fren
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Insightful)
Remember this: Management is where geeks go to die.
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Insightful)
Or perhaps it's where they grow up. Who cares about being a geek or not? All that matters is that you're yourself and you're happy. Personally I feel no need to belong to any cliques, whether it's geeks or not - who wants to be labelled in any walk of life?
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:4, Insightful)
I wasn't implying that I have to belong to a certain clique at all, or even have the need to be labeled as a geek. You could call yourself a flaming queer for all I care. What I'm saying is that a lot of these people lose their happiness as they're moved away from doing the things they love and toward bickering and politics and increased unhappiness, all in the name of a bigger paycheck and more power.
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Insightful)
you are not to reign over them, you are to serve them so that they can be more productive and in return generate more money for the company.
managers that rule with an iron fist and micromanage are those that DO NOT know how to be a manager.
Step 1 - if your employees are having trouble meeting their goals, it is your fault as a manager.
Step 2 - you employees are the experts of what they do, not you. Do you listen to them on how their job can be improved?
Managers NEVER know the best way to do something they hired a specalist for. you only hinder their job by butting your nose in, steering is acceptable as well as getting updates, telling them exactly what to do is highly unacceptable in all cases except for fresh recruits.
Oh, NONE of this can be learned in a classroom. Leaders are born not made.
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Re:Pretty Ironic... (Score:5, Insightful)
The job of the manager truly is to serve his employees, structured along the lines of 'what do you need in order to accomplish these goals that I have outlined and expect you to finish?'
I only want to add that in a well structured business a manager has goals that are generally driven by the business needs - and the manager's job is to see to that those business goals are met. Even a manager of 'techie geeks.'
What business goals are
Reliable email services
Reliable network file and print services
Business processes that facilitate working with some business client (ie, process claims or payroll, or put a space shuttle into orbit.)
A business goal isn't
More RAM in a server or in your developer's desktop
A new laptop or LCD for the developer
Run Linux
My boss comes to my team with business goals and asks us what we need to accomplish them, and keeps the lines of communications between the tech and business teams. Also keeps the business folks from hassling us (aka administrative overhead or politics.) She wouldn't dream of telling me how to write an SQL statement or which language to write the application in - we have driving standards for most of that and the rest
Want to be a good manager?
Define what you need to get done. Someone above you has probably already done this for you.
Get your people together and explain what the business goals are for this time period.
Explain that they are going to do the work.
Come up with a working phrase book that accurately defines the difference between 'I want' and 'I need'
Ask them what they need in order to succeed.
Get them what they need in order to succeed.
Ask them what they want.
Get as much of what they want as you can. If a 20" LCD really is that big a deal, fiscally ($600 delivered), consider a 17" LCD at less than $250 delivered. Hell, give them the option for two 17" LCDs that they can put side by side or a single 20" LCD. To a developer spending 2500 hours a year in front of it - it is one step away from saying 'this company loves you.' That's about five cents an hour, if it lasts five years.
Stay out of their way.
Hold weekly one-on-ones so you don't get surprised.
Praise in public / bitchslap in private.
Work on their behalf. Accomodate their needs both personally and professionally.
If the work isn't getting done, ask why. Don't accuse or blame, just ask what is it going to take to get this done?
I have a boss that does this, and I love my job.
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Re:Don't micromanage! (Score:4, Insightful)
What typically happens with a micromanaging boss:
Sir we have this proble...
Well have you tried X?
Yes, it didn't work
How about Y?
That wasn't workable under our conditions
What about Z?
It failed too
Hmmm, I'll try to think of something
A good manager will ask, "okay so what are your plans for a solution?" Then evaluate what the plans are and acts as a fresh set of eyes to double-check that they make sense, give technical input, ensures it fits budget, and timelines.
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