Quote:
Originally Posted by cockerpunk
being a manager of a technical advancement program, or worse yet, a program requiring invention, is even harder. when you find a good one, oh boy is it good.
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I wrote "listen" a lot in an earlier post. Believe it or not I am very good at that, listening to the engineers and figuring out the next steps, especially in new programs...the hardest part about new and inventive technologies is the acceptance curve, oddly enough in both engineering and management.
Then some has to sell it or we are all out of work.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cockerpunk
ive been contemplating a move to management instead of research like i do now. i fortunately work for a company that has a VP level technical job, so there is no point at which id be forced into a management job. i could stay technical my entire career. but ultimately my frustration with poor management has lead me to be VERY good at managing up, and i see programs fail for so many reasons that arnt engineering or technical. most programs fail because of human problems, not technical ones. and so that has lead my brain to spending more and more time on humans rather than machines.
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Of course...the human condition is always at the nexus of success or failure of all projects: The Graveyard of Great Ideas depends on ignoring the human element in all endeavors.
One bit of advice if you move into management, well, two: Learn the basics, the tools you will need to manage, and listen, never squash: Bad news never smells better with age.
Handling bad news will be your job.