I'm doing a web column for eCompanyNow, as many of you know, called Barely
Managing. (www.ecompanynow.com). I'm planning to pull together a column (or
two or three) about managing engineers. Trying not to recycle too many
engineer jokes, and looking for ideas, on and off the record, I'm interested
in:
Dos and don'ts
What works and doesn't
What are the most bone-headed, irritating, and counterproductive things
managers have done to you? What drives you up the wall? What are your pet
peeves? Fingernails on your personal blackboard?
What should managers never never try to do?
What should they always always try to do?
Pepperoni or sausage?
If someone wants to get you to work harder, should he or she appeal to your
greed, guilt, company loyalty, ambition, desire to do something cool, desire
to do something none has ever done before, desire to do something hard?
If (a big if, I know) you're wrong, what's the best way to tell you?
If (a big if, I know) you call your manager a bleeping idiot who wouldn't
know good technology if it bit him in the ass, how should he respond?
Are there managers for whom you would traverse hot coals? why?
Are there managers whom you would like to roast over hot coals? Why? With or
without shittake mushrooms?
What are the conditions managers can help create that make teamwork happen or
not?
Are engineers really different? or is that just a myth? In other words, why
do people think that "managing engineers" is a special case? Are they? If so,
how? If not, why do people say so?
If you want to respond off-list, that's fine. If you want to go
not-for-attribution ("This total asshole at my last job ...."), that's fine.
No particular deadline on this--not certain if this will be my next, next
after that, etc.
Thanks for thoughts
Tom
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Sun Apr 29 2001 - 20:26:05 PDT