May 7, 2012 at 1:59 pm
L' Eomot Inversé (5/2/2012)
There are two common reasons: first is that the person involved is being pushed into a management role against their will - that will hardly ever work; second is that the company's system expects its managers to be completely non-technical.
Aye - the second is a sore point with me. I've been told on several occasions that "Technical people can't/don't want to do management, everyone knows that" - or words to that effect
I'm a DBA.
I'm not paid to solve problems. I'm paid to prevent them.
May 8, 2012 at 2:49 am
andrew gothard (5/7/2012)
majorbloodnock (5/1/2012)
Eric M Russell (5/1/2012)
Most sales professions get paid on commission, so it seems to me that a company's "best" sales people (those who consistently open a large number of high value accounts) should be happy with their arrangement, and the company should be happy for all their productive efforts.If that's not the case, if the best sales people arn't happy with their commissions or the company isn't happy with what they contribute, then there is something wrong with the incentive program or the company's goals.
That's only true whilst money remains the sales professional's major motivator. In reality, we all move on as priorities change.
You show me a Salesweasel who is not motivated by money and I'll show you a **** Salesweasel
He, he. No generalisations there, then.....
Seriously, though, just think for a moment about why anyone, let alone a sales professional, might become more motivated by things other than money. A new parent, for instance, may suddenly realise that high earnings are less important than steady and reliable earnings. A previous high flier may realise they want to actually spend some of the money they've earned, so may value time more. A person trying to build a career may decide the look of their CV needs more attention than just turning in another bumper month.
If you simply continue, trying to motivate these people by money, you're knocking on a closed door. There are plenty of alternative ways of motivating; promotion may well not be the best in all situations, but it's one of the possibilities available. The only thing that is sure, though, is that if someone's priorities change and you don't change the way you motivate them then you'll lose them.
Semper in excretia, sumus solum profundum variat
May 5, 2016 at 1:37 am
I've worked for managers who were useless in their current role, but brilliant if you needed them to answer technical questions. I've also worked for excellent managers who took far too long to get promoted into their position because their technical skills were below par. In nearly 30 years I've worked with exactly 3 people who had both skill-sets. Companies should stop pretending that 'management' is the only career path and start recognising that technical skill is worthy of recognition.
May 5, 2016 at 2:51 am
It's interesting coming back to this editorial after 4 years.
I moved into a management position some time ago and from my perspective I was left to sink or swim. Zero help with transitioning into the role and frankly an extremely miserable couple of years.
I've learned a great deal and find being a manager of my team an honour and a privilege. As a junior manager I've learned that you have to manage upwards as well as downwards. If anything more upwards!
I've had to learn to balance the needs of a wide variety of stakeholders rather than a very narrow set of technical requirements.
I've learned that everything is negotiable, why tech debt is necessary (but still evil), how to identify the politicians, those who do most of the work but are rarely get recognised, those who are good at self promotion but are slow to help their colleagues.
All stuff that increases my value as an employee. But ye Gods I miss the technical side!
You can never know where a different choice would have taken you though I have often thought about the day I accepted that first management promotion
May 5, 2016 at 6:57 am
Absolutely agree about having some sort of advancing pathway without having to go to management. If you don't you will lose those you can ill afford to lose.
As to moving back and forth between IT and Management, I've successfully done it. I started in IT, became manager of IT, then moved back to a programming position when they consolidated management of IT under another department. I really didn't like management. So I was pleased when I was told of my demotion. I didn't have to go to all those manager meetings, didn't have to do all those manager reports, didn't have to deal with all the nonsense of the IT staff, got to do what I love (programming), oh and did not have to take a drop in pay. It was great. Here I am a decade later working under someone else as manager and loving it.
May 5, 2016 at 7:04 am
Back in 2002 I separated from the military, with my last day as the flight commander of our squadron's software development flight (rank of captain) on a Friday and came back the following Monday as a contractor software engineering consultant. Sat in the same cubicle, just wearing civilian clothes instead of a uniform. Best move ever. I have been able to have a much bigger impact for the US Air Force in my technical role than I ever would have been as a manager (any further progression in the USAF would have been in management).
May 5, 2016 at 8:00 am
One reason folks fail at business ventures is that they don't understand the concept of net income. This applies to everything from IT consulting to flipping realestate or retail. If you're a senior level technologist, then you can probably net more income in your personal bank account (and spend more time doing what you love) as an independent consultant than you would trying to start your own business where you're responsible for hiring, managing, and paying the salary of other people. That doesn't mean you have to be a one man show; you can still partner with other professionals (parnership as in collaborate with, not a legal or equity sharing partnership).
"Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise. Instead, seek what they sought." - Matsuo Basho
May 5, 2016 at 2:25 pm
Ian Elliott (5/1/2012)
I'm now back to being a support person again and have been pretty much told that I'll be in this role for the foreseeable future and that there are no plans to hire another support person to allow me to continue becoming something more. Very frustrating. :angry:
.
And should you ever walk in the boss' office to give your resignation letter, the boss will be so surprised that you decided to leave.
IF leaving is a viable option. Might not be if you lose benefits related to your tenure.
May 5, 2016 at 2:34 pm
Exactly what does upper management seek when choosing a mid-level manager?
If they only seek a suit to act as yes-man pushing down the ladder decisions made from high up it is no longer a question of competence in either management or technical expertise. Such suits are in abundant supply and do not tend to last very long. Heavy-handed authority carries only so far.
Technical competent is not necessarily a guarantee of proper management. There are technical-minded persons who are brilliant in their domain but who absolutely suck in the people skills department - back to heavy-handed authority.
May 6, 2016 at 6:50 am
In my experience promoting engineers can be the whole spectrum of possibilities as it can be a loss to the engineering community as much as a gain for management or it can be no loss to engineering and a detriment to management and every combination. Also, separately, it can be successful or failure for the individual.
I'd like to see excellent engineers who enjoy their work given the opportunity to stay engineers.
Gaz
-- Stop your grinnin' and drop your linen...they're everywhere!!!
May 13, 2016 at 11:59 am
j-1064772 (5/5/2016)
Exactly what does upper management seek when choosing a mid-level manager?If they only seek a suit to act as yes-man pushing down the ladder decisions made from high up it is no longer a question of competence in either management or technical expertise. Such suits are in abundant supply and do not tend to last very long. Heavy-handed authority carries only so far.
Technical competent is not necessarily a guarantee of proper management. There are technical-minded persons who are brilliant in their domain but who absolutely suck in the people skills department - back to heavy-handed authority.
There isn't a good definition here. I think management as a discipline has become what you say, push down decisions. That's an old, fast food, factory view of management.
In many professions, we need managers to enable and smooth the way for knowledge workers, whether programmers or doctors.
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May 13, 2016 at 12:05 pm
Steve Jones - SSC Editor (5/13/2016)
j-1064772 (5/5/2016)
Exactly what does upper management seek when choosing a mid-level manager?If they only seek a suit to act as yes-man pushing down the ladder decisions made from high up it is no longer a question of competence in either management or technical expertise. Such suits are in abundant supply and do not tend to last very long. Heavy-handed authority carries only so far.
Technical competent is not necessarily a guarantee of proper management. There are technical-minded persons who are brilliant in their domain but who absolutely suck in the people skills department - back to heavy-handed authority.
There isn't a good definition here. I think management as a discipline has become what you say, push down decisions. That's an old, fast food, factory view of management.
In many professions, we need managers to enable and smooth the way for knowledge workers, whether programmers or doctors.
That would be the best. Unfortunately, such people are in short supply. Even more so at the higher tier, which is responsible for enabling a good manager to manage people, not "ressources".
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