Role of Engineering Management

Mr. Akshay D. Mohadkar (MBA-II)

Engineering Management is a specialized form of management that is concerned with the
application of engineering principles to business practice. Engineering management is a career
that brings together the technological problem-solving savvy of engineering and the
organizational, administrative, and planning abilities of management in order to oversee complex
enterprises from conception to completion.
Areas of engineering are product development, manufacturing, construction, design
engineering, industrial engineering, technology, production, or any other field that employs
personnel who perform an engineering function.
Areas of Engineering Management
Operations Research and Supply Chain Management
Operations research deals with quantitative models of complex operations and uses these models
to support decision-making in any sector of industry or public services. Supply chain
management is the process of planning, implementing and managing the flow of goods, services
and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption.
Information Technologies
The "information technologies" theme focuses on how technology is designed and managed to
support effective decision-making. Topics deal with technical applications in software and
development, data mining and telecommunication as well as the organizational and social issues
associated with the use of information technologies.
Decision Engineering
Decision engineering seeks to use engineering principles in the creation of a decision, which it
views as an engineering artifact in its own right. From this point of view, the creation of a
decision includes agreeing to objectives, developing a detailed specification, and then creating a
decision model, which captures the key cause-and-effect elements of the decision environment
with a focus on the particular decision, instead of the entire system.
Management of Technology
The Management of Technology (MOT) theme builds on the foundation of management topics
in accounting, finance, economics, organizational behavior and organizational design. Courses in
this theme deal with operational and organizational issues related to managing innovation and
technological change.
Strategies for Successful Engineering Management
Executives can support the engineering managers they supervise in a number of constructive
ways. Likewise, engineering managers can employ some simple strategies to improve their
effectiveness and that of their engineering team. Following are five simple strategies for
helping engineering managers succeed.
Align Resources Well
Executive management should encourage engineering managers to delegate and make the most
of their existing strengths. If their strength is leadership, they should
delegate management functions such as scheduling, project planning details, and so on. The more
experienced engineers should be serving as project leaders, maybe even taking on some of the
management responsibilities.
If an engineering group is responsible for more than a couple of major projects, fully dedicated
project managers can manage projects, rather than expecting an engineering manager to be
responsible for managing all the projects. To make this work, many organizational structures and
project management models are available to choose from. Trying out different models as needed
and being open-minded when you may need to try a new approach will enhance the
performance of your engineering team.
When people with the right skills aren't available and budget doesn't allow hiring full-time help
for the engineering manager, consider retaining a qualified consultant with skills that
complement the engineering manager's strengths. The right consultant can also serve as a trainer
and coach. Effective coaches will not only help managers and staff develop skills, but can also
provide counsel for relieving stress and improving overall job satisfaction.
Also, unless the engineering team is very small fewer than eight people expecting a
manager to also function as a technical contributor to any significant degree is unrealistic and
unwise. Very few people can be effective as managers while performing complex technical day-
to-day work.
Foster Professionalism and Trust
Since engineering managers and the engineers they manage are highly educated and well paid,
they bring a high level of professionalism to their work, and expect to be treated accordingly.
However, too often highly paid professionals feel like their professionalism is questioned that
they aren't trusted. Executive management seldom realizes these perception even exits.
Teamwork expert Patrick Lencioni emphasizes the importance of trust, because the lack of it, he
says, creates a fundamental "dysfunction" that hinders most teams. According to Lencioni, the
key to building trust is building rapport among associates. Executives and engineering managers
alike should practice MBWA (managing by wandering around) and "open door" policies to build
rapport with staff, if they want to build trust among team members.
Invest in Soft Skills
Technical professionals need a combination of technical skills, business skills and interpersonal
skills. For engineering managers, technical skills are usually least important, and their
professional development focus should be on skills that will help a manager grow as a key leader
of the business. Some engineering managers prefer not to go too far down the leadership path
and will continue to place a higher value on their technical skills after all, those skills are
probably what got them noticed in the first place, and they're comfortable with their technical
abilities. Technically proficient engineering managers, who aren't willing to expand their
expertise into leadership, may not be the best fit for engineering management roles.
Engineering managers, who are contemplating attending a technical conference, consider
sending one of your staff engineers instead and investing in leadership training for you. To be
competitive with other employers today, executive management should budget a minimum of
$3,000 annually for the professional development of each engineering manager on staff. It's not
uncommon for companies that invest significantly in employee development to spend more than
$5,000 annually for training and development of one key individual. If you're an engineering
manager and you're not getting the training you need, you need to broach the subject with your
manager and explain why you need the training.
Set Realistic Expectations
There's an epidemic in industry where estimates from the experts doing the work don't align with
dictated schedules. Essentially, it's a trust issue experts' realistic estimates are questioned by
eager executives who want things done faster. Engineering managers often find themselves
between a rock (usually a boulder) and a hard place. Executives should trust that estimates are
valid unless there are concrete reasons not to, and when estimates don't align with business
needs, put the effort into making project plans realistic.
The scheduling vs. estimates problem is especially prevalent in the software industry. Software
development guru Michael Cusumano's 2004 study of software projects found that 75 to 80
percent of software projects are late or over budget. Many projects are classified as being late
according to the "schedule" not the original "estimates," which often are much closer to
reality.
Lack of trust works both ways. When business leaders don't have faith in their experts' estimates,
and they set unrealistic objectives, employees may lack faith in their leadership.
Provide Benefits Other Than Pay
In today's global market, engineering skills are often viewed as a commodity, and outsourcing to
reduce costs is having a dramatic effect on technology workers in the United States. Whether
outsourcing is ultimately good or bad, executives should be aware that many U.S. engineering
professionals today feel that their profession is not held in high regard.
In addition to paying engineering managers well, rewards are necessary so that managers are
enthusiastic enough to perform up to their full potential. For technical managers, the additional
rewards that will usually be the most satisfying are recognition and providing adequate resources
for the projects and people they're managing. Recognition is especially valuable when results are
expressed in terms of bottom-line contributions.
It's easy to figure out what benefits engineering managers appreciate just ask them. Some of
the most important perks that will boost their enthusiasm are easy to fulfill and inexpensive.
Examples of powerful morale boosters include informal recognition events, flex or comp time,
food items and gift cards. A good sign is when engineering managers express more concern for
the well-being of their staff than additional benefits for themselves.
The aforementioned suggested actions will make a big impact in companies that aren't already
supporting engineering managers sufficiently.
Conclusion:
Engineering Management is a multidisciplinary field that involves the application of engineering
methods and technologies to business practices. Successful engineering managers typically
require training and experience in business and engineering. Technically inept managers tend to
be deprived of support by their technical team, and non-commercial managers tend to lack
commercial acumen to deliver in a market economy. Largely, engineering managers manage
engineers who are driven by non-entrepreneurial thinking, and thus require the necessary people
skills to coach, mentor and motivate technical professionals. Engineering professionals joining
manufacturing companies sometimes become engineering managers by default after a period of
time. They are required to learn how to manage once they are on the job, though this is usually
an ineffective way to develop managerial abilities.