Engineering Management for the Rest of Us

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To people who have the same aspirations in engineering management I'd encourage you to read this instead https://abseil. I think it is the nature of this type of role, to be tricky to learn from others, ahead of time and out of context, because it largely depends on the environment you work in and the team you work with, the mission you work on, your personality and many other things in between. I have a professional respect for the author, but the book is really shallow and quite straightforward. It's not just important, it's crucial that we iterate on our own skills as managers so that we can properly support everyone around individuals, peers, leadership, and the business.

Additionally, the advice provided is often oversimplified and fails to address the complexities of managing teams in a rapidly changing technology landscape. The book has been edited and compiled as a cohesive whole, and includes a few chapters not publicly available.The book is too basic and lacks depth in technical topics that would be useful for those with a background in engineering. I wrote this book because there’s so much no one told me about management that I wished I would have known. While it might benefit from a deeper exploration of diverse management styles, the practical insights it offers are invaluable for those new to the field. I picked up the book because my mentor recommended it to me after I told him about my promotion at work.

Sarah Drasner’s “Engineering Management for the Rest of Us” is a practical and easy-to-read guide to the world of managing engineers. Join us at the next edition of Bookmarked where Suzan Bond will be joined by Sarah Drasner, who has 10+ years of experience in engineering management at all levels, from Lead to VP, to discuss her newest book ‘Engineering Management for the Rest of Us’. Working relationships are nuanced, communication is linked with individual values, motivations, power dynamics, and skills. Maybe my expectations from Sarah were to high but I felt some topics were discussed too lightly, almost as stating common sense for people that have a few year of experience working in teams.As someone who has seen many an engineer struggle with the transition to management, I found Drasner’s book to be a refreshing, candid look at the realities of the role. There seem to be millions of articles and “how to”s on programming and only a handful of resources on Engineering Management- why? Having said that, feeling well prepared and equipped te become a manager will go a long way, and Sarah Drasner proves to be an outstanding guide for this sinuous journey. I had already read (and I reread on a yearly basis) How to Win Friends and Influence People, so most of the ideas shared in the book are things I already practise. Have you ever heard the phrase " when you think you're 90% of the way there, you're really only halfway there.

I'm sharing what I've learned- not so that you follow my concepts exactly, but rather so that you can be thoughtful about your own leadership and needs.

It's in a "compendium"-ish style - it couldn't have been in another way - it jumps from one topic to another, explaining the gist of the topic; with references to contemporary books specialized on different leadership topics. Overall this book can be valuable to someone new to leading people and/or software projects and thus probably delivers on the promises of its title. Though the book is meant to address people in management, individual contributors are welcome to read the book as well- perhaps you need to manage up and need some tools to help guide the conversation, perhaps you just want a peek at other concerns within the business- everyone is invited to the conversation. There seem to be millions of articles and "how to"s on programming and only a handful of resources on Engineering Management- why?

Learn to Balance People Management and Technical Leadership: As an engineering manager, you’re required to manage both people and technical aspects of a project. While the book may be helpful for non-technical managers new to managing engineering teams, it is unlikely to provide any new insights or strategies for those already experienced in the field. I like that it explains different psychological concepts of management and how to be a better servant leader. Sarah has such deep knowledge on this subject and generously lays out plans and thoughtful approaches that you can apply immediately to your teams (and learn from if you're considering management in the first place)!Drasner recommends promoting a culture of teamwork, where each team member feels valued and plays a critical role in the project’s success. It can be very tough for those of us who didn't go into Engineering with the distinct concept that we would become managers, but still want to do our best to support our teams. However reading it with some experience, there is nothing that goes beyond obvious things or high-level summaries of concepts from other books.