Why are there so many bad bosses?
freakonomics.com
Why are there so many bad bosses?
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Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#2think for a minute: great engineers - i mean really great engineers - how many do you know? it's pretty rare right? it's an awesome thing and a scarce resource. think about how many you can mention. if you've been around it's not zero or one (yes of course you), but a handful. in my case 20-30. i feel lucky to say that.
now - how many great engineering managers have you come across? i mean really great, not just OK. not just barely acceptable. great - you'd want to work for. you'd quit if they left level great. in my case 2-3.
you think engineering is hard? engineering management is the rarest skill there is
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#3think for a minute: great engineers - i mean really great engineers - how many do you know? it's pretty rare right? it's an awesome thing and a scarce resource. think about how many you can mention. if you've been around it's not zero or one (yes of course you), but a handful. in my case 20-30. i feel lucky to say that. now - how many great engineering managers have you come across? i mean really great, not just OK.…
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Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#4think for a minute: great engineers - i mean really great engineers - how many do you know? it's pretty rare right? it's an awesome thing and a scarce resource. think about how many you can mention. if you've been around it's not zero or one (yes of course you), but a handful. in my case 20-30. i feel lucky to say that. now - how many great engineering managers have you come across? i mean really great, not just OK.…
Wrong question. How many BAD engineers do you know? I've known a few great engineers and lots of good or ok ones, but few who are actually bad. They tend to not make it into the field, or else not to stay in it. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places?
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#5Power tripping money grabbers like... power and money. Bosses have those.
Jerks are motivated to climb the ranks and willing to climb over you.
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#6think for a minute: great engineers - i mean really great engineers - how many do you know? it's pretty rare right? it's an awesome thing and a scarce resource. think about how many you can mention. if you've been around it's not zero or one (yes of course you), but a handful. in my case 20-30. i feel lucky to say that. now - how many great engineering managers have you come across? i mean really great, not just OK.…
Wrong question. How many BAD engineers do you know? I've known a few great engineers and lots of good or ok ones, but few who are actually bad. They tend to not make it into the field, or else not to stay in it. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places?
This. There are a few great and lots of ok engineers. But when it comes to managers, the scale is reverse. there are a lot of bad mangers and a few ok ones. yet to meet a great manager personally. May be its because the managers skill set is hard to measure?
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#7Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wrong question. How many BAD engineers do you know? I've known a few great engineers and lots of good or ok ones, but few who are actually bad. They tend to not make it into the field, or else not to stay in it. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places?
This. There are a few great and lots of ok engineers. But when it comes to managers, the scale is reverse. there are a lot of bad mangers and a few ok ones. yet to meet a great manager personally. May be its because the managers skill set is hard to measure?
And you train quite a bit to be an engineer before you start making money on it. Math starts in kindergarten sometimes (not necessarily good, but still), science in early grades. Orchestrating groups, recognizing performance, mentoring, environmental politics? Maybe you have a truly elite family to train you on that, but it’s mostly just kids sorting by bullying and popularity. (This is where the power tripping jerks learn some of the skills that serve them well.) Then by the time you have some of it informally figured out, boom you’ve graduated (college, this is engineering) and no more practice rounds.
I’d look to the armed forces for an alternative set of models.
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#8Since I became an engineering manager myself, I find myself looking back with more sympathy to my past managers. Engineers are difficult people to manage.
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#9Maybe the right question is: how do you become a great boss?
Getting promoted to an EM position is one thing. Getting good at it is... very hard, and requires new skills. There's very little in your day to day job as an engineer that prepares you to become a good EM.
One can both be a bad EM and become a good one.
The key questions are:
- Does the person have a growth mindset?
- Is the environment helping the new EM grow?
Re: Why are there so many bad bosses?
#10Because the feedback loops are broken, is probably part of the answer.
A bad engineer simply does not deliver. In a way, the product provides feedback to the engineer by not working.
But providing feedback to a bad manager from below rarely ends well. So people work around them.