People(engineers) don't leave jobs anymore; they leave managers. I've seen so many bad managers in my career that I strongly believe we should get rid of that extra layer. Here's the reasons why:<p>1- Managers are expensive.<p>2- Manager = Dispatcher. They dispatch tasks coming from above and make sure work is done.<p>3- They push engineers, they don't pull them (leader vs boss).<p>4- They don't treat people equally.<p>5- Micro management, micro managerment, micro management...<p>6- We have to deal with their personalities.<p>7- We have to justify everything we do
etc.<p>What are your thoughts? I believe companies should minimize layers of management and invest in a more self-managed company culture.
Google tried this in 2000, it was an absolute disaster.<p>Managers also:<p>1. Handle administrative concerns like requests for leave, vacations, illnesses, deaths in the family, etc.<p>2. Understand each of their reports' career goals and try to put them on projects where they can grow & contribute best.<p>3. Handle personality conflicts between individuals on the team.<p>4. Make sure that individual contributors get recognition for their work.<p>5. Encourage their team to keep going in the face of obstacles.<p>6. Protect their team from interruptions by handling many of the external inquiries themselves.<p>7. Connect team members with relevant collaborators in other parts of the organization.<p>Now, there are good managers and bad managers, and typically good managers will do more of the activities on my list while bad managers will do more of the activities on your list. But that isn't a reason to get rid of managers entirely. Rather, it's a reason to invest in manager training, make sure they understand their role, and ensure that you've hired good managers and fire the bad ones.
Sounds like you've seen engineering management done badly, and you don't like it. But if you saw a self-managed team done badly, you wouldn't like that, either.<p>Good engineering management insulates you from the corporate politics and irrelevant stuff going on above you. You really want that insulation, because those who don't do corporate politics can still have politics done to them.
Managers operate the company, and serve as a buffer between me and even more managers or executives. I don't want to do that, and I'm glad someone else is willing.<p>It sounds like you're currently working for some managers that should be left. They aren't all like that.
I agree, Managers are extra layer & expensive but in reality without them, there would be chaos in the company. I think it would be better to either hire the best or fire & re-hire.