Engineers as Corporate Stewards?

Re: But should engineers move further up the ladder, taking seats on the board of directors?

Yes.

The most important quality CEOs and board members bring to the table is leadership.

Having experiences as an engineer or other fields of expertese can be beneficial, but worthless if that person lacks the leadership and vision to utilize it.

Engineers can be leaders, but being a corporate leader or even a manager. those are very different mindsets that are required.

How many engineers do you know, will take ownership of running a company?

I have been running a successful company that I started from scratch for 23 years. I started it 5-1/2 years out of college. It can be done by an engineer, and in my opinion should. We received at least a year of Economics training in school, along with our specialized training. My company is not large, but with 25 employees, I have many of the tribulations facing any other CEO. I say "take the step"...you ARE trained for it.

I have always thought engineers can run the business better, but the more I was exposed to engineers, there are a majority that should not

Sure they took some core economics, management and even ethics. but if they been engineering for more than 15 years, with no advancement towards management. No, does not matter what courses they took in college, leaders lead.

A few extremely valuable traits that the typical engineer can bring to the typical board of directors is honesty, pragmatism, distaste for personality politics and a love of problem-solving. Hopefully, a little less interest in protecting the bottom line. What a lot of engineers lack is highly refined communications skills.

A little over six months ago I took on managing a notoriously challenging project, my first. At first, the incumbents were freaked out that I failed to "manage the message," or cared much for doing it. I suggested that maybe the program just needs to get used to me and my frankness (and smart-assedness). That seems to be happening, to the betterment of the program... So far.

Of course, I am also learning to make my warnings and briefings a little less blunt.

I don't know about the rest of the world, but I get warm fuzzies when the corporate spokescritter describing an incident response is replaced by a slightly-disheveled, plain-talking, no-BS engineer. It means that someone's on the job who cares more about solving the problem than how it looks.

As a engineer describing an engineer may be considered bias.

but I get warm fuzzies when the corporate spokescritter describing an incident response is replaced by a slightly-disheveled, plain-talking, no-BS engineer.

There are non engineers that do this also,

Have you listed any bad traits engineers can have? You have to keep in mind, engineers can have a different way of thinking and are not god-like.

Have you listed any bad traits engineers can have? You have to keep in mind, engineers can have a different way of thinking and are not god-like.

Hey, speak for yourself.

Of course the infamous introverted or anti-social engineer will struggle on a corporate board, and those of us obsessed with tech for tech's sake are handicapped. I thought by italicizing "typical" twice I'd covered all those "other" considerations.

nice comment to finish that off.

and speaking for myself is a topic I love.

That is a very wide brush your painting with. Lord John Brown is not a good example engineers that make good corporate stewards. http://www.politicolnews.com/lord-john-brown-bp-oil/

As an engineer and to his initial credit, he is the one that turned BP around. Until greed took over and change the culture of BP from safety to greed.

And safety is the foundation of engineering. His engineering background didn't help this now did it.

Remember engineers start out with a good solid mind set. But in a corporate world. Decisions that are compromised have to be made. And in John Brown case. He set a path for BP that was not very engineering like. And no warm fuzzy feeling will change that. Only hard decision making, that never resembles anything warm and fuzzy.

President of my Company started as an Engineer, and this is a solid company that's absolutely great to work for.

Why only on the board of directors? In my state Maharashtra India our Chief Minister is Engineer qualified from U.S. In past India's Power Minister was qualified Electrical Engineer. So engineers can also be successful politians too.

I say yes granted they have the training and acumen for the job. I made it to "jr. executive in a large corporation, but there's only room at the top for one! :-) I've also managed engineers with far more education than I had that would readily admit that they were not cut out for any type of management job. I've also seen Sr. managers that moved back into the ranks of hands-on engineering because they decided they could do that better than manage. It does take a certain "type" to be able to do it.

"should engineers move further up the ladder, taking seats on the board of directors? Does an engineer's technical and business knowledge add value in the role?"

The second question may be worthy of discussion, the first is just ridiculous. Judging from this website engineers are a varied lot. Asking if "engineers are suitable for managment is the same as asking if redheads make good managers, or if left handed people should be managers.

I think engineers will make great managers on odd numbers days in even numbered months after 10AM but before 3PM when the sun is shining. Otherwise no way.

makes me want you to move to china, and give America a fighting chance.

He's come up with one of the best supporting points for moving engineers into more responsible positions, and he's admitted that he's a lawyer, and you want to get rid of him? It sounds like he's one of the good lawyers.

I didn't care what you say, I am not removing my GA I gave him.

in other words, there is no critical thinking on their cultural path to modernize their country. And critical thinking plays a big part in engineering. But it was not pointed out whether they were good or poor engineers.

Its like the saying, what do you call a student studying to be a doctor who rated last in his class when he graduates?..............A doctor.

I would like to give you a G.A. on this because it is an excellent point. But to clarify that I am not waffling, I like to point out that I gave a GA on the previous post, on his point of engineers and not because of my respect (very little) to the legal industry.

There's a big difference

in China when the boss makes a very bad decision, he's taken out back & shot

Here there is a golden parachute & bankruptcy protection

If I may Gentlemen:

Let me quickly reverse engineer this and I end up with:

Corporate Stewards as Engineers.

There you have it, it cuts both ways. Horses for courses. In this race toward every body being in/on the right seat at the right time and on the favorite project, with the education needed to be were they are, it should be mandatory for the top echelon to be able to swap positions at the drop of a hat.

The people with the best ideas do not always get the appropriate consideration. The specialized knowledge of cutting edge engineering and management has to be not only understood but be allowed to thrive after the introduction of "newies", changes of whatever kind. The bigger the company the more inertia has to be overcome.

Communication, if not restricted and guided by trivia, is the only way to go for any of the parties. Communicate with your peers and don't do it in meetings but on the golf course or while fishing or whatever the most relaxed environment could be. There is nothing I could not explain with a putter in a sand bunker ;-)

I am only a small time inventor but have seen both sides and could be in a position one day to decide on very important matters. Being up to date with the technical side of matters is just not good enough. The modern engineer has to be comfortable in both camps. The question of, "Am I up to it", will always remain, in both camps.

"It's the economy idiot"

You know guys, we are altogether in this and bitching about other persons positions or how much they deserve, not deserve to be were they are, seldom brings results. In the end this fruitful exchange could decide over the state, fate of a nation.

Was it not here were the top cocky, president, chair steps in? I mean the real boss, the one who knows his culprits and has the last word? The one with the wisdom to keep the ship on course?

Oh oh, politics, for me it's back to the drawing board, Ky.

PS: My hopes and prayers go out to the victims of the recent tornado's in your country. Be strong! Our thoughts are with you.