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When your much lauded management hands you a ball of wire and a lantern battery and expects a miracle

Catwell
Many times have I heard my friends and colleges being caught in this situation, having to alone produce an engineering feat equivalent to a miracle. So much is expected from them with no back up from the company. Perhaps many dream to be that maverick, brilliant, engineer that turns a corporation around, propelling them into fame and fortune. But often enough they fail to deliver, at no fault of their own, due to the company not backing them up.

To illustrate the point; here are some examples from some fellow engineers:
 
Re-design an entire product line from the ground up. No help from anyone, our fellow engineer was burdened with design difficulties beyond his expertise.
Result: Products were not done fast enough; the corporation was downsized.

Required to make a fringe idea a reality. The company promised another larger company they would deliver a working prototype in a short amount of time. Our fellow engineer was pressured at every step to make this concept.
Result: It was not feasible with the budget; the company lost the contract. And our engineer was laid off.

Formally trained as an electrical engineer, our next fellow engineer was required to design mechanical drive components, software in an esoteric language, as well as all the electrical hardware. Every time he spent time on one aspect of the design, management said to work on another.
Result: With no plan and no help, our engineer was unable to complete much before the management board a deemed unfit for employment. He was terminated. The company never finished said product despite outsourcing.
 
Perhaps it's a sign of the times, but the modern engineer is expected to be a renaissance engineer, a wiz kid, and a prodigy. And we are to some degree. But often enough we have to bend space and time, while remaining under budget and constant pressure from management, or we lose our jobs.
 
 
Share your stories of impossible demands; if you achieved them, and if you didn't.

Cabe

  • Hi Cabe,

     

    If an engineer is back upped by his management he will feel less stress and this is good for his creativity. Also he is more willing to accept assignments beyond his expertise, without have the risk of carreer consequences in case of failure. This is the best environment to work in. I know that this is not real life... management most of the time do not trust their engineers as they have the reputation of making things more complicated as they are and always seeing the negative side of things (risk analysis!?). The same lack of respect is seen between all functions within a company. I think the best approach would be trying to do your own job as efficient as possible and hoping that the 'next' guy in line will do the same. A company is pretty much a complicated machine where everyone is part of the machine. One failing part might mean that the whole machine is down...

     

    Best regards,

     

    Enrico Migchels

  • Hello Cabe,

     

    Your outlook on life is way too negative for me - look on the bright side !!!!

     

    Ask not for examples of management screw-ups, bailed out or not by the heroic efforts of engineers, but instead look for those examples where inspired leadership has achieved great things for both company and employees.

     

    I've been on both sides of the fence, being an engineer and running a company employing several engineers. For the last 9 years I have worked on my own as an independent engineer.

     

    I have worked with some great engineers, managers and sales people - none of them perfect in every way but I've found I learn much more by looking for what people can do rather than what they can't.

     

    If your boss or customer doesn't see things your way is it because he's wrong or you're wrong  - or perhaps you are not making the effort to speak his langauge. When your colleagues don't understand (on a regular basis) perhaps you need to explain better.

     

    I rather like managers - they get to look after all the boring stuff I hate like getting the floors swept and the bins emptied !

  • in reply to michaelkellett

    Hi Michael,

     

    You are right in your way. You have been on both sides of the fence. You understood the dynamics and then set up your organization with the set of engineers who had your desired skill and who could perform what they are expected of.

     

    But, think of an ongoing organization where in difficult times(maybe for whatever reasons) the cream performers have left for greener pastures, and new are recruited to meet the immediate vacuum. Getting the right kind of people is often taxing in terms of time and effort. Pressure is built-up on the existing lot to perform.

     

    I think Cabe is referring to this. People who remain behind have their own seats to save. In the bargain, the average performers get targetted leaving behind the residue.

     

    Think over.

     

    Regards,

    Thomas

  • in reply to michaelkellett

    I've been on both sides too, and still am in fact. I have experienced the "design us a miracle" situation firsthand, aside from seeing it happen to others.

     

    So, I was wondering if this is a common happening in the community of design engineers. And at the same time, I also want to hear engineers boast as they tell a story of how they actually did create a miracle.

     

     

    A few times I've had great help from management and/or employees. I don't disagree, excellent management practices can lead to fantastic work output. But there is an uneven balance between the good and bad. So, tell us a story about either.

     

    Cabe