Why Technical Leadership Matters
I recently shared a Harvard Business Review podcast titled Why Technical Leaders Make Great Managers and the response was notable. And I'm not surprised at all. When I speak with experienced professionals, one of their most common frustrations is that their managers have no idea what they actually do.
There is a deep rooted frustration and resentment when your direct leader or supervisor asks you for updates or revisions to a project plan that make no sense in the context of the work being done. Often the level of frustration is directly correlated to the degree of aloofness the question comes from.
Having managed individual contributors and managers, I can fully appreciate that it's not possible to know 100% of every individual contributor or manager's role. However, that being said, I do think it's a reasonable expectation for leaders to know at least 75% of what's involved to do the job.
While technical leadership may mean that you do not have the same credentials or experiential, or educational background, to me it’s not an excuse not to try to learn what staff do. It’s important to appreciate that technical leadership can take place in all settings and industries ranging from manufacturing, healthcare, education, or consulting. As a leader, it is your responsibility to take time to interview, shadow, observe, conduct focus groups, understand the day-to-day work and challenges of your staff.
It may seem time consuming to get in the weeds with staff, but trust me, if you take the time to learn what your team does, it will pay off immensely in the short and long run:
It improves your strategy sessions as you have a deeper appreciation of the work being done on the ground and at the mid-level.
It will help you understand which decisions make the most sense for staff to make directly in time-sensitive situations and what opportunities you have to delegate even more.
It will aid your leadership development and succession planning as you will be able to see which member of your team truly connects with and has the respect of their team.
It will start building foundational trust and mutual respect between the layers of your organization and allow for faster change management response.
As you think of your staff and the work you do, honestly ask yourself if you could jump into their role for a day and get 75% of the job done. If not, you have an opportunity to dive in and learn more about how your team and organization operate. Investing time in learning about the day-to-day work of your team will improve your organizational understanding and your ability to effectively lead your team.