The typical job description for many engineering manager roles is action-packed.
Above all, an engineering manager is a service or support role across these various layers.
Perhaps most fascinating and difficult is the high-level of ambiguity that comes with engineering management.
Many problems or questions dont have straightforward answers.
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Research from performance coach and trainer Paloma Medina exposes six core needs humans have (including at work).
The failure to meet core needs has high costs for organizations by harming people on our teams.
So how can engineering managers put the BICEPS model into action to help their teams thrive?
Here are a few places to start building trust within your team.
Ask questions
One of the most powerful tools managers have is asking good questions.
Asking questions helps us adjust our leadership style to the people we are leading.
It also ensures that they feel understood and heard, which are really important pillars of inclusion and belonging.
At first I did not understand their strong reaction.
What managers might perceive as no big deal can be enormous threats to other people.
It is not always possible to go with what everyone wants.
Supporting your teams success can make a real difference for them.
This is the foundation of our work as engineering managers.
According to research, high-performing teams need the following elements.
Luckily for managers, this research neatly aligns with the BICEPS model.
All human core needs are represented and have impact at the team level as well.
Build trust
The first step in creating structure is building relationships.
Structure around how we collaborate
Our engineering department has doubled in size for three years in a row.
Over this time, weve moved to a more streamlined engineering delivery process for all teams.
Every team has specific needs, and they know best how to address them.
Remove blockers
Structures can also help mitigate the impact of getting blocked at work.
We all know how frustrating it is to be stuck.
Continuously improve
We can use retrospectives to discuss and improve how we work together.
Blameless postmortems are also a great tool to help understand problems and drive towards solutions.
Code reviews, mentoring, or knowledge sharing can help team members learn from each other.
The way we talk about learning matters especially the way we discuss mistakes.
Always repeat whats important.
As engineering managers, we are like mortar: we connect structures, teams, and people.
We hold them together, but also identify and fill gaps as needed.
Handling ambiguity is one of the most important and difficult aspects of engineering management.
For a lot of work in our field, there are no straightforward answers, let alone resolutions.
Our work isnt so much about us; its about the people, teams, and organizations we support.
We build structures to help others shine.
Supporting organizational change
Lastly, creating environments in which engineers can thrive is about supporting our organization.
Manage up
Managing our own managers is a useful but difficult skill.
They also help level the playing field and build in equality for the people on our teams.
In our daily work, we hold vast amounts of uncertainty while also trying to make progress.
An overarching theme in my work in engineering management has been growth and improvement.
We rarely deal with greenfield projects or are able to build a team or department from scratch.
Even when we do, we build on existing structures in our organization.
As engineering managers, we frequently face questions that dont clear right or wrong answers.
Get to know the people that you work with, and use feedback to help them course-correct.
Build teams that are psychologically safe places, where people find meaning in a shared purpose.
And use your power and privilege to drive change in your organization.
Always push to continuously improve.
Lead with humbleness, empathy, and lots of curiosity.
