How to Run your Business Better....

Being a part of ACEC Virginia exposes me to numerous corporate leaders from varying backgrounds and disciplines in the engineering community.  A topic of conversation that pops up regularly focuses on aspects of improving one's business, be it a large corporation with thousands of employees or a small business with a much smaller staff. 

Several of the key challenges for any size engineering company relate to personnel management - you've climbed the corporate ladder through the years and subsequently been given greater responsibility because of your engineering skills, only to find that most of your corporate responsibilities involve little to no engineering expertise.  High level engineers often find themselves in corporate meetings with professionals with non-engineering backgrounds - accountants, lawyers, human resources, and other key staff making day to day decisions in an effort to improve their business.  Not much of a need for that bachelor of science in engineering in those meetings....  And how about your client relationships - how often does a client want to talk "techie" about the latest engineering breakthrough?  How much are your engineering skills helping you foster a positive relationship with your client? 

It's not uncommon to hear corporate leaders at ACEC Virginia meetings yearning for the days when they went to work and focused on engineering challenges and not financial, personnel, or other issues critical to a successful company.  Their typical daily routines don't utilize their skills developed through years of design and project management.  They've become experts in the corporate areas out of necessity.  Many will tell you "it is what it is..."

So how do companies tackle this issue?  For the most part the process hasn't changed much - your top engineers get promoted and have to learn corporate skills on the fly.  Groups like ACEC Virginia help as a source for corporate training, but much of the learning is on the job. 

This shift in responsibilities and associated gap between engineering skills and corporate management skills is a conversation I also have repeatedly with my best friend, who happens to be a licensed psychologist with a focus on executive coaching.  We've known each other for the last 25 years and I always find it interesting to get someone's opinion from a completely different professional background.  His point of view is different than the typical - "you're an accomplished engineer now take the next step" to more of a "look at where you want your company to go, then find the personalities that fit the best." 

So what's my point?  What's my suggestion?  I believe there are some simple ways to informally determine if your younger staff will make for a good future corporate leader.  Hopefully, you've worked with them long enough to know their integrity, intelligence, and other critical baseline skills - they have moved up your company engineering ladder after all!  But what about when their main responsibilities shift away from engineering towards corporate management skills?  How are they at personnel management?  Corporate relations?  Team building?  Financial success? 

So I employ my friends advice - first, where do I want our company to go...  Let's start with client relationships as I believe they are critical item #1.  I think most of my colleagues would agree that maintaining long term relationships with clients is key to any successful engineering business.  So what does that take?  Well, I'd like to think engineering expertise is 95% of it, but it isn't....  in fact, I would rate engineering expertise at maybe 50% of a determining factor in why a client chooses to work with our company.  So your individual moving up the corporate ladder hopefully has engineering expertise covered.  I may not list all of the critical factors towards a successful business in this blog, but personal relationships jump to mind as a huge % of the pie, and that's not something engineers are renowned for...  So if I stick to my friend's advice, who is going to get me there?  A friendly engineer?  Sounds kind of stupid at first, but in general, that's where I begin. 

Does the individual shy away from social interaction?  Do they call people back?  Check their messages regularly?  Do they participate in group settings or sit back and remain unheard?  Do they show a genuine interest in their client's lives?  Do they know their spouse - how many children do they have - their favorite sport team - anything of personal value?  How long has that engineer worked for that client, yet they know nothing of personal value about them?  Is that a problem?  Is that their problem?

For me, they don't have to be the Babe Ruth of 1 on 1 interaction, but at least show some interest - at least take a proactive approach to understanding who you work for and why...  I argue that a doctor can charge a high hourly rate more than an engineer because their interaction with you is personal, not because their expertise requires more intellect than engineering...  Same with a lawyer, why can they charge greater hourly rates than engineers in general, because their work requires greater expertise?  I don't think so, but their work may have a much greater personal impact on the client.  Everyone wants to have a good doctor or lawyer in their rolodex, how many want a good engineer?  Perhaps that's because engineering work doesn't have as personal an impact on the client - therefore it isn't as valued as much.  So if my up and comer doesn't take a personal interest in who they are working for - does that bode well for their corporate future? 

I doubt it - find me a corporate leader of any size company and ask them if they take it personally....  At some point it crosses a line - it isn't just a paycheck anymore.  How far it goes varies from person to person, but do I try to hammer a square peg into a round hole or do I look for someone who is more likely to accept their new responsibilities?  Do I ask that highly competent engineer who has worked hard for the company for years, but sits in the background and who struggles with social interaction to accept that as part of their new job responsibilities - or look for the individual that participates and shows an interest? 

For me, approaching the future per my friend's advice makes the decisions easier.  I don't have a crystal ball so you never know how a decision will turn out, but are engineers with solid, proactive social skills abundantly available - in my point of view - no.  But I'm keeping my eye out for them all the time as a way to improve our company's  business....