Engineering management is not bullshit in my opinion. It is, and always been, an organization-specific role. This leads to the ambiguities that can be frustra

Engineering management is not bullshit in my opinion. It is, and always been, an organization-specific role. This leads to the ambiguities that can be frustrating. There are two distinct roles in an engineering organization: staffing, process and engineering resources (indirect), and product/project development and delivery (direct). Relegating staffing, process and resource decisions to non-engineers (e.g. HR) is not the best solution. It takes experience and expertise to build a good staff and engineering culture. That is the job of engineering managers. Do engineering managers act as mentors? Sure, and they can also provide technical input. But that’s just one of their many responsibilities. Roughly 30 years ago, this same discussion was happening around something called a “matrix organization.” It was the same confusion of responsibilities under a different name. Everything works fine when everyone stays in their lane (managers, I mean) and pushes in the same direction. It takes coordination, and it’s not something that people can reinvent on a daily basis. In short: Make a plan for your organization, write it down, show it to everyone (over and over again like beating a drum) and then stick with it. For those who don’t comply, send them packing.