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Managing Up: A Guide for Engineering Leaders

Effective engineering management isn’t just about leading a team; it's about navigating the broader organization and securing the resources your team needs to succeed. A crucial, often overlooked, skill is “managing up” – building a strong, productive relationship with your manager and other senior leaders. This isn't about manipulation; it’s about proactively communicating, anticipating needs, and framing your team’s work in a way that aligns with overall company objectives. When done effectively, managing up drives innovation, delivers impactful results, and advances your career.

Understanding the Landscape​

Before you can effectively manage up, you need to understand what motivates and drives your senior leaders. Generally, they prioritize a few key areas: strategic initiatives, financial performance, risk mitigation, and long-term vision – particularly concerning market expansion or new product development. However, these priorities can shift based on company stage, market conditions, or current crises. Recognizing these dynamics is the first step. Understand their pressures, what keeps them up at night, and how your team’s work contributes to the bigger picture.

Actionable Strategies for Effective Management​

Here are several practical strategies to help you build a strong working relationship with senior leaders:

  • Proactive Communication: Don’t wait for your manager to ask for updates. Regularly share progress, highlight successes, and proactively flag potential roadblocks. Transparency builds trust.
  • Frame Your Work in Business Terms: Avoid technical jargon and focus on the value your team delivers. How does your work contribute to revenue, cost savings, or strategic goals?
  • The “Situation-Impact-Ask” Framework: This is a powerful tool for communicating effectively. Briefly describe the situation, explain the impact (both positive and negative), and clearly articulate your ask (what you need from your manager or the organization). For example: "We've identified a performance bottleneck in the authentication service (situation). This is impacting user login times and could lead to a 5% drop in user engagement (impact). We need approval for two additional engineers to address this issue (ask)."
  • Anticipate Questions: Before presenting to senior leaders, anticipate their questions and prepare thoughtful answers. Consider different perspectives and potential concerns. Actively solicit questions during presentations to demonstrate openness and address concerns preemptively.
  • Leverage Data: Back up your requests and recommendations with data. Showcase key metrics like cycle time reduction, bug fix rate, code coverage, or user engagement improvements. Data builds credibility and makes your arguments more compelling.
  • Understand Their Working Style: Building strong relationships requires proactively understanding your manager's priorities and adapting your communication style to suit their preferences. Are they detail-oriented? Do they prefer quick summaries or comprehensive reports?
  • Communicate Preferences: Similarly, be open about how you best receive information and feedback. This creates a more effective and efficient working relationship.

Dealing with Challenges: When Managing Up Doesn't Go as Planned​

Despite your best efforts, there will be times when your requests are denied or your concerns are overlooked. In these situations, it's important to remain professional and persistent.

  • Seek Clarification: Ask for specific feedback on why your request was denied. Understanding their reasoning will help you refine your approach in the future.
  • Document Your Efforts: Before escalating an issue, document your attempts to resolve it directly with your manager. This demonstrates your commitment to finding a solution and provides valuable context if you need to involve others.
  • Escalate Strategically: If you've exhausted all other options, escalate the issue to the appropriate level, but do so carefully. Avoid "going over your boss's head" without proper justification. Focus on the impact to the business, not personal grievances.

The Shift in Focus for Engineering Managers​

Effective “managing up” represents a crucial shift in focus for engineering managers. It's about moving beyond technical leadership and embracing a broader perspective that aligns with the organization's goals. It requires adapting communication styles, proactively anticipating needs, and framing technical work in business terms. This proactive approach fosters trust, secures resources, and ultimately drives innovation and success for both your team and the company.

Conclusion​

Managing up isn’t about being manipulative or playing politics. It's about building strong, productive relationships, fostering open communication, and aligning your team's work with the broader company objectives. By implementing these strategies, you can empower your team to deliver impactful results, advance your career, and contribute to the success of the organization.