4 Simple Steps to High-Performing Engineering Teams for Engineering Managers
High-performing engineering teams are not the smartest. They are not the most experienced. The best engineering teams are exactly that… TEAMS. It’s not about IQ, but EQ (emotional and social intelligence). It’s less about brain-power and more about heart-power. Brains and experience surely help, but if you can’t get along and communicate well together […]
5 Tips for Maintaining a Healthy Culture at Engineering Firms
For engineering firms, a healthy culture that continues to evolve and adapt is the driving force for long-term company success. Positive work culture is linked to improved employee engagement, increased productivity, and higher profit margins. Simply put, happy employees equal happy clients and happy pockets. Wait — clients, too? Yes! Client churn is directly tied […]
A Message from Pearl Jam: Before You Become an Engineering Manager, Understand What Comes Along with the Title
“All the things that others want for me, can’t buy what I want because it’s free.” This a line from a song entitled “Corduroy” by the popular band Pearl Jam, led by famous vocalist Eddie Vedder. There has been much debate about the meaning of the song, but interviews with Vedder, as well as the lyrics, suggest […]
Three 3-Minute Articles to Discuss with Your Project Team to Create a Lifetime of Positive Change
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, that’s why you should do different activities that provide opportunities for a positive change. And here is an excellent example to do with your team… How to use this material and start a positive change: Discuss. Remind. Encourage. That’s my recommended […]
People Management: Top Guidelines to Develop Yourself and Your Team
“People management” — that’s the term nowadays for managing your people and yourself. It means you’re focusing on growing the employee side of your business. I’ve worked with engineers for over 20 years on the people management side of their business. That’s why my tagline is “If you don’t take care of your people, you […]
Discovering and Implementing New Technology in Your Civil Engineering Firm
Civil engineers are designers and builders of everything related to infrastructure: roads, bridges, dams, ports, and many others. While construction and maintenance of any asset happens in the physical world, there is a lot of work in the digital world that accompanies it. Today, I would like to talk about a few tips to discover and […]
The Engineering Management Skills Trilogy: Using the Theory of Constraints
Do you have engineering managers in your firm who are more effective than others? Every engineering company does. However, most companies are trying to “improve” them, but with no success. Why? They are not considering the Theory of Constraints. In this article, I will share how this theory can help you in all aspects of your company and […]
3 Traits Every Engineering Manager Needs to Develop
Managing a team of engineers is an awesome opportunity, but one that needs to be done well. In order to succeed, there are many traits you will want to develop so you can do the job effectively. In this article, we will focus on three key traits that, if you can develop as strengths, will […]
Thought Leadership: A Key to Stellar Service
Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik Every year, our business units prepare “Business Development” plans. This year, one of the major takeaways from our plans was the importance of thought leadership. A deep dive into the plans identified more than 120 “thought leaders” within Pennoni. As a firm with 56 years of history and experience, […]
Great Managers Communicate Differently With Different People by Doing This
Image by katemangostar on Freepik “To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” ~ Tony Robbins I pulled the quote above because I am reading a book entitled “Principles: Life and Work” by […]