Notes for EM416 & EA302

Engineering Management
Lecture 1
Introduction
Why Study Management for Engineers?

• In their professional career, engineers will have to handle at some stage the
position of management. These can be top management, middle
management or project management. Therefore understanding the many
skills of a manager would prove to be a big help in their career
advancement.
• We now live in an era where jobs are no longer guaranteed for engineering
graduates. Qualified engineers must learn how to start a new business and
create new job opportunities for the community. The venture into start-ups
has grown into a new feature expected of engineering graduates.
Management is an important prerequisite in the creation of start-ups.
What exactly is management?
• Management is defined as the pursuit of organizational goals
efficiently and effectively.
• Some say management is the art of getting things done through
people.
• Efficiency is the means- of attaining the organizational goals. This
means to use resources- people, money, raw materials and the like-
wisely and cost-effectively
• Effectiveness is the ends. Effectiveness is the organization’s ends, the
goals. To be effective is to achieve results, to make the right decisions,
and to successfully carry them out so that they achieve the
organization’s goals
What then are the rewards of studying and
practicing Management?
• You will understand how to deal with organizations from the outside-
as a customer or investor

• You will understand how to relate to your supervisors

• You will understand how to interact with coworkers

• You will understand how to manage yourself in the workplace

What are the seven challenges to being an
exceptional manager?
• Managing for competitive advantage- staying ahead of rivals-
responsive to customers, innovation, quality and efficiency
• Managing for diversity- gender, age, race and ethnicity
• Managing for Globalization
• Managing for Information Technology- project management software,
data bases, telecommuting, video-conferencing, collaborative
computing and knowledge management
• Managing the ethical standards
• Managing for Sustainability- the green business
• Managing for your own happiness and life goals
What are the four management functions?

• Planning

• Organizing

• Leading

• Controlling
Three types of Managerial Roles
• Interpersonal roles- interact with people inside and outside the unit

• Informational roles- monitor, disseminator and spokesperson

• Decisional roles- entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource

allocator and negotiator