Preface

Hello and welcome to the Engineering Manager’s Handbook! In this book, we use the term engineering manager as a catch-all term for position titles such as software engineering manager, software development manager, and web development manager. Engineering manager has become the prevailing way to refer to these positions within the world of digital product development, so for better or worse, we will uphold that convention here.

There are excellent books that cover leadership topics in general and engineering management in particular, but there are not many that attempt to introduce as many topics as possible, including available research papers. This book endeavors to be that resource. In true handbook fashion, this book provides breadth more than depth, with the intention of conveying to you the appropriate terminology and concepts to build upon as needed. In touching upon important topics for engineering managers, emphasis is placed on how to think about the problems of management in order to arrive at reasonable solutions. I hope to convey why behaviors are important rather than just describing the ideal behaviors.

Comprehensiveness is an elusive undertaking, so I welcome any feedback you may have on what might further complete this text.