Posts

Hardware Development Team Composition - Managing Roles & Responsibilities

-
Image
While the previous article focus on Engineering roles , this piece gives an overview of common managing roles and responsibilities in hardware development teams. Usually the key roles - Product Manager, Supply Chain Manager, Technical Program Manager - are organized among the founders team in early stages and might even be taken by a single person. The below overview will help to identify required tasks and at a later  stage discuss team growth and the changing role of the founder. For established companies, the roles and responsibilities are almost the same but depending on the companies setup might become more focused on sub-responsibilities e.g. implementing a dedicated Warranty Manager or Sub-System Project Manager.  Photo by Eden Constantino on Unsplash Product Manager  Product Manager act at the intersection between customer, company management and hardware development. They play a crucial role and are one of the best communicators in your team - unbiased, able ...
2 comments
Read more

Embracing Diversity in Engineering Teams: Unleashing the Power

-
Image
Short foreword: Thank you Clare Sayas Ronning for all your input on this piece. It took longer than expected until I felt ready to publish. Your insights are gold and this article would not be half as good without your feedback in input. “CEB research found that in a more diverse and inclusive workforce, individual discretionary effort improves by 12%, intent to stay improves by 20%, and team collaboration and commitment improve by about 50%.” (Source: Gartner / CEB Study ) *Diversity* – a term often echoed in today's corporate landscape, encompassing a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. When it comes to engineering teams, recognizing the immeasurable value of diversity becomes even more critical. Study after study has conclusively showcased numerous advantages that diverse engineering teams possess, revolutionizing not only the way we work but also the solutions we create.  This article offers valuable insights to hiring managers and leaders, shedding light...
Post a Comment
Read more

Composing a team - its all about skills

-
Image
Photo by Memento Media on Unsplash The previous articles gave an introduction to common roles seen in hardware development teams ( managing roles   and   engineering roles ). Those role descriptions and lists of common responsibilities give a good starting point to think about the tasks it takes to develop a hardware product and the skills required to master the tasks. As a start-up, you won’t hire for each role, you hire for skills and attitude - and flexibility. All team members will certainly switch their hats and jump between different roles, depending on the stage of product development and team size. This counts as much for start-up as for established small and mid-size companies. A tool, I recommend to use from the very beginning, is the Skill Matrix. The skill matrix maps and visualized required and desired skills. Of course, it can also get introduced at any time of the team building process and for every size of team. It serves as a tool for many purposes such as hir...
Post a Comment
Read more