Helping engineers manage people

by

Helping engineers
manage people

Equipping technical specialists to handle the realities of people management

Deep Tech Scale-up (300 employees)

#Managers

Helping engineers manage people

Equipping technical specialists to handle the realities of people management

Deep Tech Scale-up (300 employees)

#Managers

Context

A fast-growing deep tech company (~300 employees) was scaling rapidly, with highly specialised engineers stepping into management roles. While technically strong, many had limited experience or interest in people management.

The Challenge

Managers were either avoiding people management or relying heavily on HR to handle situations for them.

As the business grew, this approach became unsustainable.

Previous attempts at manager development had been too generic or ad hoc, failing to engage a technical audience or translate into day-to-day behaviour.

Our Approach

Rather than positioning this as traditional manager training, we reframed it as a series of practical problem-solving sessions.

The focus was on real situations managers were already dealing with, such as feedback, performance conversations, reviews, career development, and influencing across projects.

Each session was structured like a technical problem, focusing on how to diagnose what’s happening, explore options, and take action.

This made the content immediately relevant, while avoiding language and formats that often disengage technical audiences.

The overall design was intentionally light-touch, making it easy to engage with and apply.

What Changed

Managers became more willing to engage in people-related conversations, rather than avoiding or escalating them.

Conversations around performance and development became more direct and practical.

Engagement was consistently strong, with managers applying the approaches in their day-to-day work.

The HR team was able to step back from routine management issues, freeing up capacity to focus on broader priorities.

Why It Worked

The work met managers where they were, framing people challenges in a way that felt familiar and solvable.

By focusing on real situations rather than abstract concepts, managers could immediately apply what they learned.

Keeping the approach lightweight ensured it fit within the realities of a fast-moving, technically focused organisation.

Further Reading

Seeing similar challenges in your organisation?

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