Attributes Of Technology Leaders
- Conference
- Location
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Honolulu, Hawaii
- Publication Date
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June 24, 2007
- Start Date
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June 24, 2007
- End Date
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June 27, 2007
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Continuing Professional Development
- Page Count
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8
- Page Numbers
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12.300.1 - 12.300.8
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--1780
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/1780
- Download Count
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448
Paper Authors
John Robertson Arizona State University
John Robertson has been Professor of Microelectronics at ASU’s Polytechnic campus since 2001. He was previously a Program Director with Motorola. He serves on the JACMET Technical Advisory Board and delivers a number of courses in the Chief Engineer Certificate program.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
Attributes of technology leaders
Abstract
A consortium of companies and universities has developed a certificate to help prepare senior engineers to become technology executives. One of the learning outcomes is that the target jobs are very diverse and demanding. To qualify that outcome, the participating groups have prepared a list of the attributes they consider to be essential in a technical leader. The desired attributes can be broadly considered in four groups: personal features, communication ability, operational (management) capabilities and technical skills. The paper concentrates on personal attributes since they are essential to the successful application of the other skills. A simple process has been identified to develop the personal skills in early industry training and in academic technology programs.
Introduction and scope
Over the past 30 years, most high-technology companies have developed dual paths to technology leadership. One route is for technical specialists. It is often called a ‘Technical Ladder’ and it is a way to retain and recognize the depth of expertise needed for the business. The other path is through project management which requires broad experience in many contributing functions. The paths are represented in figure 1 which shows the trade-off between breadth and depth. New engineering or technology graduates enter the job market with specific discipline skills and would normally stay with that specialization unless they make a deliberate move into project management.
Project manager
Technology executive Breadth
Specialist
New graduate
Depth Figure 1. Technical career path options
Robertson, J. (2007, June), Attributes Of Technology Leaders Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--1780
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