The Importance of Engineering Managers in Startups

The text discusses a VP Engineering's conflict with the CEO of a startup regarding the necessity of hiring engineering managers. The CEO believes that managers are unnecessary overhead, while the VP argues that managers are critical for coordinating teams and ensuring efficient operations. The text provides two ways to make the case for engineering managers: a complex argument based on systems theory and a simpler one based on the standard organizational structure in engineering organizations. It also emphasizes the importance of hierarchy for adaptability and scalability in complex systems. Additionally, it highlights the role of engineering managers in reducing coordination costs, improving efficiency, and holding teams accountable. The text ultimately argues that engineering managers are vital for ensuring that work happens and is done well, and that they are not unnecessary overhead in most cases.