CAD Manager and Staff

CAD Managers have to work with and through others to get things done.  They have to work with people that they hire,but mostly they work with people they do not hire.  Others hire them.  They report to other managers. They are promoted by others and they are fired by others.  Some CAD Managers wish that they could fire some people 🙂

Working with employees that others hire and fire does not mean that you have no input into the process at all.  You can seek to have a part in the hiring and promotions and also give indications to the managers of those employees that may not be contributing to the firm in a positive way.

Here are some ideas about getting involved in the processes that you do not control.

Set up a screening process for new hires. This may be a CAD Test or something that attempts to verify the validity of a candidates statements about their technical ability. There are commercially available CAD Test or you could make your own. It could be a written test or it may include an actual drawing component.  I have used both.

Become part of the interview process. It could be that you become part of the interviewprocess and actually get some time to talk to new hire candidates.  I have done this before.  It was just a casual conversation about what software they used, how long they have been doing it and where they worked before. During this chat, I was looking for language that made me believe they actually have used the software to the level they stated.  I would ask a couple of direct questions about advanced software areas or maybe ask them questions about the standard they use to use.  All of this was to see the comfort level of their interaction and what level  they discussed.  Advanced users are usually very willing to discuss details while novice users will either avoid details or get them wrong.

Once the employee is hired – your interaction is not done.

Get involved in evaluations. I try to provide input into employee reviews if the employee is providing superior efforts or if they are detracting from the team.  Mostly the former.  Seldom and selectively on the latter.  Just email the manager or supervisor or have a conversation about the employees contributions.  It is a way of complimenting the good employees and helping managers see the negative side of an employee in an areas they may not notice.  I don’t do this for every employee just the top 5% or bottom 2%.

Staffing is part of your job and you can have input even if you are not the hiring manager.