The 3 roles in any organization

It was one of the first business books that I had read, and I loved every word of it.

I was a bit of a late bloomer when it came to reading…

or really anything involving hard work for that matter.

I cheated my way through middle school and high school and barely even had the discipline to read something from to bottom. It wasn’t until I graduated high school that I began to see the world differently (that story is for another email).

One of the earliest business books I read was titled The E-myth Revisited : Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber

In his book, he talks about 3 roles that are present in any company, and how they each are both vital to the organization but also can wildly differ from one another

Today I’m excited to share my thoughts on it all with you so that whether you’re thinking of starting your own business

…you’re already a business owner

…or perhaps you’re looking to grow in your career - this framework will hit home.

What We’re Going to Talk About

1. The Engineer

2. The Manager

3. The Entrepreneur

The Engineer knows how to do his work, and can do it well.

And that’s all the engineer wants to do - work.

The Engineer brings incredible hard skills to the table and without him, the organization couldn’t exist. The engineer loves to do his trade and is a reliable valuable asset to the company.

When I think of the engineer in a finance & accounting function, I think of the staff accountant…or maybe even the controller.

They are the ones every day performing the bank reconciliations…classifying transactions…paying vendors.

But the Engineer is just one role in a complex organization - if you want to get the most out of your career, you’ll have to learn not only how to do the work but also how to empower others to do their work.

The Manager does exactly what the name implies….she MANAGES.

And by managing, that can be:

• People (IE the Engineer)
• Projects
• Deadlines, deliverables, etc.

I’ve seen many people in my career make incredible Engineers…but poor managers. And I’ll bet you have too.

A Manager faces a tradeoff - for every minute that she manages, she has 1 minute less to perform the actual work.

Some people dream of this scenario, where you can empower others to do your job….

others falter and never quite understand how to delegate work and empower your staff.

The Manager has a crucial responsibility: to empower the Engineers to perform their jobs well and to foster new managers in her Engineers.

But the Manager isn’t where it ends. There’s one more role that feeds an organization

The Entrepreneur is the final role in the organization that brings everything together.

It’s the Entrepreneur that’s responsible for setting the direction of the company.

By direction, I mean which initiatives and projects will be prioritized.

But it’s not just the direction of the company.

It’s the Entrepreneur who sets the ultimate rules for each and every department.

The Entrepreneur may not be the one carrying out the work…or even understanding the minute details behind everything that goes into the work…but the Entrepreneur puts the applicable Managers in place who will then manage the Engineers.

That means that the Entrepreneur has a very daunting task:

Never.

Stop.

Learning.

There’s SO MUCH to learn about in a business across all of the departments, and it’s the Entrepreneurs job to ensure those lessons are internalized and applied correctly & timely.

This may seem scary & overwhelming, but to me…it’s just the opposite - the Entrepreneur is the most exciting role of them all…the investment you can make in learning is incredible and you’ll constantly have a chance up at bat to put your learnings to work.

But that doesn’t mean it’s the end goal for everyone.

Some people are fine being Managers and following the vision set by others.

Others are fine being Engineers and sticking to doing what they love best.

It’s all really a matter of personal preference.

There are 3 roles in any organization. The Engineer, The Manager, and the Entrepreneur

The Engineer does the work, and excels at it….

The Manager oversees the work and empowers those to do their job well while promoting growth and job satisfaction.

The Entrepreneur sets the vision for the company and is responsible for bringing it all together.

So what’s the big takeaway? Well…here’s how I‘d put it.

First, you can’t really become a good Manager if you aren’t a good Engineer.

I’ve seen people in managerial roles before who you can easily tell weren’t cut out for the role because they didn’t have the technical skills to empower & manage those less experienced than them.

It’s hard to follow the advice and direction of someone who you feel isn’t as capable as you are.

And the reverse is true…just because you are a good Engineer doesn’t mean you’ll make a good manager. In fact, I’d argue it’s less common to be great at both of these - they each require different skills, and you can be an incredible asset to an organization if you possess both of these skills.

And lastly…the Entrepreneur. Here’s my biggest takeaway…

Just because you are a good Engineer or a good Manager, does not mean you will make for a good Entrepreneur.

It’s a whole new set of responsibilities and risk tolerance that simply aren’t present with Engineers and Managers.

Just because you know how to cook pasta doesn’t mean you should open an Italian restaurant.

Just because you know how to close the books doesn’t mean you should open up your own accounting firm.

And that’s OK…not everyone needs to be an Entrepreneur…it’s a matter of personal preference.

But enough about my take on all of this - now I want to hear from you.

Have you ever witnessed a strong Engineer, but a poor manager?

Have you ever witnessed someone take the role of an Entrepreneur, only to realize he/she really is best being an Engineer or Manager?

Share your thoughts by replying to this email.

Have a great weekend!

Josh Your CFO Guy