- Clearly not aware of the difference between “an individual” and “team dynamics”
- Unaware of the huge amount of organizational work that happens behind the scenes that someone needs to do (and I guarantee that you wouldn’t want to do that as an Engineer)
- Unaware of how much an EM shields their team as the frontline for questions, planning, prioritization, feasibility
- HR is never gonna be there to guide or mentor your Engineering career, which an EM will
Even the most senior engineers need guidance, and that’s what your EM is for.
The EM typically steps in to fill voids until they find qualified people to do these things. Not every Engineer is good as tech leads, nor as project managers, so it takes time to get them up-to-speed or find someone else.