Scenario 4—You avoid making decisions

An engineering manager takes on the leadership of an engineering team. The manager wants to do a good job in their new position and develop a good track record. They hope to make the most of the opportunity they have been given, so they become focused on showing good performance in their role. They don’t want to disappoint their manager or peers for any reason. As the engineering team goes about its work, the manager is careful not to overcommit. They make safe choices and follow practices that are well established within the company. When potentially impactful decisions come up, the manager defers the decision to the engineering team or outside of the team. If the decision can’t be deferred, they look for a compromise of the available options so that no strong opinion is taken and all options are left open. As this pattern continues, the engineers on the team begin to consult the manager less and less often since the manager...