Managing Scientific and Technical Personnel

This article begins by explaining the importance to managers of nurturing better work environments and interprofessional relations among scientific and technical personnel. Next, general personality traits of scientific and technical staff are culled from the literature. Third, the various literatures about how scientific and technical personnel say they want to be managed are highlighted. Then, this analysis is supplemented with findings gleaned from 21 in-depth interviews with environmental managers, scientists, and technicians who similarly assess this relationship. The discrepancy between conventional managerial principles and these perceptions is emphasized and its implications evaluated. Finally, general lessons learned from the analyses are presented, and proactive guidelines for managers are provided.

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