Getting an engineering manager job.

How did you get your start doing engineering manager work, and what career moves did you make to get to your current position?

Do you need a particular educational background?

I had a very diverse engineering background a lucked into my present position. I found a company that needed my skills and did not care about the MBA. This is rare.
Many industries wrongly hire managers without true diverse engineering skills. For those companies you need to have at least an engineering degree with an MBA. You will also need and strong desire to manage and a keen political savvey. If any of these are missing you are out of luck.

I had the drive to lead for many years and learned management skills. Unfortunately I lacked the politics at my last company. I also lacked managers that were leaders willing to allow me to grow. This is yet another element crucial to that Engineering Manager skill.

As far as other skills, some are just part of being an engineer:
- critical thinking
- communication
- ability to make fast decisions
- ability to listen from below as well as above
- have a cool head
- good stress management
- etc...