I've been spending time studying today, and realized that management principles, executed properly, will result in a well-run organization. All the jokes you hear about managers being incompetent, heartless people are probably based on experiences dealing with "poor" managers. I once thought of management being a "fall-back" point to my career as a techie. The more I learn, the more I realize that this "management thing" is a real career in its own right; and that it is a career which, like any other, requires that you keep on learning and honing your skills. There is a world-wide organization (Project Management Institute - or PMI) that has set certification standards and apparently, the membership ranks are relatively small. Managers with the Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification are highly sought after (verified by reading ads for Project Managers), and striving for this certification will consume the next few years of my professional life. The company I work for has over 12000 employees, and fewer than 30 PMPs. My goal will be to continue on the management track, with the ultimate aim of reaching PMP certification within three years.