It's complicated; that's why there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. In the end, you want to have a good execution plan, and there's usually not just one and the same action to achieve that.
>As someone with a good amount of professional experience both as a developer and a designer, I'm consistently surprised by how quick so many developers are to assume their personal usage habits, osmosis-gained knowledge from projects, and folk wisdom about design trumps the expertise of seasoned credentialed professionals in the field.
Exactly! Too many people think that their personal preference is the best. Sometimes, the best solution is to have plain HTML where the user chooses their favorite font and size, like in the early Netscape era. However, that's not always the case.
I like to think I'm a good fit, but of course, I need to improve my skills, like anyone else. At the end of the day, we are working with people, and there's no one-size-fits-all solution. Sometimes the most skillful engineer is the best fit for the EM position. However, I truly believe that to get the best output, you want team members to commit as a group and to feel that it's rewarding to achieve goals and have personal development. Unfortunately, not everyone has the luxury of a long-term perspective.
My background is the opposite; I'm a mediocre software engineer but have quite good people skills. I'm experienced enough to know what takes time and which parts of the system are more critical than others. I have a few senior engineers whom I really listen to carefully and to whom I give a lot of trust and empowerment. I don't make design decisions, they do and I give input. I take responsibility when we fail (and learn from it) and give the team credit when we succeed. In my humble opinion, being a manager is more about people than anything else.