From Engineer to Manager: An Excursion Within Nepal’s Hydropower Scenery

In Nepal, the journey of becoming a professional Civil Engineer begins with a precise academic path, four years of undergraduate study in Civil Engineering, followed by obtaining a professional license from the Nepal Engineering Council (NEC). This journey, while intelligently demanding, lays the technical foundation for buildings, roads, bridges, tunnels, water supply, sewerage, irrigation systems, and in the field of hydropower, known as Nepal’s greatest natural energy asset, which is also fundamental for Nepal’s movement toward energy independence.

Civil Engineering, trains graduates with the ability to plan, design, construct, and maintain infrastructure. However, the role of a Civil Engineer does not need to be confined to design and technical supervision only. There comes a time when many engineers — including myself — reach an essential moment: whether to continue strictly in technical roles or to step into leadership and management, where decisions can shape the success of entire projects and on life of engineer to become a manager.

This article reflects my own conversion — from being a technically focused Civil Engineer to managing complex, multi-million-dollar hydropower projects as a Project Manager. This transition didn’t happen overnight. It was a steady process of learning, adapting, and growing through both challenges and opportunities.

Why Transition into Management — Especially in Hydropower?

The hydropower sector in Nepal is more than just an engineering challenge, as it is a national priority. With enormous untapped potential and increasing energy demand of the country, as of the day, the need for competent professional engineers who can lead projects from concept to commissioning is higher than ever.

The charm of management isn’t simply in titles or rewards. Including myself, and for many of us, the shift to project management was driven by the desire to make a broader impact —leading a team, resolving multidisciplinary clashes, balancing participant expectations, and driving project timelines to completion on time requires more than technical knowledge to know-how it demands vision, strategy and goal.

While serving as Project Manager in a publicly owned Hydropower company, I learned directly that technical proficiency only wasn’t enough. I faced resource challenges (material and manpower shortages), budgetary limitations, timeline pressures, and external socio-political dynamic contrast. Coordinating with contractors, government agencies, local communities, and consultants requires skills in negotiation, diplomacy, planning, and people management.

Hydropower projects in Nepal are typically located in remote areas, affected by logistical limitations, environmental concerns, and geologically challenging and complex environments. Successfully managing such projects demands more than engineering — it demands vision, strategic leadership, and social cultural understanding.

Why Civil Engineers Should Consider Engineering Management

Civil Engineering offers the ideal foundation for managing infrastructure and energy projects like hydropower. But to lead such projects effectively, civil engineers should consider upgrading their skills with managerial knowledge.

That’s why I pursued a Master’s in Engineering Management (MEM), a decision that transformed my career. The MEM program provided the essential tools I needed to bridge the gap between engineering and leadership, by combining principles of project finance, contract management, strategic planning, supply chain management, and material, equipment, and human resource management and development.

For Civil Engineers aspiring to lead large-scale hydropower or infrastructure projects, Engineering Management is not just an academic option, it’s a professional necessity. It empowers engineers to step into management roles with confidence, competence, and a clearer understanding of how business, policy, and technology interact.

Expanding the Skill Set for Hydropower Project Leadership

Transitioning from engineer to manager in the hydropower sector doesn’t mean leaving the engineering background; it means building on it. Here are a few key skill fields I had to make stronger along the way:

• Communication: The Engineering drawings can’t communicate everything. Clear verbal and written communication is necessary when explaining designs to contributors, communities, presenting updates to board members and other regulatory bodies, or coordinating with environmental regulators.
• Strategic Decision-Making: In hydropower projects, not all technically optimal solutions are feasible due to terrain, cost or time limitations. Managers must constantly weigh design trade-offs against practical constraints.
• Risk and Conflict Management: Hydropower development in Nepal is frequently squeezed by land acquisition issues, geological and environmental, road and transportation, local obstruction, manpower, material, and equipment-related delays, and supply chain holdups. Good managers predict such risks and plan contingencies proactively.
• Team Leadership: Nepal’s Hydro infrastructure sector is diverse — you often work with workers of different languages, education, Social, and cultural backgrounds. Understanding their perspectives, managing expectations, experience and adopting collaboration are necessary for project success.

Cost, delays, time overruns, political instability, social, cultural, and logistical hurdles are common in Nepal’s engineering sector. Proactive risk assessment and contingency planning become second nature as you evolve in your role as a manager or leader.

Challenges Along the Way

Management, especially in the field of hydropower, is filled with unpredictable environments. For engineers, trained to think in fixed formulas and known outcomes, this can be disorienting.

One common challenge I faced was the compulsion to do the technical work myself; to recheck designs or oversee micro-level construction details and planning for the up next structure after completing one. But I’ve come to understand that delegation is not a weakness; it is an investment in team capability and long-term success.

Another challenge was working with senior consultants, contractors, and site staff who had more years of experience than I did. In such cases, humility, preparation, and clear communication helped bridge the trustworthiness gap.

Leading Hydropower Projects with Identification and Purpose

Managing a hydropower project is not only about achieving milestones or commissioning the plant. It’s about building sustainable infrastructure that benefits the nation and an organization that constructs power stations, while also respecting the environment, rivers, wildlife, and local communities and also building a good team with myself.

I believe in leading with identification and responsibility, by listening to the working team, mentoring junior engineers and other people, and confirming that both the workforce and local contributors are heard and respected. 

Conclusion: Civil Engineers Must Lead Nepal’s Hydropower Future

Nepal stands at a significant juncture. With abundant hydropower potential and increasing demand for clean, renewable energy sources, we urgently need capable engineering leaders who understand both technical design and project management techniques within cost constraints.

To the upcoming generation of Civil Engineers: Don’t stop at technical proficiency. Step forward as managers. To understand the truths of project management, broaden your study in engineering economics and finance, and if possible, pursue a degree in Engineering Management or other related subjects to prepare for broader responsibilities.