There are plenty of resources around to help employees transition into, work better with, and develop skills for management. The thing is, though, that there are aspects of managing technical folk (I include everything from floor technicians and maintenance up through engineering and sciences to PhDs) that are extremely different and not widely known, which can result in a big surprise for anyone who wants to enter management and has only a general understanding of what that means. In addition, actual management training in technical industries is, frequently, either nonexistent or incredibly shitty. Surprise! You’re going to be dropped in the deep end, with no idea which direction means shore.

There will be a million different hats you’ll need to wear. First, there are specific sets of skills and approaches recommended (and NOT recommended) based on your own background and the general level of employee you’re working with. Are you a scientist? An engineer? A GED-level technican? Are you working with salary, union, degreed, non-degreed? Are your employees Bachelors, Masters, PhDs? Understanding the complex contexts that these relationships can take is critical to success, and there will be a lot in this category focusing on these key attitudes.

In addition, get ready to be steamrolled: technical management is way more than just technical work. It’s a series of crash courses in skill sets you’ve never thought were going to be your job. Accounting. Funds Requests. Counseling. Human Resources. Database Administrator. PowerPoint expert. Communications Liason. Compressed Air expert. Mechanical Integrity controller. Babysitter. Mediator. Word of God.

It’s a hard experience. And for the right person with the right fit, it can be incredibly rewarding work: the kind where you get to see your own fingerprints shaping the core culture of your workplace. But — it isn’t for everyone. And it’s best to go in prepared.