Some research advisors are focused on the big picture while others are very detail oriented. Some advisors run their groups using a democratic, non-hierarchical approach while others are authoritarian and may even seem dictatorial in their management style. Some faculty advisors work alongside their students in the lab while others prefer to manage their groups from their offices. To be successful as a research student, it is important to know your advisor's management style and be able to work with it.
Faculty may place different emphasis on different aspects of the research process depending on their strengths and weaknesses. Overall, as a manager of people and resources your advisor's focus is likely on the "big picture." This means that your advisor ensure that the people working in the lab are making good progress on their respective research problems.
In general students are given problems that haven't heretofore been studied in the past. This means that your advisor will attempt to match each research problem to each student - career goals, research interests, skills, and abilities - to the best of his/her ability. You can maximize your likelihood of success by communicating clearly and accurately to your advisor what your career goals are, time constraints (courses you are taking or plan to take while working on your research problem, any outside job commitments, student activities, etc.), the nature of your technical expertise (coursework, grades, and research experiences), etc. If you find that your research problem is too easy, too difficult, or simply uninteresting, be sure to let your advisor know as soon as possible so that they can modify or change the project and/or resources in order to ensure you make good progress.
Understand Your Advisor's Management Style
