Management Challenges - You Don't Exist anymore!

It’s not just your performance you’re responsible for now!

There are several challenges facing the first-time manager, ones that you often don’t get told about beforehand.

Over the next few weeks we’ll cover these challenges and what you can do about them.

The first one to tackle is…

You don’t exist anymore!

OK, so that’s a bit harsh, and literally not true, but there are definitely times when it’s going to feel like it.

What’s the issue?

Prior to any management role we’re only ever responsible for ourselves, our behaviour, our performance.  If we do well it will (hopefully) be acknowledged.  If not then (again hopefully) we’ll be supported to develop so that we can avoid similar situations going forward.

We work at our own development, which usually relates to keeping up to date with technical innovations and changes that allow us to do our jobs properly.  Mostly employers see the benefit in technical training and support staff in keeping fresh.

Now you’re a manager however, your responsibilities don’t stop with you. In addition, you’re answerable for the behaviour and performance of those that you manage.  Whether it’s one person, or a team of twenty, what they do is a direct reflection on you.

If your team’s performance is ok, and deadlines are being met then it’s sunshine and flowers but, if things slip, it’s not the individual team members the organisation will look to for explanations - it’s you.

It’s a bit like in sports, where if the team performs poorly it’s the manager or coach that gets the blame, and in extreme cases the sack! 

You’ve just moved from being a player to being a coach.

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Don’t panic!

Just being aware of this change is a great step in the right direction. Understanding that you and the team both need to be performing well will help you focus on how to make sure it happens.

#1 – Get to know the team

You’re not going to get far until you understand individual team members.  If you’ve been promoted from within an organisation this can be (though not always) a benefit. 

Take some time out to consider everyone in your team (you included!)  Make a list of what you consider their strengths are. It’s not just about technical abilities, are they good communicators, are they team players, or maybe they have great people skills. Also consider if there are any areas where they could do with some support developing.  It’s great to ask them what they think they are good at too, and if they have any areas they would like to improve. 

Don’t just look at individuals from a work perspective.  Without coming across as totally nosey, understand their out of work situation, what family they have, hobbies, ambitions etc.  The more you understand them, the better you will be able to understand their behaviour.

#2 – Set goals and targets

Everyone in the team needs to know what’s expected of them – including you.  On a one-to-one basis meet with everyone and decide what their work goals are for the coming year/month/week.  Although there will be organisation related objectives and deadlines, involve the individual as much as possible when determining what their goals are.  Ask them what they think they can achieve in most cases you will be surprised that they will set themselves greater goals than you had in mind.

Include any developmental targets they may have – and discuss the most appropriate way to achieve them.

Also ask them what they expect of you as the manager. Note these down and work them into your own plan for the year.

#3 – Monitor performance

Don’t just have a one-to-one meeting once a year to set goals, have regular meetings to check how everyone’s progressing.  This allows you to congratulate when targets are met, and offer support if things aren’t quite going to plan.  Long term goals may have been split into smaller ‘chunks’ with shorter timelines, these need monitoring as time progresses.

Make sure these meetings are scheduled for the whole year.  If you get to a scheduled meeting and there’s nothing to discuss, you can agree to skip that one.  By scheduling you are demonstrating to your team that you are committed to them and that they are important.  If these meetings are left to ‘a convenient time’ often they won’t happen – and it will be easier for performance to slip.

These meetings are also an opportunity for you to check on whether you are providing the right support and make changes if you need to.

#4 – Public congratulations, private correction

When your team are doing well congratulate them in team meetings, whether it’s one individual who’s done something worth mentioning, or it’s been a team effort.  Make sure others know how well the individual or team have done – be a cheerleader for them. 

If things haven’t gone to plan, keep this private.  Don’t raise an individual issue in a group setting.  If there has been a failure involving the whole team set aside some time to specifically discuss this with the whole group, don’t use a scheduled team meeting to carry out a post-mortem.

If you embrace the role of manager and accept this wider responsibility from the get go - you are well on the way to being a great manager.