Across the lobby, I spotted Kim. She was one of seven supervisors who had just been promoted to manager. It was a good group, positive vibes, but I could see Kim was a bit nervous in her new role.
“How’s it going?” I asked.
“Pretty good, so far,” she replied. “I think I can handle all the stuff I am supposed to do. It’s that other stuff, I am worried about.”
“What other stuff?”
“You know, being a manager. Team stuff, morale. You talk about bringing value to my supervisors. I want to do that, but I am not sure what it means.”
“It’s not that difficult,” I replied. “Just think back, when you were a supervisor. What did your manager do that really helped you, I mean, really helped you become the manager that you are today? Was it barking orders at you? Bossing you around? Yelling at you when you screwed up? Solving your problems for you?”
“No,” Kim replied. “It was none of those things.”
“So, think about it. What were the specific things your manager did that brought value to your thinking and your work?” –TF
Hi Tom,
One of the biggest problems that I face with newly promoted managers is getting them to understand the basics of money making.
I tell them continously that their primary job is “expectation management” i.e. they need to manage the expecations of the organization (i.e. deliver on-time/on-budget or whatever the organization wants them to do), manage customers expectations (i.e. deliver the right product) and finally manage the expectation of their entire team (i.e. whole damn Maslow’s need hierarchy :D) .
I think most organizations look at their managers like a black box where they throw in inputs and expects results. When that does not happen, manager’s capability is questioned and higher management intervenes. This leaves a big gap for somebody who is taking care of a manager’s own expectation.
I feel only a motivated manager can have a motivated team , so the bigger question is how can I motivate a manager? How can Kim be empowered to manage her own expectations?
The concept of team leadership(manager) seems to indicate different things to different managers. Thus, a useful point of leaving is to state what team leadership is not.
Team leaders are needed in all spheres of organizational life. This includes marketing, R&D, engineering, production, quality assurance, information systems, human resources, accounting and finance, and all the rest. It also includes first-level management, middle-level management, and upper-level management. The need for team leaders is not limited to particular spheres.
I hope Kim will handle the situation with your helpful suggestions.