Management Roles

Understanding your new role

Whether you're new to management, or considering a transition into management, do you know what the role of a manager involves? Many first-time managers imagine they'll do essentially the same job they were doing before and that only the challenges will be bigger. But you may be surprised by just how different your job will be as a manager.

Moving into a management role is a big step, and you should take time to consider what your new role means. If you do, you'll be better prepared for your new role and more likely to succeed. If you jump right into the role without examining what it entails, you could end up making the transition even more difficult. For example, you might think that a manager needs to be aggressive and demanding and so you decide to make some radical changes. But by doing this, you might alienate your direct reports, or create more work for yourself.

You need to stop and think about what being a manager really involves and what you'll bring to the role. Thinking about certain things can help you make the switch:

review your preconceptions of the management role consider the new demands that will be placed on you think about the skills you need reflect on any relevant experience you might have

Another compelling reason to take the time to consider your new role is that you'll make a good first impression. Being prepared will help you transition more effectively into your new role. Your initiative is likely to impress your superiors. And your direct reports as well. They may have problems and questions for you right away, which, if you're prepared, you may find easier to address. In this way, you'll appear more confident and professional in your new role.

Identifying required skills

Any inexperienced manager is likely to have misconceptions about what managers really do. As these managers struggle to figure out their new role, their misconceptions can lead to costly mistakes that may affect their careers and the organization. A good way to begin finding out what managers really do is to dispel some popular myths about the role and replace them with truths.

New managers tend to think "I'll use the same skills I used as an individual contributor." This is the first common myth to dispel about the management role. The truth is the skills required to be successful as a manager are very different from the skills required to be successful as an individual contributor. For example, you'll need excellent people skills. Because it's your job to help others succeed, people skills become particularly vital in a managerial role.

Your success as an individual is no longer the objective of your hard work – achieving results through others is. And working through others to get results will require excellent people skills such as communicating, negotiating, motivating, and coaching. Your success will be gauged by how well your group achieves its objectives, how much you've helped your direct reports sharpen their skills and manage tasks effectively, and how well your group's achievements support organizational objectives and strategies.

Organizing skills such as planning work, assigning appropriate individuals to tasks, and acquiring resources are also important. And so are leadership skills, such as determining the vision, goals, and objectives for your team and creating an environment in which the team can thrive. Moving from an individual contributor to a management position isn't just a move further up the corporate path – it's more like taking an entirely new path, that calls for new skills, perspectives, and responsibilities.

Understanding your power

The power gained by moving up in the organizational hierarchy isn't enough to get results. In reality, establishing and maintaining credibility is how you'll get results.

Power does come with your position. And, as a manager, you will have more formal authority, a higher status within your organization, and greater access to resources than you did as an individual contributor.

Instead of relying on your new power to bring results, focus on establishing your credibility. You can do this by demonstrating character and managerial competence, and using influence.

There are three components of credibility:

1. character – Demonstrate character by always striving to do the right thing. Others will understand this as dedication and sincerity. And they'll come to depend and rely on you to do the right thing, which is priceless in your efforts to manage.

2. competence – One of the best ways to demonstrate managerial competence is to talk less and listen more. A manager's job is to support and guide, not to dictate to people exactly what to do and how to do it. And when you stop to listen, you'll likely learn valuable information and increase your expertise as a manager.

3. Influence – The influence you have over others stems from your character. If you work hard, display honesty and fairness, and demonstrate knowledge, competency, and reliability, you'll positively influence people. Consistency in your actions and behavior will help you build and keep this influence. Good communication skills can also contribute to your effectiveness in influencing others.

Understanding your freedom

Organizational interdependencies mean managers need the cooperation of others to get work done. This translates into less freedom to make decisions and take action.

Unlike when you were an individual contributor and enjoyed relative autonomy to do your job, now you must consult with and gain the support of a network of colleagues. But you can compensate for the lack of freedom by building a network of mutually beneficial relationships, sharing your power, and exchanging valued resources. Building these relationships helps build your credibility so when you need help, you'll be more likely to get it.

Things to consider as a new manager:

building a network – You'll learn quickly as a manager that your success depends largely on cooperative efforts. You need to work to build a network of mutually beneficial relationships with individuals outside your team and on whom your team depends to do its work.

sharing power – Sharing your power has advantages – it will increase your credibility and influence. Sometimes this means sharing resources; however, it may also mean sharing advice or knowledge, or simply acknowledging and accepting the contributions of others.

exchanging valued resources – Providing the resources your direct reports need to do their jobs is your job. An organization's resources are limited, so sometimes you'll need to negotiate for the resources you need. Exchanging valued resources with others in your organization can help you get the resources you need – such as talent, finances, or support.

Learning your new role

As a new manager, you'll learn most of what you need to know through on-the-job experience. Realistically, the nature of the position limits the effectiveness of formal training, and experience really is the best way to learn how to be a manager. In addition, more experienced managers are often a great source of wisdom. They've been where you are and they'll likely have a wealth of knowledge to share. You'll probably find most managers are willing to help you out. And remember, they too are networking to build mutually beneficial relationships.

Learning while on the job is a self-directed approach to achieving successful management skills. As you gain experience, use it to learn about your new role by reflecting on your experience, gathering feedback about your performance, and identifying probable challenges.

Understanding relationships

Focusing on individual relationships will typically affect the entire team and can have a negative impact on the morale and performance of other team members.

Instead, you need to focus on developing relationships in a way that will enhance the performance of the entire team. In other words, you need to develop a strong relationship with the team, as a group. You can do this by using group forums whenever possible to direct team efforts for solving problems, providing motivation, and giving support. Directing team efforts in this way will build your relationship with the team and not just certain individuals. It's imperative that you be equitable when situations and circumstances arise that warrant personal attention or treatment. For instance, don't celebrate a team member's success unless you commit to celebrating all similar successes in the same way.

Letting go of your job as an individual contributor is the first thing you need to do to transition successfully into being a manager. Your role as manager is very different. First and foremost, you're responsible for the work of others – not just your own. Understanding these truths about the role will help you make the transition more easily. Keep these truths in mind as you consider the role of manager: excellent people skills are needed; your power comes from your credibility; you'll have less freedom and time; most of what you need to know you'll learn as you gain experience; and it's more important to develop a strong relationship with the team, rather than focus on individual relationships.

Course: First Time Manager: Understanding a Manager's RoleTopic: The Role of a Manager

Succeeding as a First-time Manager

Common mistakes

It may sound harsh, but as a first-time manager you'll make mistakes. Studying some of the mistakes commonly made by new managers will help you learn through the experience of others and avoid similar issues.

New managers tend to make three common mistakes: taking on too much, not asking for help, and projecting a lack of confidence.

Taking on too much

The first mistake is taking on too much. Often, new managers will become overburdened with work, which is usually the result of failing to understand how much their role has changed. And the biggest contributor to taking on too much is the failure to delegate.

Facing the reality that your role has changed from when you were an individual contributor is the first thing you must do to avoid the mistake of taking on too much. You need to switch your focus from personal achievement to helping others achieve. You'll often have to step back and let your direct reports do the work. And you'll need to place more emphasis on team building.

Learning how to delegate will come with experience. Three activities can help you begin delegating: first learn to focus on the big picture, then distance yourself from the detail work, and take small risks when first delegating.

Delegation strategies

focus on the big picture – Focus on the big picture by stepping back and reminding yourself that you need to approach your work from the perspective of a manager. You're responsible for helping others, your team, and your organization meet goals. Delegation will give more time to focus on the big picture.

distance yourself from the detail work – As a manager, you need to distance yourself from the detail work performed by your direct reports. You can't be involved in detail work and effectively perform your managerial role. Trust your direct reports to do their job and build partnerships with them so they'll come to you for help when needed.

take small risks – When you begin delegating, start by taking small risks. Assign work to individuals you know will be able to deliver, by taking advantage of the strengths of your

team members. As you become more comfortable with delegating, you can take bigger risks that will build your confidence in your managerial abilities and stretch the capabilities of team members, helping them to grow and develop too.

Not asking for help

Not asking for help is another common mistake new managers make. Often, new managers don't interpret the relationship with their boss as a partnership. Instead of reaching out to senior managers for support, many new managers try to resolve issues and work through situations they have no experience with, and hope things will work out. This can be disastrous and robs the new manager of the opportunity to learn from more experienced managers.

You may have been promoted based on technical competence – not your managerial skills. If so, accept that you can't know how to do everything, and your superiors don't expect you to. In fact, your senior manager is likely to be concerned if you're not seeking support, answers, or advice.

The best way to stay on top of what's going on with your direct reports is through open communication. Encourage your direct reports to come to you for help when they need it. Likewise, you need to have this type of relationship with your boss. Just as it's part of your job to support your direct reports, it's your senior manager's responsibility to support you. You'll learn how to do your job through on-the-job experience, and support from senior managers is key to your ability to learn how to be a manager.

When you've established a partnership and clarified expectations, make it a priority to meet regularly with your boss. Use these meetings to develop rapport, ask questions, clarify your understanding of things, and get feedback.

Projecting a lack of confidence

The final mistake you should avoid is projecting a lack of confidence. Managers who make this mistake aren't likely to inspire or energize others, making it difficult, if not impossible, to lead and manage successfully.

Avoid this mistake by always projecting confidence, even when you're not. It's natural to feel overwhelmed and even inadequate. When you focus all your energy on the tasks you must perform, you may forget to check your demeanor. Remember that as a manager your direct reports and others look to you as an example and will model your behavior. If you're flustered, agitated, defeated, or negative, you will set that example. In spite of all you may be feeling, it's very important to maintain a professional and positive image and project a confident demeanor.

Work to build your confidence by setting clear expectations and directions for your direct reports, taking risks, and giving credit to others.

Knowledge of the mistakes commonly made by first-time managers and strategies for overcoming them will help you be more successful. First-time managers often make the mistake of taking on too much. You can avoid this by accepting your new role and learning to delegate effectively. Another common mistake is not asking for help. You can overcome this obstacle to success by establishing a partnership with your senior manager. He's there to help you, so take advantage of this by clarifying expectations for your performance and meeting regularly with your boss to get advice and support. You must also be careful not to project a lack of confidence. No matter what you really feel, your demeanor should project what you want modeled – positive and confident professionalism. If you do have to express less confident feelings do so in the privacy of your boss's office.

Course: First Time Manager: Understanding a Manager's RoleTopic: Succeeding as a First-time Manager

Demands and Constraints of a Manager's Role

Understanding demands and constraints

It's a myth that managers have more freedom to achieve results as they wish. In fact, organizational interdependencies limit the freedom managers have to make decisions and take action independently.

Instead, managers must work to achieve results within the context of their organization and the broader business environment. The implications of this interdependence are generally understood as demands and constraints on what a manager is free to do.

Being a successful manager will require you to find ways to work successfully within the constraints of your job and in response to its demands.

Demands

As a manager, you'll face demands on a daily basis. Exploring the types of demands you'll face as a manager will prepare you to successfully deal with them when you need to.

In addition to the demands you place on yourself, you'll typically have demands imposed on you by your boss, your direct reports, other managers, the system within which you work, and various external forces.

Your boss will make demands of you. Typically, these demands will be related to the goals set for your team or the organization. For example, your boss may require you to produce weekly progress reports on projects you're involved with, or expect you to raise productivity by the end of the next quarter or hire new team members.

Your direct reports will certainly make demands of you. First and foremost, they'll expect you to provide them with what they need to do their jobs. Typical demands will include training, advice, support, resources, and equipment. For instance, suppose you ask your team members what you can do to help them perform better. You may find out your team wants improvements to make an antiquated procedure more efficient, comprehensive training on new procedures, and new computers. Other managers are also likely to place demands on you.

Essentially, you can expect other managers to make demands of you that will support them in their efforts to achieve their own goals.

Your organization will also have its own set of systems that will place demands on you. System demands include budgets, reports, and meetings.

Finally, external forces will place demands on you. Your customers, suppliers, stakeholders, legal regulations, and members of special interest groups may require information, attention, or action from you.

Constraints

Part of your role as a manager is learning to work successfully within the constraints that limit what you can do.

How you do your job will be limited by some specific constraints:

expectations resources technology location policies and procedures

Everyone you work with, both internally and externally, will have expectations that will constrain how you'll be able to act. Of course, you'll have your own expectations to work with. But you'll also have the expectations of superiors, peers, direct reports, and perhaps suppliers or customers to consider. For example, your direct reports will expect you to support them in their efforts to do their work. You'll need to meet these expectations or risk losing credibility and respect. And your own

supervisor may expect you to make tradeoffs and manage risks, as well as to motivate direct reports to support company goals.

As a manager you'll quickly learn that nearly all resources are limited in some way. This will, of course, constrain or limit how you do your job. You'll need to make the best use of the resources you do have. This may include negotiating and trading resources with other managers to get the resources needed to accomplish goals.

You may find that both the quality and type of technology available to you will constrain what you can do. For instance, suppose you've been tasked with implementing new security measures. Although you'd like to use facial recognition software, your company doesn't have the technology to support this. Instead, you'll have to make use of available technology.

Location may also present constraints on how you do your job. Often, you'll work with departments, suppliers, and customers from various locations. You may also find yourself managing teams from various geographic locations or individuals working from their homes.

Finally, policies and procedures will constrain how you do your job. When your organization's policies and procedures limit what you can do, you'll have to work within these constraints to complete your work and achieve your goals.

Constraints may limit your ability to perform certain tasks as a manager. Demands are things you must do because people, systems, or legislation require it. Typically, demands will come from your boss, your direct reports, other managers, the system, and external forces. Constraints are things that limit how you do your job. Constraints include things like expectations, resources, technology, location, and policies and procedures.

Course: First Time Manager: Understanding a Manager's RoleTopic: Demands and Constraints of a Manager's Role