Are Managers Set Up For Success?

Middle management is the toughest job because they are given the least amount of training.

To those who hired/promoted current managers, my question for you is: "why?"

Was it because they were a top performer on the team?

Is it based on loyalty to the company? (which is a sneaky way of saying seniority)

Were they already showing signs of leadership without having the title?

The only valid reason is the last one.

But most get promoted because of high performance or tenure at the organization.

The problem is: what got you there will not serve you in your new role.

Remember that.

HR and executives need to take a hard look at why they are hiring managers because most are not being set up to succeed.

This post would be too long if I listed all the changes needed in onboarding/training for new managers so for brevity's sake (as well as my hands typing) here are 3 to focus on.

1. Soft Skills

I'm sure you knew I was going here.

Leadership is managing people to accomplish tasks.

That requires communication from the sender and receiver.

People skills such as active listening, empathy, persuasiveness, flexibility, and building rapport come naturally to some, but can be taught (although it takes time).

As the hiring manager, align your recruiting efforts by identifying candidates with strong soft skills already intact.

It will save your company a lot of time, energy, and heartache.

The next best thing is to hire an external consultant (like myself) to fill in the gaps.

Why external?

Because doing it internally brings bias and subjectivity into the mix.

Someone from the outside has nothing invested, doesn't know the existing culture, and will focus on making objective changes that help.

2. Creating Structure/Systems

Want to know the biggest transition from having a boss to becoming one?

A lack of structure (entrepreneurs know this too).

When you have a boss, you're concerned about getting the job done based on a deadline given to you.

When you're the boss, you assign tasks and deadlines to your team.

Yet the biggest x-factor involved is the worker.

What's their work ethic?

What motivates them?

What are their strengths and weaknesses?

Guess what? As a new manager, you have to figure all that out on the fly.

So the way to organize chaos is to have a system.

Similar to a CRM, managers need to organize and prioritize how to spend their time and lead their team.

It's important to have a leadership style, but be flexible at the same time.

One of the biggest benefits of having a system in place is it decreases stress by creating expectations.

If your team understands how you work and what they need to accomplish, that's half the battle won already.

Having a system is like playing a sport with established rules.

Without rules, chaos reigns.

3. Leadership Development

Going back to the hiring manager(s), leadership ability and developing people are two different skill sets.

Leadership ability means you conduct an orchestra well.

Leadership development means you help others do their job well.

Both help, but if you truly want to optimize team results developing people reap the most rewards.

But leadership development demands humility (it's not about you) and sacrifice (more behind-the-scenes work than you think).

On average, managers spend 50% of their time dealing with interpersonal conflict.

Get used to spending your time, not on things you need to do, but on what your teammates are struggling with.

Being a manager is a selfless job.

And going back to why new managers get hired/promoted is usually because of individual achievement. Do you see the discrepancy now?

That's why I emphasize selecting natural leaders if you can (it expedites the process).

Leadership development boils down to service.

The best leaders serve their people, not boss them around.

Ask anyone to name their favorite manager and the list of attributes will describe a servant.

Managing people is not for everyone and that's okay.

Companies can help themselves by identifying strong manager qualities over experience.

In the end, everyone in leadership can use some help.

But organizationally, the question that needs to be asked is: "how much are you willing to invest, in both time and resources?"