The Matrix

Time was, maybe back in the oft-discussed “Gold Watch Era,” you had one boss, worked with him (more likely) or her for a while, then got promoted and had a new boss. You knew people in other territories or divisions, but more casually, at big meetings or trade events.?

Things are different these days. Actually, much different.

You probably still have a core boss who’s in charge of your performance management, whatever form that takes. But you also have:

• Bosses you’re accountable to on cross-functional projects
• Different ways of organizing (holacracy, matrices, etc.)
• Affinity groups?
• Task forces and commissions for business needs/revenue?

Here’s what happens at these different intersections:

• You need to “manage up” (your boss)
• You need to “manage down” (if you have directs)
• You need to “manage across” (into other silos and functional areas)
• You may have 5+ people who can tell you what to do at a given time
• All of those 5+ people may claim their specific needs are “urgent”

It gets kind of messy. Let’s see if we can figure some of this out.?

How to manage up

This is probably the most important thing for you to do individually. Even if you don’t stay with a specific company for more than 3-5 years, managing up while there can be huge in terms of referrals, recommendations, contacts, and someone (your current boss) praising your work. There are a lot of resources out there about managing up -- Liz Ryan has a good one from 2018 -- but the essence of it is pretty simple. Understand what your boss needs, and what he/she is accountable to, and try to help your boss with those things. Bosses generally don’t want a bunch of pitches and ideas/concepts completely unrelated to what their bosses are judging them on. They want your help with those projects. If you become someone who supports and makes your boss look good, and you have a thick skin about those days where blowups naturally occur, you will successfully “manage up.” That positions you well both internally and for external opportunities (well, provided your boss has respect internally or within the industry, which ideally he/she does).

How to do the cross-functional thing

This is a tough one, but can be done. In some ways, it’s best exemplified by IT’s relationship to other silos. 15 years ago, IT was a place to ping to reset passwords, give or take. Now you need them for virtually any large initiative, and oftentimes “IT types” aren’t the same as “biz types,” and there’s a natural conflict therein that people have learned to navigate as business has evolved to be more digital-first. The cross-functional management is about timelines and priorities and respect, at base. You need to understand what another silo is looking for, why they’re looking for (i.e. the end result they desire), and when they need it -- and then you need to respectfully explain what else is on your plate and propose logical timelines back to them. Too often, people accept new work without context because they don’t want to be seen as the type of person who declines work, but then timelines, launches, rollouts, presentations and more suffer. It’s OK to say no or ask for clarity in all business relationships, but especially cross-functional.

How to manage down

There are entire sections of book shops written on this, so we won’t belabor it. Communicate often. Try for face-to-face if possible. Ask questions about your reports’ lives outside of work. Be a thought partner, not a deadline-assigner. Trust. Give them room to operate and course-correct when necessary.?

“Rest ethic”

Look, if we’re being completely honest, some days can become a complete blur of video calls, meetings, emails, requests for this, requests for that, two silos need something, one silo has a new idea, one direct report has a grandmother who passed away, your boss is on vacation the next two weeks, etc. With so many tiers and matrices, it can all become overwhelming -- and this is before we get to “real life,” i.e. family, friends, kids, commitments, happy hours, and the like.?

OK, so… we speak often of “work ethic” and judge people on that pretty regularly. We also need to double down on “rest ethic.” Success can be defined in many ways, and coming home at 3pm and committing to your family is a version of success, and it recharges you for another day where six silos need something from you.?

Work hard, but be conscious of your “rest ethic” as well. All work and no play is the essential and exact recipe for burnout.?

What else would you add about juggling different levels, divisions, and commitments?