You’re the boss!.........now what??

Five steps to getting off on the right foot as a new manager

Congratulations! You made your case, put in the hours, got noticed and have now carved out a niche in your company by being promoted to a managerial position. Chances are, you now have a few people reporting into you - some may be colleagues, some may be juniors and some may even be people who were around before you started. Maybe you manage interdepartmental projects, working with multiple teams. You’re now the one called on to give a status update and a summary of what your team has been doing.

Many employees dream of moving to this place. However, once here, many of us also fumble because although we may have been good at doing our own work, chances are we don’t always know how to motivate others to do theirs, and how to lead a team to their goals. How do you move from being a strong solitary performer to a strong leader?

Being a good boss isn’t just about getting the job done. It’s about getting the job done well, and in a way that inspires and encourages communication, creativity, challenge and care. There will always be technical aspects of a role that you may take time to grasp. However, these five actions below are in your control and will set a strong foundation upon which to build your team’s trust, loyalty and support as you step into a new challenge.

1. One size doesn’t fit all

Think of all your team members and their unique skillsets - what are their strengths and limitations? Find them projects that align with their strengths and you’ll get a greater return on productivity, efficiency with added benefits for team culture. Think of yourself as a chess player - all the people on your team have a role to play in winning the game, you just have to map them to the right moves!

2. Stand in front of the bus

Some bosses throw their team under the bus the minute a project goes wrong, trying to distance themselves from any error. As a boss, you should try and pull your team out of the path before any potential danger comes up. Part of this involves being informed and up to date about how things are progressing and a constant review of potential challenges. You don’t have to do their job; however, as a boss and a coach, you should try and anticipate and remove obstacles from their path. And if all of that fails, jump in front of the bus and take the hit yourself. The ultimate responsibility for the team lies with you and it will be a learning moment for everyone, to see their leader take ownership.

3. As clear as day

Be authentic. Say what you mean and mean what you say. People can very quickly figure out if they are being manipulated or deceived, particularly by someone new who is supposed to have everything under control. While this is sound advice for any workplace issue, as a new boss it is especially important to maintain your integrity. Your team should be able to trust you, not question your motives or your words. One way to do this is to be liberal about sharing information about what is happening in the company. While you are right to control access to confidential information, sometimes being more transparent about how the company is doing based on what you know is an important tool in building team ownership and making sure your team understands the real reasons behind decisions being taken. Share information and knowledge freely - it will help your team take better-informed decisions as well as depend on your judgment moving forward.

4. Anchors down

One of the most important things you can do as a new boss is to be calm in a crisis. Even when things are going haywire, your team will look to you in order to determine their response to a situation. While this may seem like a high-pressure situation, you have the chance to shape next steps in a critical moment. You may not know the answers, but you have the ability to decide how to find them. Your leadership can bring people back to the issue at hand, delegate roles and next steps, take crucial decisions and not overreact to something that can be solved rationally. Breathe, speak slowly and delegate tasks - more often than not, this will be what’s needed to move people into action.

5. Being human

This goes without saying, but many people always talk of great bosses as great people first, and bosses second. An important part of building trust is to build bridges - allowing your team to know more about you - so that it may work vice versa as well. It is possible to still maintain a professional working relationship while still being open and easy to relate to. Remember that it is okay to show emotion in moments of high stress, frustration or elation - you do not need to apologize for it but you can move past it and re-focus yourself without feeling embarrassed. This touch of humanity is also important for your team to see as and when the situation calls for it.

As women particularly, we face the issue of promotions and being someone’s boss with a mixture of nervousness, excitement and trepidation. We worry about being too feminine or too masculine in our leadership styles - and when we don’t personally worry, there may be others who raise this issue anyway! Being a good leader and a good boss requires patience, strength and conviction, and these tips above are only some of the ways in which you can build on those skills. Once your team starts seeing success, the lines blur away. Your success reflects on them and vice versa.

Set your own style, be your own boss and show your team who’s got their back!