TBD 91: Managing Managers
🤓 Micromanagement stinks, but so does lingering resentment
Moving into a role where you are managing managers can be one of the trickiest professional transitions to make.
After all, as an IC you build skills. As a manager you could be pretty empathetic and directive towards your team (after all, you had that job!). But managing managers takes you one step further from the daily action - yet you still are responsible for the outputs that are produced.
So how can you make sure you’re effectively managing your team while allowing them to manage their team?
Ouch. Here are three sticking points that consistently come up in my coaching and my suggestions for each.
“I promoted a talented IC, they can figure it out. After all, they’ve been doing some of this work already.”
“I don’t want to be a micromanager. They can do it their way.”
“I am glad to see the team grow. I need to stay on top of it all. I must ensure we have no mistakes. ”
1. I promoted a talented IC, they can figure it out.
Listen, new managers need training and best practices as well as spot coaching. Too many leaders think a talented new manager will “figure it out” and sorely underestimate what this new manager may NOT know. When you set the expectation that they’ll figure it out, they are less likely to ask for help and may struggle mightily without your support. Make recurring time to them to share your favorite tools and frameworks. Share your best practices, tips and tricks. If you company doesn’t offer any management training, plan on doing a manager mini-training 1:1.
2. I don’t want to be a micromanager. Let people work however they want to.
Hinging off my first point, we are hesitant to train or make requests because we don’t want to micromanage. However, the fact remains that there are specific actions, communications, and information YOU need to be successful in your job.
By giving your report very specific instruction about how you want them to communicate with you, what information you need - and at what cadence, and what level of detail) - will help them be successful and able to operate more independently.
Be picky and specific about this — set your bar clearly and coach them to meet it early on. Ultimately, folks are usually more willing to learn at the beginning than adopt or change later. Course correction can take time and build resentment (“If you wanted it a certain way, why didn’t you TELL me that in the first place?”).
If you aren’t specific and very detailed - even picky - about these expectations, you’ll end up making triage requests for information at the last minute. You’ll dig into their team issues that you haven’t been informed of, and ultimately cause more noise….and a feeling of micromanagement.
3. I must ensure there are no mistakes.
Bad news. Mistakes happen.
Be prepared for new managers to make mistakes. After all, good judgement generally comes from having bad judgement.
So in order to see those issues earlier, get into a practice of asking them to share risks, concerns, observations with you. Spot coaching can be a huge help here. Instead of just taking over a rocky issues and making sure you fix it, coach your manager with questions that help them come to the right solutions.
New managers typically let things go for too long thinking they can avoid uncomfortable conversations by trusting “it will work itself out”. If you practice discussing things and becoming a trusted sounding board you’ll hear more earlier and you’ll be helping someone help themselves. You’ll be coaching them to raise risks sooner and come to you for support and problem solving (even when something bad has happened).
In conclusion. It’s counterintuitive, but becoming a leader of managers means letting go.
Set yourself up for success. Make sure your own requests are clear, make space for conversations and coaching, and share your hard earned wisdom, tools and frameworks that you use behind the scenes.
✅ Are topics like this one useful?
If topics like this interest you, I’d encourage you to check out my group coaching with RETHINK. You’ll not only get monthly meetings with trusted like-minded peers but you also get videos you can watch on your own time to learn more. Learn more and register here. ---> JOIN US!
Court, you are very good at your job. :)