Ever had that boss from hell who always made you think, “Wow. If I were them, I would never do those things.”? Most of us have encountered this type of boss. Fast forward to the future and suddenly, you’ve been been promoted as one of the department managers yourself.
Sure, the promotion pays better, but like Spiderman said: “With great power comes great responsibility”. Being a first-time manager may be overwhelming and exciting, but it should also be a constant learning experience. To help you stay grounded, here are 5 tips for first-time managers that will help you stay on everyone’s good side and still get the job done at the same time:
Set certain expectations and goals.
The first thing that you should do as a manager is set a meeting with your boss and discuss their expectations of you as a manager. Then, set up a meeting with each of your direct reports to set your own expectations and outline their goals for the year. This would also be the perfect time to create a good relationship with your directs.
Establish good relationships with everyone.
Aside from establishing a good relationship with your team members, you should establish relationships with the other teams, as well. This would be especially recommended for the Human Resources and Recruitment teams. Being on everyone’s good side will ensure that you will always get the help that you need whenever you get stuck in an unexpected rut.
Tailor your management style.
Keep in mind that what works for you might not work for your direct reports. Even if you didn’t like being micro-managed back in the day, that doesn’t mean that your direct reports don’t like being micro-managed. As such, you should find out what your team likes and then learn to compromise, so that your management style meets their preferences half-way. This way, you will be able to work better together as a whole. On that note, also keep in mind that what works for one team might not work for another, either, though.
Always aim for success.
If your team does well, you will do well. Take the time to analyse your team’s needs and take note of the challenges that each individual member seems to encounter. As time goes by, try to find solutions that will help them work at their best. This is the only way you can truly succeed in the end.
While your decisions may not always be the most popular ones in your team’s eyes, you need to remember that you weren’t hired to be their best friend; you were hired to make decisions in everyone’s best interest. So, no matter what your team might say, you have to be confident enough in your decisions and abilities to know what works best. Once your team sees that your decisions work and that you stuck by the to the end, they will learn to respect and trust you more as time goes by.
Never stop learning.
Despite your promotion, remember that there are still a lot of things that you can learn. So, whenever a good opportunity for training arises, make sure you grab it right away. Besides, it will look good on your resume and potentially further your career even more.
Of course, you shouldn’t forget to have fun with the entire experience, either. Also, don’t stress yourself out too much. While the first few months may be tough because of the sudden added workload, things will get better once you get past that. Trust me. 🙂
Photo from Flickr
I think i’ve read this article somewhere…
Very general but sounds very familiar at the same time.