In
today’s workforce we are starting to see a trend of lower/middle management
positions opening up at high rates as the management chain shifts to accommodate
the retirement of baby boomers. The workforce is calling and Generation Y is
showing up for the task! Several YPers
are getting promoted very quickly and finding themselves managing employees not
that much younger than themselves.
Moving
from being an individual contributor to managing will be one of the hardest
adjustments in your early career. Don’t
worry; it is okay if you are not great at it at first. Just like all of your other skills, you will
get better at managing. Here are a couple
of my blunders and a few tactical plays from when I went through this
change. My transition was not as smooth
as I would have liked it, but hopefully you will learn from my mishaps!
Blunders
and Tactical Plays:
1.
The
first employee I managed was 3 years younger than me. Only 3.
She only had 3 years less experience than I did. Only 3.
I felt that I had to show her how much I knew and that I was the
authority. Rather than getting to know
her and how she liked to be managed, I imposed my management style upon her. She didn't flourish. She hated coming to
work and she didn't give me her best work. It caused a horrible dynamic. Finally, my VP sat me down to talk about her
performance. I was armed with several
examples of how she “just wasn't working out”.
However, the first question my VP asked was, “Why don’t you think she
likes working here.” I didn't have an
answer. I was told to go get to know my
employees and see how we could save her.
That was a hard lesson for me to learn.
It wasn't the “Sarah Show” anymore.
I had already proven myself; it was now time to focus on the development
of someone else.
2.
To
drink or not to drink with your employees?
When you are in the same stage of your life as your employees, do you go
out and do things with them or do you keep your relationship strictly
professional? My recommendation is to do
a mixture. I don’t have any good
personal examples of this, but being in HR I have been the moderator in a few
of these situations. As your HR guru, I
simply ask that you always remember this question, “Do you want your HR person
to ask you about this tomorrow.” If the
answer is no, then stop and go home. If
you are fine with admitting what you are doing, then you are probably doing
okay. Each company is different and has
different expectations for their manager’s interactions with their
employees. Follow the lead of your
boss. With that being said, never forget
that you are in fact your employee’s manager and if they stop performing,
showing up, meeting deadlines, you will have to do something about it. If you are best friends, it can become very
sticky.
3.
What
is your management style? I always thought that my management style was easy,
non-micro managing, and trusting.
However, when I was thrown into my first management job, I was the exact
opposite. I didn't know how to motivate
someone and I didn't know how to trust that my employees would do as good of a
job as I would. I knew how to do a good
job, but I didn't know how to excite someone else to be at their job as
well. I didn't have the confidence to
trust my employees to do their jobs. It wasn't fun and it didn't turn out so pretty.
Let your employees do things their way.
Although it might be different from your method, as long as the finished
product is of high quality, it doesn't really matter. Allow them to set boundaries and encourage
them to figure out their own style.
Managing isn't creating carbon copies of you, it is about finding and
developing talents. Let your employees
thrive and they will be loyal and work hard.
4.
Manage
and reward each employee as an individual. A reward holds different merit for
different employees. I once had an employee
who had children and one was single. It
meant more to the employee with children to be able to leave early for school
plays, games, and events. However for my
single employee, leaving early right before a vacation was such a bigger reward
then just leaving early on a Tuesday. And when it came time for my employee
with children to go on vacation, I didn't let her leave early. It was my way of being fair but in a more
rewarding way. Using the same reward, but in different ways is an effective way
to leverage to the reward.
5.
You
can admit you don’t know something. When the gap between age and/or experience
isn’t distinctly large it can be hard for a new manager to admit that they
don’t know something. By admitting you don’t know something you set a tone for
your employees and earn their respect.
This simple act can be a building block to a very successful team.
6.
Stand
up for your team and take the blame. You
are responsible for your team and their product. If something goes wrong, never say to your
boss, “Sally, my employee, was responsible for that.” Take the heat and then approach your employee
when you are clam and ready to have a productive conversation to explain the
mistake. Show your employees that you
have their backs.
7.
If
you remember ANY of my tactical
plays, remember this ONE. Think about your best boss/work environment. Make a list of why that boss was so awesome or
why the atmosphere worked for you. Apply
those traits to your management style. No
need to recreate the wheel.
Use my
blunders and tactical play to make yourself a RockStar boss that people love
coming to work for!
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