Team Building Tips

Managers who are promoted from within because they are good performers may not understand that a fundamental change has taken place.

The changing relationship between a supervisor and an employee, and a supervisor and the organization presents some serious challenges. Every new manager from within must understand that they bring their reputation from the old organization to the new job. It is an absolute certainty that calls to the old organization have been discretely made if they are from another department. If they are from the same department it is even worse.

The good and the bad are instantly transmitted, and expectations are set based on impressions and relationships base on an old context. Only an unknown from outside the firm gets a free ride initially, while the group comes to terms with the new person. From within, those expectations are set from day one.

The first challenge for the new manager is to change the context. Successful managers understand that as an individual contributor words counted more as opinion or recommendation. As managers, words carry far more weight. And those words can have a direct consequence on each member of the team. The lesson is to weigh words far more carefully than in the past.

Many new managers start out with a meeting with their manager to ensure clarity on goals and expectations. Armed with that, a group meeting to describe what is expected from the organization by upper management can set a foundation. Remember, goals are not negotiable. What is negotiable are the methods, resources, timeliness, individual contribution and planning that encompass the sum of each role.

Employees want both recognition and respect for their views. That means all views should be courteously considered. Building group cohesion with a common vision toward common goals requires both tact and leadership. Over time as trust builds, decisions become easier, and explanations are less important.

Usually, the pressure of delivering results as quickly as possible help determine the transition from a more collegial approach to a more directed approach. Many managers do not understand the importance of establishing trust as a foundation for successful leadership.

Another principle is the importance of being open and honest. Whenever possible people should remain informed, even when the news is bad. Openness and honesty are essential in building credibility. People tend to be remarkably resilient and can handle bad news, but not duplicity.

Another success criteria is decisiveness. Too many mangers fail because they confuse being decisive with being arbitrary. Good managers are called upon to make decisions. Some of these decisions can be very severe, affecting staffing, salaries, promotions or other factors. But, the essence of management is the decision process. There is never enough data, nor is there a lack of opinions by others, but at some point that all must end and a decision must be made. Good managers have a sense for when to stop and decide, a capability that grows with experience.