19 Oct 06 @ 1:39 pm
Managing Your Manager
Many newly promoted managers complain of having two jobs—juggling the roles of performer and team leader. However, employees should manage others throughout their careers—and “managing up” is as important as down. Though it’s challenging, and particularly so in large or travel-heavy organizations, learning to manage one’s superiors is an essential part of any upward-bound career path.
Inspired by a recent Wall Street Journal article (registration may be required), I’ve come up with a few points to keep in mind as you manage inaccessible or difficult-to-reach superiors:
- Create access. Your boss’s hectic travel schedule shouldn’t separate you for long periods of time, so to avoid separation—and subsequent anxiety—be creative in your communication methods. Get to know his or her schedule; try to find out when your boss will be in the office or anywhere “in town” if most of his or her time is spent on airplanes. And don’t forget, an executive assistant holds the key to your boss’s schedule, and can help you to schedule phone or face time with a hard-to-reach boss.
- Adapt and persist. Figure out your leader’s preferred style and method of communication, and adapt your messages to these preferences. Be sure to update your leader’s preferences regularly—no less than annually, and more often for attention-deficient leaders.
- Self-promote. Your supervisor should know your achievements, and you’re responsible to provide those updates. To help you keep track of them among your responsibilities (and all those accomplishments!), schedule updates like appointments. Maybe you’ll send the managing partner an email every Friday at 5, or maybe you’ll leave your director a voice message on Sunday evenings so he or she hears from you as the workweek begins. However you choose to update your boss, be sure to describe your achievements and planned actions, and make your requests for feedback or input at those times.
- Top-of-mind equals top of list. When you’ve let others know about your significant achievement, you increase your visibility… and without much extra effort, you provide reasons why you should remain in your position during layoffs and economic downturns. Leaders will begin to prefer your help when problems arise or work needs completion. Better yet, if you are never far from your leader’s thoughts, you become extremely promotable.
- Face time is essential. Though email is often the easiest way to get a message to your boss, face time creates engagement. This is particularly true when your superior manages a large number of people, or has few opportunities for informal meetings with staff. Be sure your boss can connect your name with your face… and the achievements your name carries.
From: “How to Work Around Your Boss’s Habit of Not Being Available” by Joann Lublin. WSJ.com (9/5/06).
posted in category(s): Coaching Points, Points of Interest
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