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Can I really manage my boss?

8/26/2014

Managing upwards is a critical skill in being an effective leader in the workplace. The whole idea of a boss is a somewhat old fashioned concept as it implies that somebody knows what you should be doing and is put in charge of making sure you do it. In the knowledge-era workplace, most bosses have no idea about what their employees actually do, so how can they ensure that it is done properly? Managers certainly cannot control outputs as well as they could when those outputs were tangible. Effective managers will empower their team members to make decisions, let them decide how to do their jobs and play a supportive role in getting the right outputs. This new style of management sometimes leads to the mistaken belief that the manager is no longer responsible for the outputs of the teams. They sit on the sides watching the action and hoping it all works out.

There are many reasons why it is important to manage your boss. One key reason is to proactively re-engage a boss that has become an observer. The reality is your boss’s boss is 100% clear who owns the outcome – it is your boss, not you. Considering it is not in your best interest that your boss fails, especially if that failure is caused by you, it is important to get your boss engaged in what you are doing and ensure they really understand what outputs to expect. Surprise is an ugly word for senior managers.

Managing your boss does not mean controlling your boss – in the same way that your boss does not control you. What managing upwards is about is proactively addressing areas that your boss is not addressing.

The question should not be, “Can I really manage my boss?”, but instead “Can I afford not to manage my boss?”

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Managing above and below the line

8/19/2014

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Management has become a nasty word. What is really needed, we are told, is leadership. Leadership is all about effecting change. Leadership is about inspiring people to do amazing things, in order to achieve the aspirational goals that are set by the owners of the company. In order to lead, managers must take on the role of a coach. Coaching is all about helping people become the best that they can be; whereas supervisory management is about ensuring compliance to some predetermined minimum standards and norms. The problem with supervisory management is all you can specify is the minimum standard. It is impossible to mandate excellence that you cannot define, so you only ever get as good as you are able to define. The managers own limited standards become the benchmark. Supervisory management implies that if you do exactly as you are told, you will meet the standards set by the supervisor.

When managing smart, skilled people, with a can-do attitude, the most effective way to get great results from them is through coaching, not supervising. Coaching brings out the best of people, and ensures their brilliance is used to achieve the right business results. Management-by-coaching is supportive. It is inspirational. Coaching starts with the premise that the person wants to achieve great things, and is capable of achieving great things, but just needs help with putting that great attitude to work in the right way. When we identify some weaknesses, the coach can work with the person to make improvements. Because the person wants to improve, they are grateful for the coaching they receive.

But what about someone who no longer believes in the goals of the business? What about someone whose attitude stinks? “I just want to do the minimum I can get away with, draw my cheque and go home. I am only here for my pay cheque”. or “I am just marking time till I can draw my pension.” In that case, the benefit of supervisory management is that you at least achieve the minimum standard. Supervisory management ensures there is compliance to the minimum standards and norms.

It is important for managers to know where this performance line is. If someone is below the line, and has been operating below the line despite months of coaching and support, it may be time for more punitive measures. The message needs to be that unless their performance improves to get above the line there will be consequences. When coaching people above the line, the message is that as soon as we have mastered this weakness we will work on the next area of improvement. It’s a continual cycle of improvement – a bit like a golfer perfecting their swing. Nobody would assume that once a beginner was able to hit a 7-iron 150 yards down the fairway, that they didn’t need coaching anymore. On the other hand, if the person pitched up late for their lessons and hadn’t even hit a single ball at the driving range between lessons, you would assume that a different style of coaching was needed.

Being adaptive to be able to manage people above and below the line makes a manager a leader!

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My boss is driving me crazy

8/9/2014

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While doing some consultancy work this week, I listened with interest as one of the technical support engineers at this company complained about being double booked. The person he was talking to was furious as he had committed to a customer that this guy would attend a customer meeting, only to find out he was not available anymore, as he was attending to another customer’s problems. Multiple and sometimes conflicting priorities are the reality of the modern workplace.

“You committed to this time a week ago”, he shouted, “If only you had told me earlier you were no longer available I could have rescheduled this, but now what am I going to do. The customer is expecting you to be there. I am going to speak to your boss.”

The engineer involved, stormed off equally aggrieved. “I wish you would talk to my boss. I have far too much to do and it’s not my fault if something else comes up that I have to attend to,” he complained.

Arguments like this go on in most of the places I have worked, and from what I hear from others, seem to go on in other professions, as diverse as teaching, nursing or even in charities. People struggle with ever increasing demands, linked to ever decreasing staff levels. Usually it is the boss that is blamed. The root cause is seen as being understaffed, and the boss is the person that is blamed for not hiring the extra people. The problem is the boss is constrained by finances and cannot just hire additional staff. In the past, a supervisory boss would have planned the workload and allocated the staff to the appropriate workload. Today, front line staff are expected to manage their own workload. They are supposed to plan their time and communicate with their multiple internal and external customers what can, and cannot, be done. They also are expected to proactively communicate if their priorities have changed – in essence, they are expected to be their own boss. The problem is no-one tells them the game has changed - or, if they are told, they haven’t yet learnt how to be a boss!

So the next time someone tells you their boss is driving them crazy – give them a mirror!

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Can I really manage my boss?

Managing above and below the line

My boss is driving me crazy

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