5 Things You Can Do as a Manager of New(er) Managers to Help Them Take-Off Successfully

Don’t let them fly without a license!

In the world of unnatural career acts, shifting from contributor to manager is at the top of the difficulty list. Imagine moving from your current day job as a contributor to one where you are now flying a passenger jet with no prior experience and no time for a transition. Or, if you were lucky, you got a couple of days in a training course that involved sitting and listening (the worst kind of training/development). This isn’t going to end well.

While no organization will hand the controls of a passenger jet over to an untrained, inexperienced individual, we do this with our new managers all the time, expecting them to take the controls of their teams and fly them successfully, generating great results and creating a healthy working environment filled with engaged, motivated team members.

Nice fantasy.

Here are five things you can do for your new(er) managers to help them avoid crashing and burning. (For selecting your new managers, check out this resource: 4 Ideas to Help with New Manager Selection and Success.)

5 Things You Can Do as a Manager of New(er) Managers to Help Them Take-Off Successfully:

1. Observe and coach

The number one problem I see with new(er) managers is that they’re left mostly alone to do something they don’t know how to do. As the promoting manager, you must work consistently with your new(er) manager, observing them in action and engaging in healthy debriefs, offering ample positive praise for the good, and opening discussions on navigating the observed challenges.

Ensure your approach and tone aren’t micromanaging or come off as hyper-critical. Acknowledge the challenges in the role. Ask questions about different situations you observed, and work together to design approaches for future situations. For example, “The next time you encounter problem X, what are some different ways you might handle it?”

For virtual environments, you need to work out a schedule to join group sessions, conduct skip-level meetings, and conduct regular 1×1 discussions with your new(er) manager, where the focus is on how they’re doing and how you can help.

2. Have your new(er) manager ask the team what they need.

Teach your new(er) managers to use Angela’s Question™: “At the end of our time working together when we’re, and you’re successful, what will you say I did?” I love this in group settings for all its awkwardness and authenticity. (Want a short guide on how to apply Angela’s Question? Drop me a note.)

There’s so much power in this context-building question, and once and the input the new(er) manager receives offers a treasure trove of guidance. Challenge your new(er) manager to bring this input to life and to ask the group members for feedback regularly.

3. Teach a design approach to feedback

Giving feedback is always a problem for new managers. Coach and train on this specifically

As much as it might be nice to expect everyone to play and perform nice, humans are involved, and there will be issues the new(er) manager must address. Help them start strong and teach or send them to training on handling this vexing communication challenge called feedback.

I teach managers to use a framework I call B.I.T.-Q, which stands for Behavior/Impact/Right Time/ and a Question to open a dialog. I coach them on using this framework as a design tool to promote a quality discussion, not an interrogation or a directive-focused discussion. The B.I.T.-Q helps get the fear out of these discussions, and after a few successful uses, it becomes second nature. (It works for positive feedback as well!)

4. Give context constantly to tie their mission to the organization’s targets and goals.

I often encounter new(er) managers who don’t have clear context for how their team’s work fits in with larger functional or organizational goals. They operate in a black box, with no clear view of the larger environment and picture.

Reinforce how the work of the new(er) manager’s team ties to organizational goals and targets and make sure this message gets to the team. Help them understand how others in the organization depend on their team’s work (internal suppliers and customers) and create a process of continuous improvement based on input.

5. Help your new(er) managers develop a supportive peer network.

The last thing you want is to have your new(er) managers feeling isolated and alone. I work with experienced managers to help their team members cultivate peer networks where they can talk about business issues and the headaches of managing (without violating confidentiality) and share ideas. One executive established the “Front-Line Managers Group” for just this purpose. In a recent survey, the group members unanimously indicated their appreciation for the opportunity to help each other in that setting. They also identified an executive sponsor who advocated for training and resources where the group identified needs.

The Bottom Line for Now

As the promoting manager, your commitment to remaining involved and engaged with your new(er) manager may be the most significant success factor for them in their early years in this challenging role. There’s a lot more for the new(er) manager to learn (see Why Managers Need an Operating System to Guide Them), but time and experience, coupled with your helpful guidance, make a big difference. Be there to ask how it’s going, offer support, and coach where needed or requested, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised that the plane gets off the ground successfully. Guiding it through the inevitable turbulence is another issue altogether.