Getting to first base

Beryl Cuckney advises newly appointed managers to take things slowly in the early days, concentrate on building good relationships – and expect to do a lot of learning!

Think back to your games lessons at school. With bat in hand, whether rounders, baseball or cricket, you watch the bowler preparing to bowl. The ball leaves the bowler’s hand and flies towards you. You swing your bat backwards, bringing it forward expecting to hear a wonderful “thwack” as ball and bat combine. The ball flies off into the distance with fielders chasing, whilst you head off for first base…

Except for most of us the “thwack” was the ball hitting the stumps or being caught behind and we had totally missed. We get a second and a third chance. On the third we have to run and get stumped.

Does this sound all too familiar? We had grand visions as we stood at the crease of being the hero of the hour – but we didn’t even get to first base.

You may be new to this management game. You have the bat in hand and the ball is in play – what will you do with it so you get into the game? Your performance is now dependent on how you manage people and resources, rather than your own technical brilliance.

But what is it you have to do? You were probably very good technically at your job before you became a manager and this will give you some credibility. However, there are many aspects of your new job, which you need to learn.

It may be tempting in the very first week to try and prove you are the best manager there has ever been. But many people who take this approach just burn out, shout loudly and are surprised that, within a matter of days, they are the least liked and respected member of the team.

I was feeling on top of the world on my first day as a manager. No department was going to be run as well as mine. Then an hour into the day, a very pleasant lady in my team asked me if she could have the day off. How small did I feel? I had no idea how to give someone a holiday. Within the first hour the ball had been caught behind. How quickly my balloon of confidence had been burst. How many more of these questions would I get asked which were not in my technical knowledge?

Use your manager

The person who most likely wants you to succeed in your management job is your own manager. The better you do, the easier their job is. It is very important that you and your manager set aside regular time to discuss your development at the outset of your new role. It will not only provide you with answers, but help you understand how your manager thinks and makes decisions. You will build respect and trust in one another as you go along.

Keep notes

It is a good management habit to start keeping a notebook or diary of happenings each week. You will need to account for how you spend your time. Much of your work will not be visible to others. It is only when you deliver results that you will have anything to show for your efforts.

These management notes will become a good reference point for you. I would encourage you to pause for half an hour at the end of each week and reflect back on what has happened that is relevant to that week’s subject. We learn a lot through reflection, and if your job role is very demanding through the day, you will need to take time out to think.

You don’t have to just write your thoughts – draw as well. Use colour. If you are familiar with mind-mapping, use that to collect your thoughts. Doing this regularly will keep your mind fresh, enabling you consistently to make good quality management decisions.

‘Them’ not ‘Us’

Employees often regard you as ‘one of them’ as opposed to ‘one of us’ when you’re acting on behalf of management. This can be difficult for you at the beginning of your management role for two reasons:

1. Your management colleagues do not yet see you as an experienced colleague and you may not naturally be invited into important meetings and discussions.

2. You relate better to non-management employees.

To get past this phase of your new job, establish your credentials. You got the job on merit. Build on this, learn quickly and work hard. Be clear about the results you need to achieve. Get to know your people; let them get to know you. If you were promoted and are still in the same department, you may need to distance yourself from your old colleagues to avoid any type of favouritism. Build up your new networks. Find colleagues in your new peer group. Work confidently, not arrogantly. Expect to learn a lot in the first weeks.

Delivering results

You are likely to be joining a team that was functioning well before you came (or that is what you will be told). What matters now is how you deliver results using the resources available to you. You may feel like changing a number of things. If you find there was something that was stopping your team working effectively, do something to change it. Otherwise, if this is your first management position, consider leaving things as they are for the first few weeks. Changing things can have some unwelcome side effects, which you do not need to create just yet. Your team will give you a brief honeymoon period to settle in.

At the team leader or supervisor level of management, it is all about consistently delivering the right results today. You are not alone. You have management colleagues working in similar teams and you have your own line manager. The first weeks of your job are key to your management career. Many managers still remember the lessons they learnt in these weeks. You may get the opportunity to go on some management training in due course, but a lot of management decisions are common sense. Most of us manage our lives outside of work, and many of these skills are what you use at work as well.

You may have heard the terms ‘management’ and ‘leadership’. In your first weeks, concentrate on management, which means ‘doing things right’. If you do this, you will quickly build up experience, which will help you get beyond first base.

Beryl Cuckney is MD of her company, Cuckney Management Excellence, which specialises in business mentoring and performance coaching of senior executives. She is the author of “Your Turn – 26 weeks to become a competent manager” ISBN 978-1-4389-2981-1 or available from www.yourturn.me.uk. “Your Turn” is also available for businesses as an internal six month induction programme for new managers with an associated line manager’s guide. You can contact her on beryl@yourturn.me.uk or on (0044)1684 562169.

The Institute of Administrative Management is a registered charity, No 254807. Registered in England and Wales, No 151360 at 6 Graphite Square, Vauxhall Walk, London, SE11 5EE.