The role of managers across industries and sectors is transforming and evolving. It is becoming multi-faceted and is impacted by several factors, including shifts in market and business operations.
According to Gallup, 70% of a team’s engagement is influenced by managers, and engaged employees are directly linked to the growth and success of organizations.
The role of managers goes beyond technical expertise and technical management; it is complimented with resilience, flexibility, agility, motivation, and self-awareness. Bridging the skill gaps from the very start enables managers to support team growth, opting for relevant managerial approaches and more.
Navigating managerial opportunities and challenges is essential for every professional. In this blog, we explore the role, attributes, and dynamics of how to be a first time manager.
A Checklist of Tips for First-Time Managers
Preparing for the role of manager can support in opting right skills and methods. Here are a few essential tips for first time managers, they should keep in mind while navigating managerial roles or tasks.
Skill of Feedback
Feedback is an essential part of workplace systems and processes. Feedback can be internal or external, whether from a senior executive, manager, or client. As managers, it is important to integrate systems that make you and your teams resilient and equipped to manage differing perspectives, ideas, and feedback within the team and from clients or vendors.
Developing this skill enhances not only communication but also performance, response, and accountability.
Focus on Trust-Building Processes
When it comes to building a healthy working relationship with and within teams, trust is essential. As a manager, you must aim to establish trust within your team for a positive and productive working relationship.
By setting clear expectations and communication processes, trust and accountability can be developed steadily.
Foster Active Listening
Instead of listening to react, listen to respond to the insights and queries of your teams.
By making this leadership/ managerial choice, you not only create a space for dialogue within your team but also contribute to their learning and better performance.
Practising the art of active listening helps you resolve conflicts, exchange ideas, build knowledge, foster stronger relationships, and achieve better outcomes.
Adopt a Growth Mindset
A growth mindset is a belief that abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work.
Carol Dweck, a renowned Stanford psychologist, sees the “growth mindset” as a guiding principle for people looking to grow beyond the scope of their natural abilities. In other words, break the metaphorical glass ceiling.
By adopting a growth mindset as a manager, you create an environment for yourself to develop the vital skills needed to succeed at your job. Adoption of a growth mindset, not only lets the manager grow but leads to the same effect and perspective shift for the whole team.
Managers with a growth mindset are not only committed to their development but also that of their teams. They encourage growth and innovation by believing that a team’s talent can be developed through continuous learning, consistency and effort.
Finally, Know That It’s Okay to Ask for Help
In a survey of first-time managers, 65% of respondents admitted to feeling uncertain or anxious about their role transition.
Seeking guidance from trusted peers, mentors, or your manager helps you navigate through the challenges of a new role.
Mentorship is a fantastic way to help managers grow into their roles. Providing new managers with mentors gives them someone they can turn to when they have questions or challenges. New managers can rely on them for a combination of guidance and practical experience. This support system will give them confidence when taking on bigger challenges or leading teams for the first time.
The basic reason mentorship works is that many issues and challenges that first-time managers face are similar to those that current senior managers may have already overcome. Sharing of experiences can support the process.
Managers Require Definitive Skills
It is evident now that the role of a manager is very different from that of an individual contributor. Common expectations of managerial can be,
#1 Overseeing a team/project and their performance,
#2 Making decisions that can impact their team, multiple departments, or even the entire organisation, and
#3 Balancing their team’s needs with the company’s needs.
Challenges faced by First-time managers
#1 Building a managerial mindset.
#2 Exploring and adopting the right communication styles and strategies
#3 Build rapport and balance within teams
#4 Identifying and bridging skill gaps for themselves and their teams.
Providing training and support is not only about building power skills but also perspective shifts for developing specific competencies related to self and organisational growth.
At Zenfide, the Manager Program follows this approach and is designed specifically to equip managers with the competencies needed to lead better. We believe in providing learning outcomes that align with an organisation’s goals and values.
Why Is the Training of and Support to First-Time Managers Essential?
A study shows that 58% of newly promoted managers receive no formal training or development before assuming their leadership roles. It is not surprising that 50% of new managers are rated as ineffective.
In the ever-evolving business landscape, first-time managers play a pivotal role in shaping the trajectory of an organisation. They serve as the crucial link between top management and the workforce, driving the execution of strategies and maintaining the morale of the team.
Providing effective first-time managers training helps them manage teams, handle difficult situations, and make decisions in the company’s best interest. Most first-time managers are promoted because they excel as individual contributors.
Interestingly, just because an employee has been a high-performing individual contributor doesn’t mean they have all the skills needed to be an effective leader. This is where the need for training and support for first-time managers comes in.
Learning and development programs aimed at helping people on how to be first-time managers with the necessary skills to transition and lead better should be a priority for businesses and organisations.
Additional Data Points
Corporations spend more to develop senior leaders than to train new managers. It’s not surprising that 98% of managers feel new managers need more training to deal with crucial issues such as employee turnover, project management, and more. This lack of training and support has made many new managers redundant.
63% feel ineffective after six months, and 50% still don’t feel effective after a year, according to Brian Rollo Consulting Group.
According to Gallup, only 18% of managers have the skills to manage others, resulting in ineffective leadership and struggles.
