Communicating Effectively With Your Team As A Manager

For the second time in a week, I've spoken with a recently hired, early career Data Analyst who suddenly was asked to take over management of a team.  Here's what I advised... 🔸 Clarify roles, priorities, and expectations Unexpected changes are often stressful, both for you and your team. Have an open discussion with your new supervisor re: the main things they want you and the team to accomplish in the short and medium terms, and how they will evaluate yours and the team's performance, and share that w/ the team. 🔸 Your team's development and success is now your primary focus You were probably just getting used to having your own slate of analyses. Now those projects, even the most important ones, become secondary priorities to leading your team. But don't try to do two full-time jobs - that is a surefire path to burnout and unhappiness. In the conversation with your supervisor, discuss how you can offload or delay some of the work that was on your plate to make sufficient time to manage your team. 🔸 Talk honestly with your team about your lack of experience Be open that you weren't expecting to be in this role, and have a lot to learn. However, stress that you are fully committed to the job, and will work together with them to ensure they have access to the knowledge and resources they need to do their jobs well. 🔸 Open door, but come prepared If your team needs a fair amount of technical direction, indicate your willingness to always have those conversations, but that anyone bringing a technical problem to you have tried three things first to solve it. Learning how to solve problems on your own is a great skill, and sometimes too open a door can inhibit that learning. 🔸 Stress the importance of sharing information and model that behavior People get most stressed when they feel they don't know what's going on. Establish clear communications, and update your team regularly re: what you know. Also, there's tremendous value in peer coaching and learning. Establish opportunities and structures for the team to share information and learn from each other. 🔸 Pay attention to managing up Set up a regular check-in with your manager to ask/answer any questions, inform them of the progress of the team, alert them to any issues/problems on the horizon, etc. 🔸 Get some outside coaching You will probably have some issues that would benefit from discussing with an external coach. Some forward-thinking organizations have this support structure in place for new managers. If yours doesn't, consider investing in it yourself. 🔸 Accept that you and your team will make mistakes Probably a lot of them. However, if you put the interests of your team first, always be honest and transparent with them (and expect that in return), and take responsibility when make a mistake, people will give you a lot of leeway, and will work hard to support you. Be sure to take time to celebrate your team's successes along the way. Good luck! #career  

“This is my sixth manager in two years.” Sound familiar? That’s why the worst thing a new manager can do is take over the helm of the ship too quickly before they know what direction their team wants to go. Then, wonder why they’re experiencing disengagement, coaching resistance, missed quotas, team conflict and trust issues.   Making changes before understanding the current team landscape and dynamics will set you and your team up for failure.   Instead of assuming what would help, start by having a level-setting conversation so you can learn about each person’s goals, work-style, strengths, opportunities for coaching,  and how they want to be managed, motivated even held accountable. Here are several questions to open up the conversation. Remember, the questions flow both ways.   1-Let's start by sharing a little about ourselves, our background, current role.   2-How have you been managed before? 3-What worked? What didn't work? 4-How often did you meet with your manager for one-to-one coaching sessions that focused solely on your agenda? What was your experience? 5-What did you find most valuable in terms of how your manager supported you around achieving your goals? Least valuable? 6-What can I do that would make me your ideal manager?   7-How can I be your accountability partner so I’m supporting you around your goals and commitments in a way that sounds supportive and not like I’m micromanaging you? 8-Can you please share your expectations around how you want to (be managed, coached, work together, collaborate, communicate, handle problems, create mutual accountability, build a trusted relationship, etc.)? #leadership #salesmanagement #coaching

You can never over-communicate. This is one of my core management principles. In leading any organization, no matter the size or structure, you must actively, intentionally, and repeatedly communicate. And I am not just talking about team emails or town halls, both of which are important. I am talking about communication in all forms—formal and informal, verbal and written, broadly transmitted and delivered one-on-one. We often think we've done "a lot" of communicating. But even when we feel like we've hit every channel and made every point clear, there's always someone out there who still feels in the dark or disconnected from the mission or message. This doesn’t mean you’ve failed—it means you're human, and so are your teammates. But it also means that there is always room for more connecting. Maybe you need to enlist other messengers? Maybe you need to re-examine your message or your delivery? Most people don't just want to have an understanding of what's going on—they want to know how they fit in. This is especially true in mission-driven organizations where financial compensation takes a back seat to intrinsic rewards. People want to feel like they matter and that their work contributes to something bigger than themselves. Your team can’t connect to the mission unless you tell them exactly what that mission is. And then tell them why that mission is important. And then tell them how important their roles are in that mission. And then tell them all of that again and again. Effective communication isn’t about repetition for repetition’s sake—it’s about connection, clarity, and culture-building. When you bring people along, they are not just doing the work—they’re owning the mission. So, yes, send that extra email, give the extra update, or pop into a team member’s office one more time. Chances are, someone wants to hear more about how they can help move your mission forward. #Communication #Leadership