While first-time managers initially may be less willing to have hard conversations, it’s important for everybody to understand how critical it is to give honest, constructive feedback. This program enables first-time managers to reflect on this part of their role and gives them the language and framework they need to provide effective feedback. To do this well, managers need to be able to cope with discomfort.Īt Culture Amp, we run a feedback training program with Refound. Talking to somebody about their career journey and giving difficult feedback is hard.
Feedback is an important part of being a managerĪs a manager, you need to be able to give feedback that people don’t always want to hear. That’s why I always look at whether they have the tools and ability necessary to communicate well with others. Many new managers may be flexing those muscles for the first time. Managers are responsible for people, so they must be able to communicate their ideas and that of the organization. When it comes to being an effective manager, I believe one of the most important skills is communication. Behavioral interviewing helps us identify this quality by looking at what motivates a given person. Managers in particular should have a sense of satisfaction from seeing the achievements of others. Most people can be expected to enjoy a sense of achievement, but a manager needs to enjoy something slightly different. When picking a potential new manager, it’s also important to look at what makes the candidate satisfied or fulfilled at work. People are going from being masters of their own domain to having to deal with the intricacies of working with other people. Often, this is a really interesting conversation. To start, we directly ask potential first-time managers to think about how they would feel if their entire performance assessment was based on only the success of their people.
Understanding and accepting this shift doesn't happen overnight, so we have to spend time teaching people to change their lenses. A lot of first-time managers struggle to understand that a critical part of their job is to hire all of these people. For example, in a high-growth company, managers need to be able to get good people to come and join the organization. First-time managers need to understand that their job is to make other people successful. The biggest challenge for a first-time manager is often accepting that they will be measured based on somebody else's results. Not everybody enjoys helping others grow and develop. We know that great managers are managers that actively show their direct reports that they are valued within the company.Ī manager is only successful if their people are successful. That’s because managers aren’t creating things directly - rather, their role is to help other people achieve their goals. Managers need to be invested in and accountable for the success of their people. Understanding that management is about someone else’s success