Building a great organization requires great talent. Talent means great leadership and great leadership flows from great managers, and great managers come from the pool of employees.
To attract great employees, Human Resources Officers (HROs), among other Talent Officers (TOs) are tasked with attracting, recruiting, developing and training great talents. Nevertheless, the true multiplier effect in productivity and performance results comes from the manager. For he/she is responsible for driving results from the rank and file employees.
For seasoned managers, leading and delegating others may not be challenging since they’ve had some time to grow into their role and learn from their peers. But for the first-time managers, this can be daunting being that they are now expected to juggle between delivering results in their own work as well as those they lead.
This is why HR ought to invest in training and supporting first-time managers in order to create desired results that impact the overall business objectives. For if first-time managers struggle in their new roles, then their teams will struggle as well.
According to Gallup, managers account for at least 70% of their team’s employee engagement. Simply, incompetent managers lead to low employee engagement and poor employee experience that could lead to high turnover, or drive operational costs to the roof.
John Maxwell, a leading authority in leadership coaching says, “that people quit people not companies. Employees often leave companies not because they dislike the company or their job, but rather because they want to escape a particular person, usually their boss.”
Poor employee experience, low employee engagement, poor communication, work dissatisfaction, decrease in efficiency, production and performance—are some of the most prominent issues that evidently crop up when unskilled first-time managers are installed into management roles without proper training and support.
Therefore, it is the responsibility of the Human Resource department to ensure that the hired talent becomes a multiplier to the organization by offering training, development and support as needed.
Here are a few ways HR can offer to support first-time managers.
Clarity of Purpose and Expectations
Being a newbie manager means that you have a whole lot to learn. It’s thus best you begin with the fundamentals first. Know and seek to understand what business you are in. Once you have the clarity, you then are able to articulate to your team what your organizational vision, purpose, mission and values are. A critical aspect to helping your team realize how their work connects to the company’s big picture.
After all, as a manager, you’re expected to drive the organizational initiatives through your team, and the most effective way to do so is to lead with purpose. HR can play a crucial role in helping the manager understand the general overview of the organization.
Build Relationships
As a manager, you are the bridge between management and the rank and file employees. Advocating for these two groups is in essence what you are hired to do. How well you build the right relationships to help you understand your boss or your team will largely determine your success or lack thereof.
Leveraging HR to learn or guide you to the right training that empower you to build strong relationships with upper management ought to be a priority. Especially if you are to best understand what’s expected of you on both ends, and how to influence action for better results.
To make sound decisions, you will need not only the hard facts; data, but people too. Intelligence on people dynamics is what will elevate your success. For without an understanding of what motivates your team, there’s little you can do to effectively drive performance. Simply put, you cannot expect anything from people you really don’t know or understand.
Be the Leader You’re, Think We, Not I
Prior to being in management, most first-time managers think in “I” terms. This is understandable and explains how you got to the manager position. However, to create the next level of success in your new role as a first-time manager means that, you will need to think we and not I. Realize that, “What got you here will not get you there.” Remember you were promoted to lead, and you cannot lead with your ego why it’s best to lead with humility.
To this end. It’s your responsibility to ask for help, and HR is there to help you fast track your success.
Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is one of a leader’s super powers. A first-time manager may not even have a clue of how self-aware he/she is. HR can be of great support by recommending the best training to help the manager realize their goals.
Being that self-awareness is a journey that never ends, but rather keeps on getting better and better, especially when accountability is at the heart of personal development. A healthier and sound manager means a healthier team, and one that elevates the organizational performance.
Don’t Seek Popularity, Rather Seek To Be An Efficient And Effective Leader
It’s natural to want to be liked by those you lead. Especially when you are new in a particular role or environment. However, being popular will likely diminish the respect and reputation you need to forge forward with your team. Not to mention, you were hired to create results not to be liked.
Therefore, you’ll need to amplify your competencies, to earn your subordinate’s respect and trust. Developing virtuous skills such as courage, patience, active listening and better communications is a must.
HR can help the first time manager create a training and development plan to learn and/ or improve on these skills that are a must-have for those in management positions.
Conclusion
Leaders by definition help others achieve more. As a first-time manager, you are now a leader whether you know it or not. Your role demands you lead your organizational initiatives through your team while representing the leadership’s vision mission values and objectives accurately.
Cultivating a growth mindset and/or culture of learning and development is something akin to HR. Whose support has incredible impacts on the success manager’s create especially for the first-time managers.
Want to build and empower your first-time managers to success? Book a demo today. Join other first-time managers and discover what our powerful Accelerator Series can do for you.
Carolyne is the founding principal at VPF Strategies. She helps professional and organizational brands gain clarity for better results—increase productivity, performance and profitability. Carolyne is a speaker, the author of Being Grounded: 21 Days To Come Alive and Love Your Life, and a contributing writer for various publications.