Skip to main content

Relationship with your manager

 Have you ever thought about your relationship with your manager? This relationship is often the catalyst that defines your work experience and job satisfaction. Are you micro-managed or does your manager fire-and-forget? Or somewhere in between? This is a relationship that you want to take by the reins and lead, instead of letting it sitting back and allowing it to fester. The ultimate employee/manager relationship that you should strive for is more of a partnership where you and your manager work together to accomplish your mutual goals. In this article, we will discuss strategies you can use to do this.

We’ve all heard of micro-management, a relationship in which a manager tells a worker exactly what is expected and verifies that the result meets the requirement. People in this situation often feel like minions or peons who really have no control over their environment and are not fully trusted to do their jobs properly. In certain circumstances and with certain people, this is a required mindset. It requires very little responsibility from the employee’s end and the manager knows exactly what is being delivered. For an entry-level job or for a new hire, this may be considered good practice as it very clearly spells out the expectations while the employee and manager both have an opportunity to learn how the other one works. However, if this situation continues for too long, there is most likely a problem. 

At the other end of the spectrum, we have what is known as fire and forget. The manager tells an employee about something that needs to be done, with a deadline, and is certain that by the deadline the work will be done satisfactorily. These employees are highly capable, and know what to do and who to approach if there are any obstacles in their way.  This can work both when the worker is “standalone” and will accomplish the entire task, or when the worker is a team lead and will work with the other teammates to get the job done. Obviously, there is often conversation and clarifications during the process, but the manager will be notified if there are any serious problems encountered. The employee is highly trusted and valued employee and will often have a much higher ability to influence and impact.

So how can you move from a work experience where you feel like a cog in a wheel to one in which you feel like you own your career?

The first thing to do is to put yourself in your manager’s shoes and understand their perspective. Employees are generally judged by the work that they do. It is (or should be) relatively easy to know if you are meeting expectations based on the the product of your own hands. Managers, on the other hand, are judged by the work of other people. A manager who is not comfortable being judged by your work, will not enable you to operate in an independent fashion. 

As you prove yourself capable, you should see less and less micro-management. If this doesn’t happen, be direct and open a conversation with your manager. Learn the business and job functions and see where there is room for more independence and ability to impact. Explain that you feel that the position is going well, you like the job and see a future for yourself and that you would like added responsibilities. Make a suggestion as to what those added responsibilities are - whether it is gathering requirements for upcoming tasks, developing an implementation plan, being responsible for delivery or any other stage in the process. As you build the relationship with your manager, you should look for opportunities to expand your role. The more you learn about the functioning of your manager’s group the more you can work to help move in the right direction. As your manager sees that you can be trusted to do what is expected and are working in the entire group’s interest, you will get more and more responsibility. 

When your goals are fully aligned with your manager’s and you have become a trusted employee, you have achieved a partnership. The manager should be responsible for the functioning of the team as a whole, while you can be responsible for the specific implementation of that functionality. A manager can have multiple employee/partners on the team, each with their own areas of responsibility. At this level, you should have gained job satisfaction, as well as being able to work with your team as a well-oiled machine.. 

Will this always work? No. Not every manager is a good manager. If you feel that your manager is not enabling you to own the relationship and to grow in your position, it may be worthwhile to start looking for a new position.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Strategy in your daily life

So how do we use strategy in our everyday life? It should be used whenever you want to achieve something to which there is no obvious answer. While the shortest path between two points is a straight line, it is often not practical or possible to follow it. There are factors and ramifications involved in the different methods and stages of getting from Point A to Point B. Strategy is understanding what is involved, weighing the pros and cons and consciously deciding the best method for you. As a very basic, practical example: You are standing on the corner of a busy street (A) and need to get to the bus stop on the corner diagonal from you. The bus that you need is going to turn left at the corner to get to the bus stop. You need to cross 2 streets to get to that bus stop. Do you first cross From A to B or from A to C? Most people don’t think about it - whichever light turns green first is the road they are going to cross. It is the same distance to the bus stop no matter which ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Reward vs Risk

 When developing a strategy, there are 2 opposing concepts that must be balanced - Risk and Reward. There are two known philosophies to take into account when determining the methodologies: “The best offense is a good defense”.  “The best defense is a good offense” Understanding these 2 philosophies and when each is appropriate, is a key factor in determining a plan of action. Generally speaking, risk and reward are proportionate - the greater risk a person is willing to take (potential loss), the higher the potential for reward. For example, there are different bets you can make at a roulette wheel. If you have $1000 to gamble and pick a specific number to bet it on, you have the opportunity to win $35,000, whereas if you pick red/black you only have the opportunity of winning $1,000. In both cases, the odds are that you are going to lose, but the risk is much greater when choosing a specific number. When choosing an objective, you have to understand what you want to accompli...
Post a Comment
Read more

Searching for a new job

  Looking for a new position can be a very frustrating process. You have the right education and experience for the position you are interested in. You go to a job board or two and send in your resume to a number of positions that you feel qualified for and - nothing. Sometimes you get a rejection notice, sometimes they tell you that if you’re a match they will be in touch, and sometimes you don’t hear anything. How can you use strategy to better your odds? The first thing to understand is that job boards are often filled with posts by placement agencies. Placement agencies often enter fake jobs in order to get your resume into their files. So not every job that you see listed is an actual current opportunity. Placement agencies also are generally unfamiliar with the specific technologies that the hiring company is looking for. Because of this, they are looking for very specific key words and if there isn’t a direct match, they won’t forward it on even if you have experience with t...
Post a Comment
Read more