5 Tips to Succeed as First Time Manager

1. You are a manager NOW: Believe it and Behave like one!

Since you have something special than your colleagues, you have been promoted as a ‘manager’. BELIEVE IT!

Let your body language, choice of words, the way you work tell the outside world that the company’s decision was right!

2. Follow ‘70-20-10 rule’

You are not an individual contributor now. You have the additional responsibility of managing people. Adopt 70-20-10 rule!

70% time for completing your own KRA – 20% time for process improvement – 10 % time for People Management. % might vary from industry to industry. Remember to keep sometime aside for People Management.

3. Overcome the fear of ‘I would be out of the touch with technology’

Now that you have to invest time in People Management, some manager feel that they might lose touch with the ‘technical stuff’ they were good at!

As you start climbing the corporate ladder, you would need to balance the ‘technical mastery’ with ‘People management skill’. It is a delicate balance.

Build a strong network of people! It is very difficult for you to be ‘Wikipedia’ for all technical stuff. Develop connect with people so that you know whom to reach for what issue.

4. Focus on ‘developing people’ and not ‘rescuing’ them

During your stint as ‘Individual Contributor’, you were a STAR performer.

Now that you are a people manager, chances are high that none of your team members can deliver the work at the same speed and quality as you used to do. You will be tempted to rescue them by doing their work. Instead, invest time in ‘developing’ them by building their competencies. Also, remember that people are people – they have emotions – they might have different needs than of yours; they are not TASK ROBOTS. Be kind to them – listen to them. (You still have a choice of not agreeing to what they say J)

5. Get a mentor for yourself

This game is new for you. I strongly recommend you finding a mentor for yourself!

Mentor gives you space to vent out. He would listen to your concerns, challenges. He would share his success stories and guide you on the next growth trajectory! The moment you become best at what you are doing, the game will become bigger!

It is sure that if you continue to do the good work, you will soon become‘Manager of Managers’!

All the best!