To ask what you think makes a good line manager?

[ChickenLickenSticken]

I'm about to become a line manager for the first time, and whilst I've got some ideas of how to make a good job of it, I would be interested in hearing what other people think.

I know it's going to depend on the person, role, company etc, but:

What do you expect from your line manager?
What things does your line manager do that makes them a good manager?
What would like more/less of from your manager?
If you are a line manager, what are your top tips?

Thanks all!

Approachable
Realistic
No mental mind games\involvement in office politics
Someone with people skills
Supportive to all staff
Bring issues up as soon as possible

^all from having bad line managers

There are three rules of line management and only three:

1. Know your people
2. Know your people, and
3. Know your people

If you stick to all three rules you'll be fine, everything else can be learnt :)

Fairness - no favouritism
Involve them in what is going in the business
Encourage them in their career development e.g.courses, more responsibility
Don't ask them to do anything you would not be prepared to do yourself so demonstrate that you are prepared to muck in with the more menial tasks to help them and they will hopefully show loyalty to you when you are busy.
Yyy to being approachable.

Don't try to be friends with your team - it's a hard thing to pull off when you're first finding your feet.

Prepare for conversations - this is something someone told me after I'd been line managing for a few months and it was a lightbulb moment (but perhaps I'm a bit dim...) So, if you need person A to do something/change something, don't think 'Right, will go and tell person A to do this.'
Think:
What does person A currently do?
What's in it for them if they do something different?
What are their likely concerns?
Are any of those relevant, ie will I have to do something else in order to make this happen?
How supportive am I prepared to be? (at the beginning you will think 'endlessly' but as you get to know your team...)

And then structure the conversation in your head:
Tell A this
Ask for A's thoughts
Discuss, or if it's a big thing or a surprise, agree to meet again at X time
Summarise, making the expectation clear

When I write this down it sounds terrible but it's simply being ready for conversations instead of just rushing in, which is my usual style.

Agree with previous poster, especially re the mind games. Another tip would be to be objective in your assessment of the member of your team. In my current role, I do not manage a team, but have done in the past. There are a number of us on the team, all at the same level, and one overall manager to whom we report. One of the team can do no wrong...although the rest of us can see he does as little as possible, coasts along merrily, but is somehow perceived very differently by the overall manager. So I suppose hat I am saying in a very long winded way is, don't have 'favourites' who can do no wrong, in your eyes.

Don't huff, puff & roll your eyes when staff (especially new starters) ask perfectly reasonable questions. It makes them not want to ask in future and leads to big fuck ups which you won't find out about until it's far too late....

Congrats on your promotion!

Sorry for typos...I meant members of team and what, not hat!

Make sure if you are asking people to change you discuss with them how they can do it. Often people don't change because they really don't know how to, they are just asked to be more of something or less of something.

I wss a line manager for years and what worked for me was being prepared to do the crap, horrible jobs too. Nothing worse than a manager that isn't prepared to get their hand dirty or won't work extra shifts when you expect staff to. Be approachable and friendly. Be flexible but don't let people take the piss out of it Expect phone calls on days off if people aren't sure about something. Leave clear and concise instructions on your day off so staff know what they are meant to achieve.

Let your team own their own work. Nothing worse than a control freak of a line manager who looks over and gets involved in the simplest of tasks. It's demoralizing and really dents their confidence

I've had good ones and bad ones. The main things I learnt were to be:

Professional yet friendly and approachable
Clear in expectations yet realistic
No politics or favourites
Straightforward
Firm but fair
Treat people as you would want to be treated yourself.
Set an example and be part of the team.

Good luck!

I am also a relatively new line manager. So far, I can offer the following:

Communicate regularly and clearly with the staff you manage, particularly around setting tasks / goals and being clear about deadlines, how outcomes will be measured etc. SO underestimated! Lack of clarity and openess is what leads to so much of the misunderstandings, gossip, bitching etc in workplaces, imo.

Definitely learn to delegate, but as mentioned above - get your hands dirty, too. I have always respected managers who were prepared to work 'front line' when necessary, so I try to be that type of manager, too.

Be super organised and stay one step ahead. You're the one that has to see the 'bigger picture' now, and communicate that to the staff you manage.

Remember - a big part of managing staff is supporting and developing them. Take time to get to know them, how they work, what approach works best with them and what their skills and training / development needs are. It will pay off longer term if you are helping them to meet their own needs in the course of meeting your organisation's needs, if that makes sense (sorry....trying to avoid management waffle lol).

Good communication is number 1.

Don't let the hard workers pick up the slack for the lazy gits in the team.

Excellent - thank you all.

It's only a small team - currently, 3 of us report into our Head Of. I'm being promoted and the other 2 are ok with this and agree out of the 3 of us, I'm the most suitable. So they would become my direct reports...

I think my first challenge is about to rear it's head.

I'm going to need to change the split of work. One person would pick up brand new stuff, one person would keep some old bits and then pick up other new stuff. Both of them want to be the person who keeps old stuff..... Someone is going to "lose out" (as they see it).

Be aware of issues.

There's nothing worse than someone in the team taking the p*ss but this going unnoticed or ignored by management when everyone else works hard and chips in.

Whilst it might be awkward tackling Person A, in my experience it means People B, C and D have more respect and loyalty.

don't treat people like idiots. (unless proven to be justified...)
no favouritism. The others resent the office lazy person, slacker, drunk, timewaster. Don't make them carry a wastrel, sort it out.
if you don't like the answer you are getting regarding how long a job will take, that doesn't change it. Throwing a strop doesn't change it either. Believe in the expertise of your team.
don't enforce team-building days and work socials. Work is work. People get paid to do it. Don't waste their precious free time.
say 'thank you'!!

Read 'first break all the rules' by John Seddon.

Spend the majority of your time in your team, not off on projects.

Spend most of your time with the best performing people (sounds counterintuitive but it works).

Don't get hung up on people liking you.

Be consistent.

Good luck

Oh and mean what you say. Do not say that you would be prepared to do something in a certain situation then dont do it for example answeri g the phone if aomeone has to pop out for sone reason.

Be friendly but not over friendly. Understanding, and listen to your team. Be confident and strong in your decisions.

This is American, ASK ask a manager but she Has some brilliant advice about managing people.

Communication, listening and fairness.

And do not tell the only woman in your team that she's the emotional one.

OP, with regard to your problem do you think they could sort out the division of work between themselves?

For example, ask them for their solution for work split. When they see there is no easy situation they may choose to divide the work themselves. Or ask them if they want you to make the decision and the. You give reasons

I've had really good results doing this, seen some develop ace negotiating and management skills and other more 'precious' types accept difficult situations without drama.

I'm a great believer in managing others to set their own goals and expectations. Go getters thrive and lazy coasters are held accountae to their own goals

People skills.
Everything else can be learnt.
People are different. Need praise in different ways. Need to be handled in different ways.
My dh is superb at this. He speaks to people differently, presents an idea differently to different people. Some people you compliment, others you tell it straight, others need the idea sold to them.
People are different. Some are ambitious. Some think they could do your job. Some are just plodders. You use your people skills to suss them out and then treat them accordingly, to get the best out of them.

Can't really add much to what's been said - some great advice above, but as a relatively new line manager myself, communication is key. Make sure you are communicating effectively and to the same level with all your team. No one should receive more or less information than the rest of the team.

Delegate well - recognise the best person to do the job, don't be afraid to acknowledge that they'll do a better job than you would, and then let them get on with it! Don't hover over their shoulder but do check in regularly, and do be available if they need help.

And yes, know your team, but also recognise that you're the boss, so you can't also be their friend. You can be there for support etc. but it's very different than when you're just a team member.

Well done on your promotion, and good luck with it :)

I've just been reading the Hot Boss thread, so I'd have to say "looking good in a swimsuit" is really important