How to not suck as a manager.
Reading time: 4 minutes
All first-time managers suck.
I was a lousy boss when I first started managing. And the people I have promoted into management roles for the first time have also tended to struggle, despite being smart and capable professionals.
This is normal. The first time anyone does anything new they suck. So if you or one of your reports is stepping up to manage, don’t worry. Instead, focus on one straightforward objective: stop sucking as quickly as possible.
To do that, you’ll have to understand why some managers suck. And to do that, you’ll need to understand (1) what management really is vs. how it’s commonly imagined, and (2) what ‘good’ management looks like.
This is where people tend to struggle. Despite thousands of gurus writing an unpleasant amount of management books, I have found few concise and practical instructions to pass on to my reports. “Read Radical Candor from cover to cover” doesn’t always cut it.
So at the risk of xkcd’ing the topic, here is a simple framework I use to train new managers on how not to suck as quickly as possible.
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BEN’S DEVS (DON’T SUCK) FRAMEWORK
Management has four components:
Direction
Emotion
Vision
Structure
To stop sucking, you must be good-ish in all four.
DIRECTION is the bit of management that people most naturally understand: telling people to do stuff (and how to do stuff). Directional management means becoming good at instructing, briefing, delegating, teaching and giving feedback. A great directional manager trains and empowers reports to deliver high-quality work autonomously.
EMOTION is the bit of management that tends to be missing when people dislike their bosses. Emotional management means becoming good at listening, making time, empathising, nurturing and establishing rapport. A great emotional manager builds strong trust between themselves and their reports, reinforcing the psychological contract with the business.
VISION is the bit of management that creates motivation and momentum. Visionary management means becoming good at making things happen that wouldn’t happen without you, telling stories about the work, greenlighting projects that disproportionately succeed, and showing reports how they contribute to the mission. A great visionary manager establishes why work matters and helps their team achieve results that they didn’t think were possible.
STRUCTURE is the bit of management that creates order and holds back chaos. Structural management means becoming good at putting the right people in the right seats, selecting the right tools, targets, KPIs, processes, incentives, personal development systems, meeting cadences and reporting lines for teams to function effectively. A great structural manager creates just enough bureaucracy for teams to work together effectively without tipping the balance into counterproductive admin.
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Figuring out where you (or your reports) suck is the priority.
It’s a useful exercise to consider which component you are most confident in and which you are weakest in. Most new managers are good-ish in one and naturally gravitate towards it. They tend to see that component as the whole ballgame, rather than a part of it.
Once you’ve figured out strengths and weaknesses — and you should get feedback to help figure that out — you can put a plan in place to get better. And that, alone, is half the battle.