How to manage former peers as a new manager - Claire Lew

This resource first appeared in issue #80 on 25 Jun 2021 and has tags Becoming A Manager: Other

How to manage former peers as a new manager - Claire Lew

It’s kind of goofy that one of the most awkward situations for new managers to navigate is the most common situation we put people in for their first management role in research computing - taking their old boss’ job and managing their peers.

This is not actually a difficult role - you have a huge advantage over taking over a new team both by knowing the work of the team and the team members, and being a known quantity.  Coming in from outside to run a team is challenging too!  But for new managers who are uncomfortable getting used to the idea of being the manager, managing their former peers feels awkward.  There’s really nothing to be done about that except accept it and move forward anyway - the sooner you stop seeming awkward about things, the sooner your team members will adjust.

Lew’s specific suggestions are to not avoid one-on-ones and to take consistent action.