Invisible Output Measuring the Behind-the-Scenes Work of a People Manager - Samantha Rae Ayoub, Fellow

This resource first appeared in issue #102 on 27 Nov 2021 and has tags Managing A Team: Other

Invisible Output: Measuring the Behind-the-Scenes Work of a People Manager - Samantha Rae Ayoub, Fellow

One of the problems of being a manager is that the work we do is pretty invisible. Our teams’ accomplishments are pretty clear, but the work we do to support that can be hard to point out. That means it’s hard to point out to our bosses - but even more importantly, to ourselves - the good work we’re doing, and where we need some support.

Ayoub tells us it doesn’t need to be that way; we can set clear goals, and even some quantifiable ones, for ourselves. We managers just need to:

• set measurable goals for ourselves, not just goals for our teams
• measure outcomes and impacts, not just count inputs or outputs
• be personally measured on overall effectiveness, not just team performance

On goal setting, Ayoub urges us to set goals for ourselves, not just for the output of our team, that focus on overall outcome or impact - whether that’s internal (like staff engagement numbers) or external (more collaborations or partnerships) - not just input activities. That will help focus our activities on what matters, not just activities for their own sake.

Ayoub also tells us to make sure we’re including team member metrics - things like retention and rate of promotion - but those are less relevant in our world, where job tenure is generally quite long.