New Accelerator

Becoming a manager isn’t easy. At first, it can seem intimidating and if you haven’t managed anyone before, or haven’t had a good manager yourself, then it’s hard to know where to begin. By using the ACT model, we can explore the various skills that you need to learn and practice to build great relationships with your team members, make their experience at work as positive as possible, and cultivate a high performing team.

Your first 90 days as a manager are a great opportunity for you to ask lots of questions and make an impression that will set you up for success. To succeed in your new role, we take you through the three steps you should follow in your first few months to establish yourself, understand your new environment, and to build trust with your team.

Strategic planning involves creating your vision and strategy and developing a plan of action to achieve them. As a manager of a team, it’s important to involve team members and other key stakeholders in the planning process to ensure buy-in and alignment with the overall vision.

Goal setting is the process of defining individual goals or OKRs with your team in support of your overall strategy. As a manager of a team, it is important to co-design specific, measurable and time-bound goals with your employees to ensure their buy-in and motivation to achieve them. You should regularly check progress with your employees and revisit goals quarterly.

By delegating tasks and avoiding micromanagement, managers can ensure that team members have the opportunity to develop new skills, feel more empowered, and take ownership of their work. This allows managers to focus on more strategic tasks and creates a culture of innovation and autonomy in the team.

As a manager of a team, effective communication is key. This includes running productive meetings, providing regular updates, and maintaining an environment of openness and transparency to ensure employees feel heard and valued.

Giving feedback is an essential part of managing a team. It involves providing praise and constructive criticism to help employees improve their skills and achieve their goals. Feedback is also a 2-way street, good managers are always open to receiving feedback from their team.

As a manager of a team, managing results and performance involves monitoring progress towards goals, recognising and rewarding achievements, and addressing any performance issues in a timely and constructive manner. By effectively managing results and performance, managers can ensure that their team is productive, engaged, and aligned with the team’s strategic objectives.

As a manager, it is your responsibility to support your team members in their career development by providing them with opportunities for growth and development. This can include training, mentoring, and other resources that can help them acquire new skills and knowledge. By regularly discussing and investing in your team members’ career development, you will increase their job satisfaction, engagement and productivity.

Regular 1:1 meetings are an essential tool for managers to provide personalised support and guidance to their team members. It helps to improve communication, build trust, and identify any areas for development. Good managers spend most of their time in 1:1s covering what is top of mind for their employees and show genuine concern for their health and wellbeing.

As a manager, by fostering trust and psychological safety, you can create an environment where team members feel comfortable speaking up, sharing ideas and taking calculated risks. Building trust and psychological safety can lead to reduced turnover and absenteeism, as employees are more likely to feel committed to the team and the organisation as a whole.

Motivating employees is essential to the success of any team. As a manager, it is important to recognise the individual needs and strengths of each team member in order to create a supportive and productive work environment. Research has shown that areas such as meaning, autonomy, mastery and purpose are the most motivating factors for employees.

Influencing skills are essential for successful managers to build stronger relationships with their team, gain support externally for their initiatives, and improve their chances of achieving their goals. By building rapport with your manager and key stakeholders, you are more likely to gain support for budget and resources when you need them.

As a manager, learning how to hire effectively will enable you to identify and attract top talent that will help your team achieve its goals and drive business results. Effective hiring will lead to improved team dynamics, as you are able to onboard individuals who are not only qualified for the job but also fit well with your team’s culture and values. A great manager is able to consistently attract and retain high performing talent.