Supervising people is hard. Most of us can appreciate that, no matter how often we complain about those who do it. In fact, only about 1/3 of people want to be supervisors. Despite higher pay and status, the role of supervisor generally brings with it additional work and stress and it frequently replaces work that people excel at and enjoy. Unfortunately, in many organizations the only way for people to obtain new growth opportunities and higher pay, is to be promoted to a managerial position, regardless of personal inclination or interest to supervise and despite the great loss of that person’s frontline expertise.
Those doing the promoting rarely take the time to talk to the potentially promoted about their interest in supervising. In many cases, those being promoted do not know to consider it. It is a natural next step for top performers, we are led to believe, and is a way of showing appreciation and recognition. In many organizations, the only path for this is up, and for too many new managers, the teams they now lead become collateral damage along the way.
Sometimes your best frontline people are going to be the best managers. Many times, they will not. Or they will but they have no interest in it. Sometimes your average frontline worker, or even a lower performing one is going to excel at supervising. One does not automatically transfer to the other, though we continue to operate as though this were true.
To break the pattern of equating good work with people able to lead the good work, it is important to be more intentional and thoughtful in who you are promoting and why. You need to appreciate what makes frontline people successful and what makes managers successful, where one correlates with the other, and where it does not. You can start be asking yourself:
How are you choosing your managers?
Where do you find yourself labeling someone as having leadership potential? What traits or skills are catching your attention? What personal biases and preferences may be showing up there? It is important to understand what makes a manager successful at your organization and how to support them in being successful. It is also important to understand that the myth of leaders being born and not made simply is not true. That literally everyone has leadership potential, and it is the desire to lead, not some misattributed natural gift that will determine their effectiveness. Who are you dismissing because you are only considering leadership through one version of it?
What skills do managers need?
Many skills that managers need to be successful are skills that every professional needs to be successful- strong communication, prioritization, problem-solving, and decision-making to name a few- but many are unique to being a manager- coaching, giving feedback, facilitating meetings, and supporting others’ growth for example. Most of these skills can be learned, but most can only be practiced in real time, a significant contributor to the challenges most new managers face. So it is difficult, if not impossible, to determine who might make a good manager before they actually start managing. The good news is, most of these skills can be learned provided the person learning them wants to. Choosing your next manager is less about existing skill and more about people being motivated to learn the skills they need because they want to be a manager.
Do they want to be a manager and if so, why?
As a leader yourself, it is essential that you understand your staff’s goals, not just those the company has assigned but also those that are at the center of your staff’s motivation. These goals may change over time, so it is important to have this conversation early and often. Part of this conversation must include whether your staff is interested in supervising other people, which, again, may change over time. If they are interested in becoming a manager, it is your role to start providing the training and support they need to get there. And for your current managers, it is not too late to broach these conversations now.
Most of your top performers perform at such a high level because they love what they do. Taking that away from them and putting them in a position they may or may not want to be in is not the way to strengthen your organizational leadership. Instead, talk to your performers, top or otherwise, and ask them where they want to grow and where they want to go. Many will prefer to stay where they are doing what they do while continuing to grow and do it even better. Others will be ready to try something new but are not interested in managing others. A few, a minority will want to become managers.
All staff should have the opportunity to grow and all of them should have the opportunity to make more money for doing their jobs well. To satisfy this, you need to create alternatives to promotion that do not include management, only promoting people to management who want to be managers. This, not any one skill or trait, is their leadership potential.
