Modern Management Made Easy: Manage Yourself: From Expert to Coach

Modern work practices demand management excellence. And, you might never have seen management excellence—certainly not applied to you. If you can’t manage yourself, you can manage or lead others. Learn to see how you manage and to manage yourself.
Outline:
1. Define the value you bring to the organization.
2. How to create empathy with people who do the work. (And what to do it if you’re supposed to still lead and do the work.)
3. How to build a safe environment.
4. How to define and optimize for an overarching goal.
5. How to encourage experiments and learning.
6. How to catch people succeeding as the first form of feedback.
7. How to maintain your value-based integrity as a model for the people you lead and serve

Transcript

1. Johanna Rothman @johannarothman www.jrothman.com Manage Yourself: From Expert to Coach
2. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Have you seen leaders who can’t lead themselves? They’re not effective leading others 2
3. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Common Problems • You became a manager (lead) because you excelled at the technical work • Your boss thinks you can do technical leadership and technical work • You might not be sure how or what to do first 3
4. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Leadership is about people. Not the process or the product. 4
5. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Manage Yourself Myths • Managers are more valuable than other people. • Managers must solve the team’s problem for them. • Managers are too valuable to take a vacation. • Managers can still do significant technical work. (Or, player-coach works.) • Managers can estimate for the team. • Managers micromanage to see state. • Managers think the team needs a cheerleader. • Managers don’t admit mistakes. • Managers can concentrate on the run. • Managers expect people to bring solutions to problems. • Managers believe in indispensable employees. (Or “10X”) 5
6. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Our Agenda 1. Define your purpose: what value do you offer as a manager? 2. Stay out of the middle of the work. (Not the Expert. No micromanagement.) 3. Create a safe environment for experiments, questions, learning. 4. See and help the team see their system 5. Celebrate people’s success. 6. Use your value-based integrity for decisions 6
7. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 1. Define Your Purpose in Terms of Value • What value do you offer: • The organization? • The team? • Yourself? • When you define your “why” you might have an answer • Your answer might depend on where you choose to spend your time • How much hands-on leadership does your team require? 7
8. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Differentiate Manager from Technical Leader 8
9. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 2. Remove Yourself from the Middle of the Work • Where do you spend your time right now? • Delegate problems and outcomes • Middle of the work • Work with people to help them learn how to do the work 9
10. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman When You Also Contribute Technically 10
11. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Where Do You Spend Time Now? • Product time • Solo • With the team • Across the organization • Team meetings and one-on-one time • With your manager • Cross-organizational non-product issues • https://www.jrothman.com/mtts 11
12. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman What Does Your Time Data Tell You? • “Down” to the team(s)? • “Across” with your peers? • “Up” to the organization via an overarching goal? • Consider your cycle time for decisions 12
13. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Management micromanagement occurs at all levels of the organization 13
14. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Micromanagement • The more you work solo, the more you might tend to micromanage or inflict help. • You might not trust the people to do their jobs. • You might be right—now. Your job is to support them as they learn. • Your boss might ask you to micromanage because you are such a terrific contributor 14
15. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman How Much Time Is Your Solo Work? • Can you work with the team to: • Delegate problems and outcomes, not tasks • Let the team solve its own problems • Learn to estimate well • Clarify boundaries for the work so the team can do its own work 15
16. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Resource Efficiency vs Flow Efficiency • The more you work alone, the more you encourage resource efficiency • Flow efficiency is much faster and more effective • Pair/mob to help other people learn what you know 16
17. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman What If the Team Estimates Wrong? • Use cycle time for estimation • Calculate your cycle time 17
18. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Solve Problems: Who Makes Which Decisions? 18
19. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 3. Safety for Experiments and Mistakes • Failure is always an option • We all make mistakes • Consider these questions: • How can you keep mistakes small? • How do you react to bad news? • How can the team create enough structure to prevent common mistakes? 19
20. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 4. See the Team’s System 20
21. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 4A. See Your Value Stream 21
22. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 5. Celebrate Successes! • What small thing can you acknowledge each day for each person? • “I appreciate you, <insert name> for <this thing you did> that made my life easier <in this way> • Not everyone likes public acknowledgement, which is why small is the operative word • Give credit: person and team 22
23. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman 6. Maintain Your Value-Based Integrity • Honesty • Fair • Consistent • Take responsibility • Treat people with respect • Create safety for yourself and others 23
24. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Leadership is a Praxis • Practice these ideas • Experiment • Apply • Engage • Realize • Adapt and modify to your behaviors and context 24
25. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Manage Yourself 25
26. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Your company might have hired you for your previous (technical) expertise. Now, they need you to coach others. 26
27. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Any leader's job: Create an environment where people can do their best work 27
28. © 2021 Johanna Rothman @johannarothman Let’s Stay in Touch • Pragmatic Manager: • www.jrothman.com/ pragmaticmanager • Please link with me on LinkedIn • Modern Management Made Easy: https://www.jrothman.com/mmme 28