From Supervisor to Manager: Accelerated Leadership Development
Background
A first-time manager at a rapidly expanding advanced manufacturing company embarked on a transformative journey through a High-Performance Leader (HPL) program. This program aimed to enhance his leadership skills, ensuring he could effectively fulfill his current supervisory role and prepare for future higher-level responsibilities. The organization utilized the HPL program strategically to support the creation of succession plans within teams and departments, alleviating the overwhelmed HR department. The HPL coach worked 1:1 with the Director and VP of this division, aligning their growth plans and trajectories. Transitioning from a high-performing individual contributor to an effective supervisor, his goals were centered on increasing clarity of roles and accountability among direct reports, bridging his technical knowledge gaps for better team and cross-functional team management, and improving leadership presence and decision-making in high-stakes meetings.
The Challenge
The manager faced several challenges:
Increasing Accountability: He was uncertain about how to motivate and hold a specific direct report (who had been a peer and was senior to him) accountable for change, and apprehensive about addressing performance issues.
Technical Knowledge Gaps: A lack of confidence and experience in certain technical areas impacted his ability to manage and lead cross-functional projects effectively, raising concerns about his ability to move upward from supervisor to manager.
Enhanced Decision-Making: He aimed to improve his capacity for making quick, effective decisions during critical meetings with senior leaders and clients.
A significant leadership test arose with a direct report who was underperforming, negatively affecting team effectiveness, morale, and creating bottlenecks that required the supervisor's intervention.
The Solution
Guided by his coach, the supervisor implemented several strategies:
Accountability Escalation Process: Over several weeks, he helped the struggling direct report clarify role expectations, identify underlying behavioral patterns, and understand the impacts of their behavior, culminating in a Performance Improvement Plan developed with Human Resources.
Management Tools: He began utilizing tools for setting clear goals and responsibilities, conducting real-time accountability conversations, and more detailed 1:1 meetings, while attempting to foster a growth mindset within the individual.
Outcomes
The manager's efforts led to profound outcomes:
Team Member Transition: The underperforming team member gained clarity on their strengths and weaknesses and ultimately chose to pursue a role more aligned with their skills outside the organization, benefiting both the individual and the team.
Leadership Growth: Having applied this process to an underperforming team member, the manager successfully replicated the accountability and development process with other team members, facilitating promotions within the team. This prepared him for his own promotion from supervisor to manager, which allowed the current manager to be promoted to director.
Increased Confidence: The supervisor reported a significant boost in confidence and preparedness to lead a more diverse team and collaborate with cross-functional leaders, even in areas where they were not the technical expert. This transition involved embracing humility, curious inquiry, productive conflict, and effective collaboration to bridge gaps in technical expertise.
Conclusion
This case study underscores the impactful journey of a first-time manager who, through targeted coaching and a comprehensive leadership development program, rapidly advanced his leadership mindset and skillsets. By focusing on accountability, methods for bridging technical knowledge gaps, and enhancing decision-making, he not only propelled his own career forward but also cultivated a culture of development, high performance, and numerous promotions within his team and for senior leaders. The experience highlights the critical role of High Performance Leader coaching and development programs in equipping organizations and new managers with the skills and confidence required to navigate the complexities of contemporary leadership roles in rapidly growing companies.