Managing Upwards Effectively
Leadership Coach, Executive Coach and Generations Speaker Alex Atherton
In last week’s blog I talked about rethinking collective responsibility and three aspects to consider. The power of teamwork is generally understood but the routes to get there are not.
One working relationship comes up over and over again when working with coaching clients - the one with their line manager.
There is a good case for saying it is the most important relationship of the lot, and many shy away from seeking to manage it.
It makes little difference as to the rank, and often the higher you go the worse it is. I am talking about the senior leader managed by the CEO, and the CEO who reports to a Chair of the Board (or equivalent).
These relationships can be very good at generating those 3am thoughts and the Sunday evening blues.
Managing up effectively can save many hours and a great deal of anxiety. But what does your manager make of how well you do it?
This is the first one of a two part blog with 4 reasons why your manager needs you to be highly effective at managing upwards.
1. You have a lot in common
A manager often has much more in common with their direct reports than is realised by either party. For example, both of you work for the same organisation which has most or all of
a mission statement
a set of core values
priorities for the year ahead
a series of key performance indicators.
They are likely to be the same for every employee, not just you and your manager. Consequently your performance objectives may have a high degree of crossover. It is still relatively rare for a direct report to see the full detail of their manager’s objectives, but if there was full disclosure on both sides there may well be a stronger commitment not only to work together but to do so differently. The realisation that we are in this together aren’t we can be extremely powerful.
The roles may be different, and one may be held to account by the other when necessary, but the success is symbiotic. Your manager gains if you perform well, and your performance partly depends on the quality of the interactions.
2. A management relationship is still a relationship
By definition a relationship has more than one participant. As a direct report you can choose to be passive or wholly reactive to what comes your way, but you and your manager will gain if both sides bring something to the table. It is extremely demotivating for a direct report to arrive to a regular meeting with their manager to discover no preparation has been done. The same can apply the other way round.
If, as a direct report, you are content simply to answer questions or be given new tasks to do (whether you genuinely have the time for them or not) then not only are you getting a bad deal but you are not seeking the opportunity to turn it into a good one.
There are occasions when a manager is asked a question by a direct report and they do not have any kind of answer, but they go on to be asked the same question by their manager later in the week. Far better to have had that dress rehearsal as a manager and to welcome all questions and queries. You never know when you might need the answers.
3. Your line manager has to manage upwards too
Wherever your line manager sits within the organisation they will be accountable to someone. A middle manager reports to a senior manager, a senior manager to the CEO and the CEO to shareholders or a governance arrangement.
They may spend more of the time than they would ever admit to you being concerned about what they are asked to do, the way they are asked to do it or what will happen to them if it does not work out. The further up they are the greater the responsibility and accountability if this proves to be the case.
Through managing upwards as a direct report you are modelling a process which your manager can replicate for their own benefit. Sometimes those who are very good at reporting upwards as a direct report are not as good as managing others. The same can apply the other way round. The phrase about treating others as you would like to be treated is popular for a reason. Few compare how they approach a regular meeting with a direct report as they do with their own manager, but there is much to gain for those who do.
4. An organised direct report enables more efficient meetings
Both sides are responsible for preparing a line management meeting. If your meetings have ended up as nothing more than a long list, which only you have to action, it is your choice whether to do something about it. Given the likely crossover between your roles the likelihood is your manager has given you one or more tasks which should have stayed with them.
If you do not bring anything to the table you are not in a strong position to complain about your manager making all the running, you leaving the meeting with all the work or issues you wanted to raise not moving forward.
I once worked with a direct report who produced a short one-page summary on progress on each area of responsibility, which included areas to check or raise during the meeting. This was handed to me at the start. I could have asked for it in advance, but actually I preferred thinking on my feet and I knew the structure which was coming. Apart from anything else I was told it was only prepared immediately before the discussion ‘so it is totally up to date’. I knew this was a tactic but went with it as I could see the value. It was also a subtle test of whether I would prepare for the meeting properly.
This not only ensured she got what she wanted from the meeting, but also that there was a structure which met her needs and could be replicated over time. I had the choice of whether to follow it in every meeting, or treat it as a specific section of the discussion and up to me to lead the rest. Given we were there primarily to consider her areas of responsibility it eventually shifted into a pattern where each aspect would be discussed and with input from both sides. As the structure was known we always finished ahead of time and with a clear understanding of what came next from both sides.
Remember that
This is your relationship to invest your time in managing the same as any other, even if you are the junior partner.
One day the opportunity may come up to be your manager’s peer and colleague in the same team. Their say on your performance and how you present in line management meetings will influence that.
How can I help you?
1. One to one coaching programmes for senior leaders who are swamped by their jobs so they can thrive in life. Click here to discover where you are on your journey from Frantic to Fulfilled? Just 5 minutes of your time and you will receive a full personalised report with guidance on your next steps.
2. Team coaching programmes - working IN a team is not the same as working AS a team and yet they are often treated as if they are the same. I help teams move from the former to the latter, and generate huge shifts in productivity and outcomes.
3. Talks, workshops and seminars - including topics relevant to the two areas above plus explaining Gen Z to Gen X and dealing with the intergenerational workplace. Speaker showreel here.
