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A LOT CAN be playing on your mind when you first get that promotion. You personally may feel nervous and under pressure to deliver a result quickly. While concentrating on your success as a leader, you must deal with the added complication that these are your colleagues and friends that you are managing. There may be feelings of relief, anticipation or regret amongst your team.
There are many things to consider when you arrive. There are people that have been there for years before you got there, how are they feeling about your arrival? Are they delighted you are there? It is indeed possible that your arrival is eagerly anticipated like a biblical event, but the likelihood is that just like the rest of us you arrive into your new role to a bag of mixed emotions.
In spite of all these challenges there are a number of steps that you can take which can help you succeed with your team:
Establish the ground rules
This is no doubt a difficult situation. In fact, in many companies a person is promoted and moved to a different department to avoid this scenario completely, as it can sometimes end in tears. There are a number of perceptions and assumptions that exist among your team which need to be set straight. They may have expectations that life will be easier now, eg finishing early, later starts, having a friend on the inside etc.
Each person is different so a one-on-one chat is warranted:
Follow up
If setting expectations was all that was needed then the world would be a great and easy place to live in. Sometimes you will find that despite your chat, you may still see some unwelcome behaviour: talking across you in the boardroom, friends continuing to speak to you inappropriately in work, and so on. In these situations a follow up chat is needed to clear up the problem.
Balancing professional/social interactions
It has to be said that it takes experience and skill to be able to maintain an employee/boss relationship while still being able to have drinks and socialise with your team after work. How do you strike a balance between the two? Be sure to be consistent and have confidence in the reasons for your decisions and actions during work hours, irrespective of relationships with your colleagues outside of work. This will earn you a reputation of being a friendly and fair leader.
About you
What will be your leadership style? Are you going to lay down the law? Or will you take a look first?
The first is the Bull in a China Shop approach. A bull has no regard for its surroundings in the shop and causes untold damage. It will move as it pleases and whatever happens… so be it. ‘After all you cannot make an omelette without breaking a few eggs’. I do not recommend this style of arrival.
The second is the City Tour Bus approach. Just like a tourist you observe good and bad practises from the open top bus. This by far is my preferred style.
Do not assume you know everything at the outset. You need to take your time to see things in operation before passing judgments and suggesting improvements. Before your arrival life went on and perhaps it is not as perfect as you want it to be, but you cannot ignore that certain norms would have evolved and still exist – some good, some bad. Do not immediately disregard those work norms as they have survived for a reason.
Getting down to work
Once the relationship rules are established and behaviours adjusted, there are work issues to consider. It is at this point you apply your knowledge and skills. So what can you do? Don’t panic if you haven’t thought about all of the above factors. A heightened sense of “what is going on?” and constant one-on-one communication with your team in the early days can compensate for what you may have missed. Take your time when you arrive. Take your time and look around, you may be surprised at what you might find!
Robert Kiely is Director of Operations at PCH International in Shenzhen, China. Kiely has worked in the area of people management for over 20 years and has recently published a book on the subject, The Book that could Not be Written. His book is available on www.originalwriting.ie and www.amazon.com. You can follow him on Twitter @TBTCNBW.
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Sorry now but how can he remain in a position of responsibility, he deliberately excluded information and then didn’t register his rental property, why is he allowed be excused for this when if I did the same I would be pursued
@Kieran: Because you are not belonging to the good old boys club.
@Kieran: If you did that on a social welfare application, there’d be trouble. The same thing as people manifesting hatred of those on social welfare, the unemployed or the poor
Same old same old. The top 1% and the elite get away with everything while hoarding all the wealth. And people blame their neighbour on social welfare for all of the problems. It’s the same situation as it’s always been. Anything to protect the top 1% and the elite.
Sure it was an easy mistake to make. How are we supposed to remember all the properties we own FfS?
@Michael Rossney: he should do like Sinn Fein, and have a database somewhere.
Is our Taoiseach setting a new low, low standard?
@Tom Hogarty: no that is set already years ago.
@Hans Vos: there is a very sub standard culture is our government and always has been. How dare plebs try hold them to any kind of standard beyond what they decide fire themselves.
… if it is an offense, surely their should be a fine/punishment?
Can I offer an apology in court the next time I’m caught speeding?
Can I state that I simply ‘forgot’ to pay my Local Residency Tax and be told by Rwvenue that this is acceptable and all issues are now resolved??!
When was this wonderful change in attitude towards the laws of the land introduced??
My backside he has. He managed to remember with an accuracy that would make a calculator blush every cent he was entitled to claim back in expenses for every year he has been a public representative but has issues recalling entire properties? Don’t think so.
Ah sure done worry Robert, Michael will look after you, sure done Fianna Fáil always look after their own.
@Jimmy Kiely: my eyes hurt reading this ..
I’d LOVE to be so well “minted” that I forgot about that house I sold. And these people think that they understand the world that ordinary people are trying to survive in …… Unbelievable
Protect the Dail majority…… at all costs!!
It amases me why the likes of the Sindo or RTE didn’t publish this story.
@Dave Byrne: section 31 is alive and well with RTE and MSM.
So at the age of 24 and a Councillor he got a mortgage on a house bought from CAB, What’s his background work wise because at 24 I wouldn’t have had the money to buy a house.
@Dave Byrne: I bo7gh my 1st house at 22 .. u need to work harder
@John Kavanagh: How much were Doll’s Houses going for back then John?
Just a coincidence this came out while the Dail is on its holidays….
The chancer and the spoofer.
Why no sanctions or fine. Only tell the truth if caught?
Two offences. The first is Robert Troy’s against the Public. The second is an Taoiseach’s against the Standards in Office and us all. For sale : one spine.
Another chancer getting caught. SIPO are completely toothless. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink. Run along you little scamp and make sure you don’t get caught the next. I wonder how many of them are at it.
@GrumpyAulFella: On this we agree wholeheartedly.
@GrumpyAulFella: They’re all at it hence no-one can tell on the other their all blatantly corrupt!
An Taoiseach what’s wrong when your not saying “Time to move on, and we will learn from this” which is your normal comment.
Shower of robbing gangsters the whole lot of them
“Oh THAT property. God I forgot all about it. Amn’t I gas!”
Boo! Hiss!
Disgraceful behaviour in public office. This is murky and underhanded and demands his immediate resignation. Congrats to the ditch for exposing this rampant “pigs at the trough” mentality.
Rotten to the core
Lessons learned, we move on! The catchphrases Micheál will be remembered for.
Huh.
Remember this people. Next time your stopped and your tax and insurance is out of date, just tell the Garda that it’s ok, you work very hard and that you’ve cleared the air.
If it’s good enough for our elected officials it’s good enough for the populace.
I have to wonder, does Mr. Troy know where all the bodies are buried to enjoy this level of support?!
He’s not resigning, he’s not being sacked, he’s not facing any disciplinary proceedings, he’s not being charged with corruption, he wasn’t exposed in the media (except for the Ditch), his property interests are not being made public.
Our only way of stopping this is through the ballot box.
He had amnesia at the time but then his memory came back he should be sacked
I was on holiday 30 odd year. ago. we met up with a gang from the north sound people we were known as little Mexicans. Why because this country is as corupty as Mexico.
Troy needs to f+() off
Errors .. I must remember that the next time I’m lying try my fookin teeth
That’s good of him.
Give him time.
Sounds like an honest mistake said no one ever!
As we say in Cork, Micheál…’.He has yeah.’
Fianna Fail again displaying how they are still the party of cute whoors and developers…and sure why would they change when bankrupting the economy through their developer led policies didn’t even see them penalised in any way.Its time we ousted these self servers for good.
From the rtb website
A person who does not comply with their responsibility to register their tenancy/ tenancies faces a criminal conviction and a fine of up to €4000 and/ or 6 months imprisonment, if convicted. In addition to the Court imposed fines, the landlord will also have to pay the RTB’s legal costs which can be in the region of €2,500 plus VAT per case.
Correction: “In the latest error, Troy admitted to the Sunday Times that one of his rental properties was not registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).”
That should read ‘crime’. In the latest *crime*, admitted to the Sunday Times that one of his rental properties was not registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
Very important to report these things accurately.
FFGG putting their corrupt cronies above the good of the country and morality.
Only when they are found out that the appologies come. Seen it time and time again.,,,
Yep, ‘twas all a misunderstanding.
Politicians should be barred from being landlords. This in my opinion is why nothing meaningful is ever done to tackle the housing crisis because they would be harming themselves. Listening to Troy on the radio now, he has just stated he has 7 properties leased out. Total joke
I stand corrected. He actually has 11 properties. What a complete and utter disgrace.
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