Managing former peers

Promotion to manager is great news but when that elevation puts you in charge of former friends and peers things can get very tricky. Your greatest challenge is to reinvent yourself from peer to ‘boss’. How? Here are some suggestions.

UNDERSTAND WHAT YOUR NEW ROLE IS: People management is a different professional relationship so be clear about the job and what you’ll need to step up on. There is no reason why you can’t continue to be a peer in your social interactions. On the job however, you need to make sure the relationship allows you to be able to treat all of your reportees fairly.

DON’T PRETEND NOTHING HAS CHANGED: Don’t just plunge in and start working. Have a conversation with your direct reports as soon as possible and communicate how you expect to operate; get their feedback on your planned approach, find out their expectations and what their suggestions are for making the new relationship work. You are now going to be overseeing their work and need to be confident that you’ll be friendly but professional in your dealings.

ESTABLISH YOUR AUTHORITY SMARTLY. This may feel like walking a tight rope. Whatever you do, don’t flaunt your authority or use it to settle scores with former peers you did not get along with. However, use the understanding you have of your (former) peers, their concerns, their fears and their motivations to build trust with them. Listen and empathize and be careful you don’t make assumptions about what you think they may be saying to you or thinking because you believe you know them.

REFRAME THE PERSONAL ERELATIONSHIPS: This is important so that you don’t sacrifice genuine friendships as the price of promotion. Accept though that in many cases the relationships will have to become less personal at work. How well you make this transition will be your biggest test of your new promotion. Show that you can do the job by deftly handling your people management responsibilities.

Now take action: What would you do differently if you were to manage your peers?