Moving from manager to manager of managers represents a significant change, as it requires a transition from a direct operational role to a more strategic one focused on managing teams of managers. This requires a broader perspective and a more strategic positioning. This requires additional skills such as the ability to delegate effectively, to ensure cohesion between teams managed by different managers, and to solve complex problems that may arise at a higher level.

How do you adopt the right posture and find the right distance between strategy and operations? What are the pitfalls to avoid and the best practices to follow? 

1. Adopt a positive attitude

To manage managers well, adopting a positive outlook is crucial, as it boosts their self-confidence and their ability to lead, thus stimulating their managerial effectiveness. This approach involves adopting a neutral posture and using open-ended questions to understand their perspectives and challenges.

To put a positive attitude into practice with your managers:

• Express confidence: Make sure you let them know you trust their ability to handle challenges and make informed decisions.
• Ask open-ended questions: Encourage them to think actively by asking open-ended questions that prompt them to explore different perspectives and solutions.
• Listen actively: Listen to their concerns and ideas, and empathize with their points of view.
• Recognize their achievements: Highlight their successes and contributions during meetings or informal exchanges to positively reinforce their impact.

2. Strengthen your managers 

To effectively strengthen your managers when managing teams of managers, it is crucial to : 

• Constantly reaffirm your confidence in them. As a leader of leaders, you need to recognize that even experienced managers can sometimes doubt their legitimacy. Use the T-skills model to encourage your managers by affirming,"It's normal to feel doubts, but you're here for a reason and I believe in your abilities." Proactively offer help by asking,"How can I help you?" This shows your commitment to supporting them in their daily challenges.
• Find opportunities to showcase your managers during collective moments. By attributing important decisions to a specific manager, such as"On this subject, it's up to you, Otman", or by publicly confirming their expertise, such as"I agree with what Otman was saying", you reinforce their authority and influence with their team. 
• What's more, to help your managers make significant progress, it's sometimes necessary to observe them directly during meetings or group projects. This attentive, non-judgmental observation enables you to provide precise, useful feedback, by assessing aspects such as their communication posture and their ability to handle objections. 

3. Keeping in touch with the field

To maintain effective contact with the field as a manager of managers, it's crucial to set up suitable routines and open communication practices. Here's how:

• Establish regular communications with your direct managers (N-1). Organize frequent meeting points where you discuss the state of their teams and the challenges they face. Ask open-ended questions such as"How do you feel your team is doing at the moment?" and"What are your main management challenges?" This allows you to keep abreast of internal dynamics and provide tailored support.
• Plan regular meetings with the managers of your managers(N-2), ideally every 1 to 3 months. Before these meetings, be sure to prepare the ground by working closely with the N-1 concerned. This serves to reassure the N-1 that your aim is to support and strengthen the team, rather than to monitor it. It also prevents potential misunderstandings where the N-2 might assume that you already know about specific issues, which could compromise your credibility.

4. Control your reflexes 

The temptation to go back down to the operational level on a subject of expertise is a common ordeal for managers of managers. It's often difficult to recognize that you don't have full visibility of all operational details, or of how decisions are made in the field. This awareness is essential to avoid compromising the autonomy of team managers and falling into the pitfall of micro-management. What's more, accepting that things may not be carried out exactly as you would have them requires a certain openness and trust in your direct collaborators. By allowing your managers to express their own management style and giving them room for manoeuvre, you will foster their development and maximize the performance of the team as a whole.

5. Promoting a principle of "disagreement and commitment 

The principle of "Disagree & Commit" is an approach often used in organizations to manage differences of opinion while avoiding conflict and promoting unity towards a common goal. This means that an individual can express disagreement with a decision made, but once the decision is made, he or she is fully committed to supporting and implementing it as if it were his or her own. In the manager/employee relationship, this makes it possible to : 

• Maintaining the right level of cohesion and trust: By allowing a manager to freely express his or her reservations or objections, you show that you value his or her expertise. This builds trust and maintains cohesion within the team, even when opinions differ.
• Encouraging collective responsibility: By committing to support the final decision despite initial reservations, team managers recognize the importance of unity and collective responsibility. This encourages a team spirit where everyone feels invested in the overall success of the organization, rather than focusing on individual interests.

6. Never bypass your middle managers

As a manager of managers, it's essential never to bypass your middle managers for several critical reasons. Firstly, these middle managers provide an essential link between strategic direction and the day-to-day operations of the team. By ignoring their authority, you risk confusing team members and compromising overall cohesion. Secondly, it could negatively affect the motivation and commitment of middle managers, who may feel devalued or undervalued, which often impacts on their performance and commitment to the company. By respecting their position and giving them the confidence to make decisions, you create an environment where everyone can develop their leadership skills and actively contribute to the collective success of the team and the organization.

Managerial training

Discover the NUMA Savoir Manager des Managers workshop: training to enable your managers to adopt the right posture and find the right level between Strategy and Operations.

The pedagogical objectives of this workshop:

• Put more trust in your managers while maintaining the right level of control.
• Adopt the right distance and let go to gain perspective without being disconnected from the field.
• Engage your managers so that they engage their teams.
  

Workshop schedule :

• Letting go at the right level: how can you give your managers autonomy while maintaining visibility of what's happening in the field?
• Engage those who engage.

To find out more about our approach and how we structure our training courses, click here.