As Peter’s Principle goes, “each employee rises to his or her level of incompetence.” The job of a first-time IT manager is rife with challenges. New managers have to work hard to ensure they are up to the task and have not risen to their level of incompetence.

1. Self-Learn

47% of managers do not receive any training when they take a new leadership role. Senior managers may thrive by dint of their experience. New managers need to self-learn for survival. They need to:

• Gain conceptual acumen on management concepts, leadership styles, industry best practices, and trends.
• Understand the nature of the business. IT managers need first hands knowledge of the technologies and platforms used by the company. Good knowledge of the programming language or other technologies in use helps. They also need knowledge of major clients and other business-level information.
• Strike up a rapport with peers and superiors to open up knowledge transfer channels. Learn from other’s experiences.
• Attend conferences and seminars. These are valuable opportunities for exposure, networking, and practical knowledge.
• Embrace micro-learning. Micro-learning allows learning in short bursts. Focus on lessons covering critical behaviours needed in day-to-day work.

2. Understand the Big Picture

Understand the business. A coder or a system analyst focus on their specific work responsibility. The manager has to see the big picture.

They have to:

• Understand the implication of each decision or action on company goals and profitability.
• Make sure their decisions align with the laid down company goals and policies.
• Ensure all activities lead to client satisfaction. Good managers align processes to delight the customer.

3. Empower the Team

Many fresh managers go overboard with the new powers and responsibilities handed to them. This is career suicide in the knowledge worker dominated IT industry.

• Adopt a servant leadership style. Here, the manager is a facilitator rather than an enforcer. Such a style increases job satisfaction and reduces turnover.
• Empower the team to the extent possible. Set expectations and follow-up.
• Learn the strengths and weaknesses of each team member and delegate to the member’s strengths.
• Provide subtle direction when needed. Allow team members to do tasks in their way within the established parameters. Avoid micromanaging, unless the situation requires it.
• Develop a productive and results-oriented culture. Create results-oriented goals. Measure or quantify progress. Have formal review processes and brainstorming sessions.
• Motivate employees to put in their best effort. Apply time-tested theories of motivation such as Maslow’s Need Hierarchy and Alderfer’s ERG Theory.

4. Communicate

Good communication is an essential ingredient in any manager’s success story. IT managers need to make clear and prompt communications.

• Articulate expectations and targets. Give precise instructions and follow-up to see if the team member has understood it. When the instructions are vague or confusing, team members may still do the job well. But they may end up frustrated, leading to higher attrition and lower productivity.
• Keep the team in the loop about the company strategy and developments. Such communications build rapport and trust.
• Be transparent. Establish guidelines for giving and receiving feedback. Give timely and constructive feedback. Be mindful of emotions.
• Listen. Good listening skills are a good corollary to good communication skills. Listen to the team. Take cognizance of their suggestions. Have empathy for their concerns. But pretending to know all the answers is counterproductive.
• Create an inclusive culture where everyone can voice their concerns, opinions and ideas. Have an open mind to accept constructive criticism.
• Call a spade a spade. Avoid emotions, but do not avoid difficult yet necessary conversations.

5. Cultivate Relationships

Many new managers make the mistake of isolating themselves. They keep a distance from their subordinates and do not find it easy to gel in with established, senior managers. Colleagues and peers are a great information resource. Often, work gets done through goodwill and give-and-take cultivated over the network.

• Gain the confidence and respect of the senior managers. Keep senior management in the loop for any initiatives. Develop sound project plans, to ensure the C-suite funds the proposal. Quantify proposals and give a clear ROI for the proposals.
• Find a mentor. Discuss ideas and issues, and get clarity on the big picture. The ideal mentor is someone who has experience handling a diverse set of situations. The mentor offers first-hand insights on the pros and cons of handling situations in certain ways.
• Cultivate friendship with team members. Insights and inputs from the ground are valuable to managers to perform. Often new managers are the bridge between employees and top management.

6. Be Proactive

Successful managers are proactive. They tackle problems head-on. Smart managers:

• Track day-to-day activities. Identify and resolve problems in the bud. Wishing problems away or ignoring issues sets the stage for a big crisis down the lane.
• Cultivate time-management skills. Focus on tasks that support enterprise mission and strategic goals.
• Create a sense of urgency for the team, but be realistic in setting deadlines. Many IT tasks are creative. While it may be possible to set targets such as “code x number of lines in a day,” much depends on the programmer’s creative flow. Give a wide allowance for delays, as long as it is reasonable and does not subvert the project.
• Make promptness and consistency a habit. Decide without wavering. But avoid impulsive decisions. Research all sides of issues and make informed decisions. Take advantage of analytics tools for data-driven decisions. Do not fall to the pressure and make an irrational decision.
• Identify and put in place efficiencies. Question past practices. But do not change for the sake of it, or because change is possible. There is a virtue in an imperfect status-quo than a disruptive change that may cause more problems than they fix. But commit to change when the situation warrants it. Take ownership of implementing new technology. Become a champion of change and communicate the benefits on offer.

Many managers sit in ivory towers and lose a sense of reality. They end up making impractical decisions. First-time managers risk deciding based on textbook knowledge. Have a nuanced understanding of the practical realities surrounding the enterprise.

Becoming a manager is stressful and challenging. The manager is responsible not only for individual success but for the success of the team and also the enterprise. Team members look to the manager for guidance and inspiration. The onus is on the manager to lead from the front and set an example. Paying heed to the above helps a new manager kick-start his or her journey to excellence.