An important part of a manager’s job is to remove obstacles that would prevent their team from succeeding. They can do this by being reactive, proactive or inactive. How so? Let’s see…
There are three ways a manager removes obstacles:
- Reactive – responding to issues when they happen
- Proactive – working to prevent future issues from arising
- Inactive – removing themselves from being an obstacle
Let’s look at each of these categories.
Reactive
So, an issue has come up and you’ve escalated it to your manager. Their job at this point is to be make a timely decision about what to do. If they delay decision making, the team may be blocked from making progress. It may be that they need to escalate this further up the management chain. In any case, the ball is now in their court and they need to act with urgency.
If the issue is causing an immediate emergency, your manager should step in or find the appropriate people to manage the event – coordinating to troubleshoot, verify and fix the issue. Managing these events can require split second decision making about serious issues.
Some managers enjoy being the center of attention so much that they, consciously or unconsciously, manufacture an endless stream of crises that continuously swirl around them. If this describes your workplace, the next section may help!
Proactive
There are a number of things you, your team and your manager can do to prevent certain types of issues from arising. It starts with clearly stated goals/deliverables that are communicated consistently to everyone on the team. If there are multiple projects in flight, a good manager will prioritize them so you know which ones require more attention.
A team armed with clear goals and priorities is able to self manage and avoid conflict in many situations without involving their manager. If your manager hasn’t provided clear deliverables and priorities, guess what, ask them to!
Managing risk is another step that can be taken to identify possible future issues and work to prevent them from happening. A good manager asks their team to come up with a list of risks and how to mitigate them if possible. If your manager isn’t doing this, guess what, ask them to!
Developing the team is another important step in preventing future problems. Your manager should be providing timely feedback on your job performance and clear goals for you to get to the next level in your career. They should also be removing poor performers from the team and replacing them with stronger talent. If you aren’t getting feedback and/or don’t know how to advance in your career, ask your manager!
Passive
Some managers like to be “hand’s on” but there are situations where they get in the way of progress. A good manager knows when to drill down with the team and when to let them run with their work. So, why might a manager not be able to stay “hands off”?
A manager that does not delegate places themselves squarely in the critical-path for every decision the team needs to make. Good managers are comfortable letting their team run with decisions and update them on an appropriate schedule. A manager unskilled in delegation may have a hard time sticking to the agreed upon reporting intervals (or may not have even set them) and will constantly worry that things aren’t being done “right” (AKA the way they would have done it). This is evidenced by the swoop and poop behavior – not being involved until the end and then complaining about how things were done.
If your manager isn’t delegating effectively, read this!