There are many jobs within the job of being a manager. You’re expected to teach, train, coach, mentor, support, explain, understand, give, direct, instruct, etc. It can be a lot, especially when you have multiple direct reports plus your own full-time job, as many companies add on management to an already at capacity individual.
The Many Hats of Management
But one part of the job that doesn’t get a lot of press is how to help your direct reports become known at the company on their own. You can do this in a variety of ways, by providing them internal recognition, by giving your boss insight to their performance, by promoting them at team meetings, by giving them the opportunity to lead other types of efforts, etc. These are all great ways of providing positive exposure while allowing others to see your employee’s talents.
Visibility Matters: Helping Employees Be Seen
Another idea is to help them figure out who to have as a professional network within the company and outside for them to do their jobs better and even potentially get promoted. This can be risky for some leaders as this could mean they will leave you and your department. This individual who you’ve come to depend on and have poured a lot of effort into may take these hard-won skills and go, maybe within the company or worse, leave as a highly prized recruit for someone else.
Letting Go of Fear: Networking, Growth, and Leadership Ego
GULP – that isn’t what you want, or is it? There are no guarantees that any of us will stay anywhere and we certainly don’t owe it to our bosses to stay put and not learn more or move up. You need to remember that this isn’t about you, not really. A good leader does all the verbs (teach, train, mentor…) because that is what you are supposed to do and if you’re fortunate enough to work with someone who really gets it, soaks it in and asks for more. Well, then they could leave their current position or even – surpass you! Can your ego take it?
I hope so, because helping employees build a good network is another way of providing them with more tools and these tools will greatly help them. They’ll help you too as employees who have positive workplace relationships will make sure that the department’s work gets done more efficiently and with more collaboration.
How do you do it? It isn’t hard really if you have regular conversations with those you supervise. If you are a little higher up in the organization, or have been there longer, or even are observant about what’s going on and who’s doing it, you can help guide your employees towards others who they can commiserate with, learn from and in general count on.
Helping your direct reports network and find their own spot within the organization is a great way to manage and mentor. While it certainly benefits employee growth and development, you can also increase your leadership expertise. It also benefits the organization and its health!