6 Best Practices That I Ignored

Managing Up as a Sales Leader

“Up and down and round and round

Ride on the carousel with me

Near or far

We'll catch a star

Isn't it swell

To ride on the carousel”

Lyrics by Kidsongs

Several performance reviews that I have received throughout my career document that I was not good at managing up. Lack of communication was the most prevailing comment, and I got to a point where I pro-actively stated to a new boss that this was one of my weak spots.

Obviously, not a source of pride, rather an area for improvement. Because effective middle and senior managers ideally want to make sure that their bosses make the right decisions based on accurate, timely, and high-quality information. They want solid relationships based on mutual understanding, compatible views, and respectful disagreements.

Dana Rousmaniere provides an excellent summary: “Perhaps the most important skill to master is figuring out how to be a genuine source of help — because managing up doesn’t mean sucking up. It means being the most effective employee you can be, creating value for your boss and your company. That’s why the best path to a healthy relationship begins and ends with doing your job, and doing it well.”

This does remind me of an answer I often gave when asked by a team member how they can help me: “Sell more.”

These are my six best practices for managing up:

1. Anticipation: Understand what makes your boss tick: If your boss hates to communicate via email and prefers to talk in person, go over to their office when you have something important to share. Accommodate your boss’s work style as much as possible.

2. Help: Figure out the areas that your boss struggles with most frequently and position yourself as someone who can always help when needed. The more comfortable you are able to make your boss’s job, the easier your own will become.

3. Prioritize: Are your issues deserving of being on a team meeting agenda? Are they critical to the team or just you? Can your boss afford the time during his busy periods? Be selective in when to fight a battle. Raise your issues at the appropriate time.

4. Your perspective: Frame your feedback in the form of your perspective rather than think of what you would do if you were in your boss’s position. For a boss that is disconnected from the other employees, your perspective can be invaluable. By doubling down on your perspective, you also realize the limitations of your standpoint.

5. Facts: Like all feedback, be honest and data-driven. Be as specific as possible: what is the problem that you want to change, and what are the things that went wrong? Emphasize how it affects you and other stakeholders but avoid speculating.

Then:

6. Communicate: This is often the hardest part because you aim at walking a thin line: not too little, not too much; covering the good, the bad, and the ugly; and delivered in a concise manner.

The format of choice is one-on-one and scheduled: Such meetings emphasize only select issues. Rather than waiting till the end of another meeting to share feedback, you can easily go through every necessary detail that could have been omitted if you were to be delayed.

Also, date and document all critical information. And avoid complaints about other employees.

Applying these best practices, I found that the most significant effect was the building of trust. Anticipating needs, helping, prioritizing, as well as sharing facts and my perspective in a proactive manner allowed my boss to build trust. And that made managing up a gratifying experience!

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Scott S. Bateman – Managing Up: 7 Best Practices for Guiding the Boss

Dana Rousmaniere – What Everyone Should Know About Managing Up

Andy Chan – How to Deliver Harsh Feedback to a Superior

Chris Sowers – How to Master the Art of Managing Up

Photo by Anne Gosewehr