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Turning off the tech

You’ve made it! After years in the backseat you’re finally the driver – the boss. You are a technical manager. But have you got what it takes to make the distance and stay there?

Research shows that many technical managers lack the confidence and skills to effectively lead and manage teams. After years of “hard” task orientated work on fast-paced, high-cost, large-scale projects, making the transformation to being a “soft” people person can be much harder than expected.

According to organisational behaviour consultant John Walker of Walker Wilson Associates, there are four problem areas that new technical managers face:

  1. Leading technical teams – do you know how to lead a team that you used to be part of?
     
  2. Managing change resistance - can you intuitively spot staff resisting change and pro-actively manage their behaviour?
     
  3. Managing conflicts – you might be a whizz programmer but do you know how to manage conflict between team members? No more ignoring it and hoping it goes away!
     
  4. Motivating staff and managing poor performers - do you demand the same standards from your staff that you place on yourself? Understanding needs and motivation of others might be your hardest job of all.

So what do you do if you are struggling in your new role or nervous about starting? To begin with, it’s an organisational responsibility to equip newly promoted technical managers with managerial expertise. Talk to your manager about coaching and training programs that can teach “soft” skills. In addition, acknowledge your limitations and choose to change. Find yourself a mentor; there are plenty of people in the front seat who have reached their positions by looking in the mirror and accepting what needs to be changed.

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