Moving from tech to tech manager

welshboy

welshboy

welshboy

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North Wales
Hi, just after some tips etc

Moving from being a tech to now looking after a small team of techs (server and network). My backgrounds mixed so just after some tips. Thanks
 
TIP: Don't pea your tech team off lol
TIP: Get used to the holiday booking system and try to always make sure you have enough staff to cover shifts
TIP: Never micro manage, try let your team solve things and always ask if they need any assistance.
TIP: If there is a budget ask if they need any tools to help them do their job.
 
Definitely worth doing a leadership course of some sort.

Having good technical skills doesn't mean you can manage, so it'll really be worth the time to you and your team if you can do a course :-)
 
It’s about enabling your team to meet the objectives you are given and managing as this changes over time. The key thing to keep in mind is you are a manager so don’t get dragged into wasting your limited time on minor issues and also avoid creating unwanted situations. Different people have to be managed in different ways and have different strengths & weaknesses, be aware of this and where possible make use of it.
 
Always like metrics, or some form of dashboard that the whole team can see how their work contributes to the whole.
Also if some one gets their work done correctly, efficiently even its done differently than you, leave them do it.
Don't let the team stagnate either technically or on the projects they are asked to do.
 
OspreyO said:
Always like metrics, or some form of dashboard that the whole team can see how their work contributes to the whole.
Click to expand...

So long as this doesn't mean making public the supposed work rate of said team by comparing such trivial things as "number of closed tickets", or some other such meaningless statistic which would only serve to demotivate the people at the bottom of the list. Seen it done before. Some people on paper look to be doing nothing, but they actually are doing loads. Some times an entire week can be lost just exploring possible solutions with nothing at the end to necessarily show for it. It doesn't mean the person was doing nothing. Techs often need time to explore. Some of the best work is done when they are free to try things out without being bothered all the time. So definitely ask yourself if you are micro managing often. Do you need to have a meeting (about the meeting) etc. Sometimes doing nothing is the best management technique, except as said, to offer support.
 
Well you can use anything to as stick to beat someone.

But equally on a project you can't get stuck on one issue for weeks. You have to split your time between tasks so there is always demonstrable progress.

If you don't measure peoples productivity how do you monitor it?
 
The manager on the next team is always screaming for resources as if his team has a vastly heavier workload than other teams. Yet I can see from their stats their workload has always been about 20% of the next team who have a fraction of the resources if the first team.

Moreover this manager and his team make overly complicated solutions that are a nightmare to support and to add features too.

But if you didn't have stats you wouldn't know this.
 
1) understand that just because you're managing them, you aren't above them.
2) Don't ask someone to do something you wouldn't be willing to do.
3) Accept they may know more than you so be willing to let them get on with it, be open to their ideas.
4) Promote team over individual accomplishments but you should still pick up on anyone letting the team down.
5) Say thank you for jobs well done, especially if someone stays late to finish something.
6) Understand that work time is between work hours, if it's outside of work hours it can wait. Home life comes first.

That's how I always manage my teams/departments and rarely have issues. I find it's better to lead than manage :)
 
AHarvey said:
1) understand that just because you're managing them, you aren't above them.
2) Don't ask someone to do something you wouldn't be willing to do.
3) Accept they may know more than you so be willing to let them get on with it, be open to their ideas.
4) Promote team over individual accomplishments but you should still pick up on anyone letting the team down.
5) Say thank you for jobs well done, especially if someone stays late to finish something.
6) Understand that work time is between work hours, if it's outside of work hours it can wait. Home life comes first.

That's how I always manage my teams/departments and rarely have issues. I find it's better to lead than manage :)
Click to expand...

That's why I don't like the title manager, I like leader better as a word. Team Leader or Leader.
 
MrRockliffe said:
Definitely worth doing a leadership course of some sort.

Having good technical skills doesn't mean you can manage, so it'll really be worth the time
Click to expand...

Agreed.

Not that I want to sound like the guy out of the office..

I’ve transitioned from dev to team lead, through product management but it’s only now - leading 100+ people product and being accountable for it, that i’ve really got a feel for it (being more than one step away).

1. Lead yourself first.

This is an odd saying, but it means you see the big picture, the problems and put together what needs to be done to realise it on an ongoing basis.
It also means you bring the team together to deliver, although you leave them to solve the picture - guiding and enabling where needed. As a people manager this means also means the good and bad side of performance management inline with the big picture and how that picture is evolving.

2.You are now the “chief meaning officer”
When you’re painting that picture be aware that people are looking for what it means to them, be prepared to explain what it means to them rather than what it means to you. This is true as a team lead or further up the chain.
I do more listening now then I ever have - I also dig deeper to listen.

3. Be aware of the shadow you cast.
What you say and do casts a shadow upward, downwards and sideways - think what that shadow should look like when viewed by others. All part of managing up..

4. Be courageous, connected and open.
Being open to change and your team’s own work & ideas, the better connected the better you can solve their problems and achieve ideas, and lastly courage to be the one that speaks up and takes the steps when needed.

5. As a people person (ignore “manager”) when you have you team get together just go around the table and as what keeps them up at night? Start with yourself - detox the worry and build the team spirit. This may be feel initially like a scene from “the office” but it really does work - opening communication, reducing risks and making it a nicer place.

6. As a manager you’ll need to understand performance management and HR - so ensure your company arranges that for you. It is also in the company’s own interests to train you too- so don’t feel bad asking for it.


And the big one - be yourself and not a self entitled pompous knob. People are awesome, people become leaders by simply leading themselves and individuals following by aligning.
If they don’t see something it’s your fault, it’s your responsibility to create the path to their enlightenment and so they can work autonomously. The path may even bend and you become enlightened, so enjoy the experience.

There’s probably more in my head somewhere.
 
As a tech manager/team leader i can hopefully give you a few hints

First thing, expect to be lonely - unliked ect. Yes this can be true, your "guys" will see you as management and not be overly happy at being told what to do by you and your superiors will view you as one of them and to march around. Its rock and a hard place so try and navigate it right.
Lead by example - if a job needs doing thats got them spooked or its an unknown with potential issues then lead the way and do it, once you show that the first time the guys with you will be happier next.
Bend the rules as much as you can from above to keep the guys in your team happy - your an insulator from the management side of things, tech chaps and management do not usually get along too good so your job can be kind of like a bit of wd40 on things to make it move along easier. This can sometimes mean bending rules or even breaking some you can get away with (say holiday notice things like that in certain situations). If you can get away with the people at the top not noticing the guys bellow will.


Been doing this for years now and while i have seen my team decimated and the job get harder (infinitely) its still a rewarding job, but its like playing whackamole keeping everyone happy.
 
My tips, some of which are conclusions I have reached, one or two are pieces of advice I've been given by others:
  • Dare to delegate. One of the biggest issues I have is personal time management as you now have quite broad responsibilities so you need to give things away to people in your teams. This can be scary if you come from a tech background and know you could nail the tasks at hand yourself, or you are worried about overloading team members. But actually sit down and list out all your tasks and then for each one consider if it could be delegated and to whom. Sometimes people can surprise you if given an opportunity. When it comes to fears of overloading other people, remember that overloading yourself can be just as big a problem if it limits your ability to lead.
  • Your success is now dictated by what your team does not what you do. My boss insightfully said to me once it doesn't matter how hard you work, how many hours you put in, if the team aren't working effectively then you will fail. So make people leadership your #1 priority, higher than e.g. programme delivery.
  • Learn how to make meetings effective as you will spend a lot of time in them. I probably have about 30hrs of meetings a week on average so I can't afford to have that be 'dead time' with a big stream of personal prep work leading up to them and actions coming out the back of them. Drive decision making and delegated actions in meetings even if you are not the chair.
  • If you have a peer network (other managers you can relate to in some way), use it. The most pleasant thing I have found since becoming a manager is that support network, being able to reach out to others and use them as sounding boards or reach a collective viewpoint on how to handle situations that effect multiple teams
  • Encourage feedback either directly or indirectly - this can alert you to blindspots or the impact of unconscious behaviours you may have
  • Don't be afraid to share limited information (e.g. about upcoming projects, structural change, etc). In the past I have fallen foul of waiting for 'complete knowledge' about something before presenting to my team but then the silence preceding that can breed uncertainty and rumour. People like to relate what they are doing to the big picture and lack of any sort of view on company / unit strategy can impact on engagement.
  • Offer support for your team but don't back them unconditionally. There will be times when you need to explain to people that their preferred way forward isn't viable and they need to come into line. That's better than saying "OK I will sort that out" and then failing to deliver.
  • Be wary about interpersonal relationships both in terms of how you yourself transition to manager (are you closer to some of the team members than others and could this result in perceived favouritism if this continues) and how the team get on with each other. If you are lucky you will have someone in the team who can keep their finger on the pulse and feedback to you any issues in the team (e.g. so-and-so doesn't seem themself lately).
  • Take your time when hiring people. Overall I've been pretty happy with the people I've brought in except for one which had a shorter recruitment process. Hiring the wrong person into a permie role can potentially result in quite a bit of grief. That said, you can never truly be sure about anyone new until they have worked in the team for a while.
  • Use the fact that you have a tech background to your advantage - talk through issues with your team and let them use you as a sounding board. I have people in my team with better technical experience than me but they appreciate the fact that I can hold a conversation at a low level of detail if required. Just remember that you need to step away from the detail when that conversation ends.
  • Try to avoid putting team members in an awkward position by telling others that they will deal with something before you have spoken with the team member concerned. e.g. you get an email asking for XYZ, don't just reply saying "Joe will sort this out for you" without confirming that Joe can pick this up.
  • Step in during crisis situations and show that you are there to help, to protect the team from external influences and to be available as a decision maker when required. This can be a massive relief to a team who are worried about how a crisis will go down.
  • Consider restructuring the team as it evolves. I've grown my team significantly since taking over so had to implement a management hierarchy underneath me to avoid having too many direct reports etc.
 
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