Leading Up: How Do I Manage My Manager?

One of the questions I often get from leaders at all levels, everywhere is: “How to I lead up?” or; “How do I manage my manager?”  I have even had the question from CEOs (yes, CEOs have a boss too… It’s called the Board of Directors).

I have been there. Young. Full of energy. Full of ideas for growing team engagement, customer satisfaction, lowering costs and increasing revenue only to be shut down by the boss. Micro-managed. Under-appreciated. Frustrated. “Why doesn’t anyone above my boss see how incompetent he is!”

I was told often that I was making ‘Career Limiting Decisions’. I would be busting my butt working long hours and… nothing other than more criticism and extra work.

Sometimes, your manager is incompetent. He was just good at making other people with ‘authority’ think he was a Rockstar.

Sometimes, you are working in an organization that doesn’t align with your values and you are bumping up against a wall in the dark with no way around.

Sometimes, you don’t have all the information.

Leading Up

I could write a book on this subject however, I have always promised that this blog is an easy quick read so here are my suggestions:

1. Truly understand if you are in the right organization and purely just working for the wrong manager.
2. Treat the experience as a learning opportunity. Determine what you can learn from your boss – even if it is NOT how to be an effective leader.  Remember, as you work to gain more insight and experience as a leader, school is never out and everyone can teach you something.
3. Make sure you have clarity around your role, responsibility, objectives and what you are accountable for. If you are unsure, ask!
4. Make sure you understand what your manager’s objectives are and what he/she is accountable for. Often once you understand how to check off what they are responsible for (in other words, making them look good), then the value of your ‘stock’ in the eyes of your manager go up.  This NOT the same as brown-nosing with your boss!
5. Ask your manager my favorite question in the whole world: “What does good look like?”  This is a psychological question that right away focus the other person on solutions.  Even if the answer is a narcissistic point of view on how you can help them look good, at least you have some clarity.  Often though, I find that the question shows your manager that you care and want to ‘get onboard’ their train.
6. Communicate often. What I found when I was in frustrating roles reporting to an ‘idiot,’ it was because I was not keeping my manager informed with what I was doing.  And in reflection, I was often doing something that was pushing the edge of the envelop!
7. Never, ever, ever complain to anyone else in the organization (especially your team) that your manager is a ‘moron.’ Your team wants to know that they are psychologically safe.  When you discuss politics, dysfunction and ‘stupidity,’ all it does is show the team that you don’t have clarity of direction and they will struggle in trusting you.

Good luck!  Go forth and learn and teach.

Robert Murray is a Vancouver, BC based Business Strategy Consultant, #1 Best Selling Author, International Keynote Speaker, and TEC Top Speaker of the Year for 2018. For further advice, insight and inspiration on how to unlock your inner leader, follow Robert on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

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