Being a Manager

http://www.eXtropia.com
BEING A
MANAGER
Selena Sol presents…..
selena@selenasol.com
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/eric-tachibana/0/33/b53
http://www.slideshare.net/selenasol
an example training guide for a
real start-up

eXtropia.com
February 2001
being a manager…

Part 1…………………………...………………………..introduction
Part 2….…………….……………...………managing deliverables
Part 3……………………………………….……….…….…meetings
Part 4………………………………………………..…….…coaching
table of contents…

Part 1……………………………………..……………..introduction
………………………...…the management team of eXtropia
………………………………………...…wearing multiple hats
……….…………………...…fulfilling the promise of eXtropia
………………….……………...…being an eXtropia manager
Part 2….……….……….………….…………managing deliverables
Part 3…………..………………………………………….…meetings
Part 4…………..…………………………………………..…coaching

The role of the manager is to assure that the employees they
manage are working as effectively and efficiently as possible
and do so over many years of employment.
Management is a serious issue and there is a manager for
every major department
[REVIEW TABLE]
the eXtropia management team…

eXtropia managers wear multiple managerial and multiple non-
managerial hats simultaneously
Of course, the problem with juggling so many balls is that balls
sometimes get dropped.
Sadly, because the management of employees is not obviously
related to short-term deliverables, management responsibilities
are often the first to go.
But this is not sustainable long-term behaviour.
wearing multiple hats…

Even though we cannot provide things like job security, fancy
training, proper support or regular hours, people still want to
work for us.
And even though we are understaffed, underpaid and cramped
into a tiny and smelly office with no receptionist, people come
back day after day.
Why?
We offer an environment in which every employee has a
1. A voice
2. Room to breathe
3. Top notch team and learning environment
fulfilling the promise of eXtropia…

This environment was not developed by chance but required a
great deal of thought and energy to create and requires just as
much thought and energy to maintain
fulfilling the promise of eXtropia…

The role of manager at eXtropia can be summarized as 4
duties…
• Managing Deliverables
• Managing Meetings
• Coaching
• Resource Management
being an eXtropia manager…

Part 1……………………………………..………...……..introduction
Part 2….……….……….………….………managing deliverables
….…………………………………………….....…introduction
………………………………………………….....…delegation
…………………………responsibility for doing and verifying
……..…………………………………….....…planning review
……………………………….…….....…timelines and targets
……………………………..………………….....…milestones
………………………………………….....…progress reports
……………………………….....…cross-project coordination
…………………….…………….....…the proper use of tools
………………………………...…exercise 1: progress report
Part 3…………..………………………………………….…meetings
Part 4…………..…………………………………………..…coaching

From a dollars and cents perspective, a manager is first and
foremost responsible for making sure that the deliverables
assigned to his or her team members are competed
1) on time,
2) on budget, and
3) to the quality standards defined by eXtropia’s brand.
This is true whether the project is small or large.
introduction…

Managers must resist the temptation to “go in and do it
themselves.”
It is not realistic for a manager to get too involved in the details
of all the projects that his or her team is working on. Micro-
management quickly becomes untenable because the manager
will quickly run out of time
Managers should create an environment that is
1) designed to guide employees towards success,
2) provides the employees with the proper tools to succeed,
3) provides warning bells that will sound when a project is
getting out of control.
delegation…

Such an environment can be created by managing the
following:
• Assign responsibility
• Set timelines and target completion dates
• Break tasks into milestones
• Assure cross-project coordination and reporting
delegation…

Every task, however small, must have assigned to it
1) a specific person (or set of people) whose responsibility it
is to complete it and
2) a specific person whose responsibility it is to verify that
the job has been done correctly.
The explicit assignment and acceptance of responsibility is key.
Everybody must clearly know what is expected of each other.
assigning a doer and a verifier…

Once the manager has assigned responsibility for the task and
the verification of the task, he or she should then provide
feedback during the planning process.
Without an editor, the temptation is too rush the planning stage.
Further, without a second set of eyes reviewing a plan, the risk
is that the plan will be lacking.
planning review…

Every task should have a timeline and a target completion date.
That is not to mean that timelines and targets cannot be
changed over the lifetime of a project
That said, while it is within the normal course of business for
there to be project slippage, it is not something to be
encouraged nor simply accepted.
Project slippage is extremely expensive for the company in
terms of opportunity costs and clashes between projects ending
and projects beginning.
timelines and targets…

There are other benefits of timelines and targets:
1. Timelines create mental structure and incentives – the last
10%
2. Timelines and targets facilitate cross-project planning
timelines and targets…

It is always easier to manage small tasks rather than large
ones. The smaller the task, the fewer things can go wrong.
As a result, it is very useful to break larger projects into smaller
tasks, or milestones.
As a manager it is your responsibility to work with your team to
define project milestones and then to monitor their progress
along the milestones.
These milestones will provide a natural structure and agenda
for your meetings.
milestones…

Progress reports are one of the best ways that you can keep
track of your team’s progress.
Each type of employee has a specific format for progress
reporting that are stored on the NT drive under
progress_reports.
Progress reports contain instructions embedded within them
and it is important that you read and fully understand these
instructions.
progress reports…

Writing good progress reports is a skill that takes some time to
master. A good progress report should have the following
characteristics
1. Analysis versus status – you don’t need the detail. Status is
always changing. Better done impromptu. Prevents tunnel
vision.
2. Resource Control
3. Writing improvement
4. Building awareness in softer issues - promotions
5. Peer Review – tech to tech and tech to sales – everyone
expected from now on.
6. Action Items
7. Editorial Commentary – criticism and praise. Active reading.
Honesty. Everyone expected from now on.
progress reports…

As a result, there is a need to coordinate across tasks and
across people. While it is the responsibility of the employees
completing tasks to manage the details of coordination
themselves, it is the job of the manager to facilitate this
coordination in any way he or she can.
This can be especially tough in an environment like eXtropia
where each employee may effectively have multiple managers.
cross-project coordination…

In this section we have discussed managerial “tools” like action
items and progress reports. In the next section we will also talk
about meetings. While these tools are certainly part of your role
as a manager, it is important for you to know that they are not
absolute.
Managerial tools are always dependent on the situation.
Sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t. It is your job
to improve your intuition about when and where to use each
tool. Using a tool in the wrong place can be worse then not
using it at all! An improperly edited progress report, for
example, can damage the morale you want to build.
An improperly written progress report can waste hours of both
the reader’s and the writer’s time.
tool use…

Edit progress report, then discuss
exercise 1…

Part 1……………………………………..………...……..introduction
Part 3…………..………………………………………….…meetings
….…………………………………………..costs and benefits
…………………………………………………...…preparation
…………………………………………controlling the meeting
……..…………………………………….……….....…minutes
……………………………….…………...…types of meetings
……….……………………………...…exercise 2: one2one’s
Part 4…………..…………………………………………..…coaching

Everybody hates meetings. But, at the same time, most
people, especially managers realize the need for meetings.
Meetings are one of the manager’s most crucial tools to
enhance work communication.
For one, meetings can be an effective way to disseminate
status information. That is, in a short 20-30 minutes, your
entire team can be brought onto the same page.
Of course a good meeting will go beyond status.
costs and benefits…

Ideally, status will have already been communicated before the
meeting begins and the meeting can be used for
• Analysis
• Creative group thinking
• Peer Review
• Communication up, down, and lateral
• Motivational
• Cross-product training
However you have to consider direct and opportunity costs.
Proper meeting management is critical if you are to extract the
greatest benefits from your meetings while minimizing the
costs.
costs and benefits…

• Define and communicate goals
• Who, where and when - cost, tenor, and focus
• Set, distribute, and follow the agenda – enough time
• Meeting practicalities
preparation…

As a manager, it is your responsibility to control/chair your
meetings. Like anything else in a company, meetings require
active shepherding if they are to be successful. It is essential
that you remain focused, positive, and that you constantly
maintain control over your meetings if they are to be successful.
• Tardiness
• Mobile phones and pagers
• Confirdentiality
• Chairing – keep it on track, one person at a time, fairness,
and a word about authority
• Be clear with action items
• Arrange the Next Meeting
• Setup follow ups for items too complex or too off-topic to be
handled
controlling the meeting…

Meeting minutes are crucial for legal, marketing and
communication purposes. They also assure that everyone is
actively listening because you can only take good minutes if
you are actively listening.
Everyone should be encouraged to take notes in a meeting,
but one person should officially minute the meeting.
Good minutes should be completely understandable to those
who did not attend. They should also specify the time, place
and attendees of the meeting as well as the details of action
items.
Distribution and Filing of minutes
meeting minutes…

• Weekly Team meetings
• 121’s
• All-Staff
• Managers
• Shareholders
• Hallway Meetings
types of meetings…

Partner up and give each other one 2 one’s. We discuss as a
group afterwards. Everyone is expected to type up the minutes
from their 121 and hand in by next Friday.
exercise 2: 121…

Part 1……………………………………..………………..introduction
Part 3…………..………………………………………….…meetings
Part 4…………..………….……………………………..…coaching
…………………………………………………...…introduction
………………………………………………...…the eXtropian
……….……………………………………...…job satisfaction
………………..respect, honesty, clarity, patience, positivity
…………………………………………...…informal networks
……….…………………...…training and skills development
………………………………………...…marketing your team
………………………………………….exercise 3: discussion

Of course, a manager’s job is far more than simply making sure
that the trains run on time. As we have said before, one of the
foundations of eXtropia lies in its people. The employees that
we have gathered together represent one of the best sets of
people in the region.
We hire a certain type of person that requires a certain type of
management and we have created a certain type of culture that
needs to be fostered if we are to continue to attract the type of
employee that we are after and if we are to maintain the quality
standards we have achieved thus far.
As a manager, it is your responsibility to help create, maintain,
and evolve the type of environment required by eXtropia
employees.
introduction…

• eXtropians are nerds
• eXtropians are multi-talented
• eXtropians are independent and self-motivated
• eXtropians are damn good at what they do
the eXtropian…

Challenge -> Accomplishment -> Reward -> Challenge…
Challenge is both technical and non technical
Your job is to define challenge, define strategy to surmount
challenge, define milestones, provide stick and carrot to
incentivize and push employee.
Proper praise and criticism in the context of review.
job satisfaction…

Dealing with failures should be as positive as possible
1. admit to the failure
2. analyze the failure. What went wrong exactly?
3. analyze the solution. How was it solved in the end or how
should it have been solved if it is too late?
4. specify what will be done to make sure the failure does not
happen again.
job satisfaction…

Of course, coaching must be set within a context of trust,
honesty, clarity, patience and positivity. Also, remember
that you are the boss and that what you says carries a great
deal of weight.
Do your best to control your own anxiety and focus on creativity
and positivity. Your team members WILL make mistakes. It
is your job to turn those short-term failures into long-term
successes.
respect, honesty, clarity, patience and positivity…

As we all know, hallway meetings are always very telling. It is
the informal environment when so much of your management is
actually done, so use it to your advantage.
Find out how your team members feel. Find out how happy they
are and how you could better create a positive environment.
informal networks…

As we have said before, one of the primary goals of the
manager is to develop the skills and career path of their team
members.
When managing bright people, keeping them constantly on
their toes is the surest way to create job satisfaction. Often,
since project work may not mean working with the coolest new
thing, you must fight the boredom that can set in by challenging
your team to push their limits in other ways.
Tech Reviews, Brown Bags, Formal Training (tech and soft)
Building confidence
Nurturing talent
training and skills development…

Everyone is busy. As such, most other groups have very little
time to investigate what your team is doing. This causes
two problems.
1. Your team is under appreciated because nobody knows
what they are doing. Since others do not see obvious
results, they assume the team is sliding by. This causes
frustrations between teams.
2. Nobody can support your team when they need it because
people require time to come up to speed on projects that
they are totally unfamiliar with. Also, the work that your
team does remains limited to that group instead of being
shared with the rest of the company.
marketing your team…

Discuss then eat!
exercise 3: discussion…

Thank you

Being a Manager

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