Managing your boss

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 Managing your boss

“Successful managers develop relationships with

everyone they depend on – including the boss”
Misreading the boss-subordinate relationship

Personality conflict: very small part

Unrealistic assumptions:
 Failed to see the dependence of the boss on his
subordinate: help, cooperation and honesty
 Some are too self-sufficient: no need critical
information and resource a boss can supply
Unrealistic expectation: all boss can provide
information or help subordinates.
Reasonable expectation: boss can only provide
modest help. Effective managers should seek
information and help they need instead of waiting for
their boss to provide it.
Understanding your boss
Goals and objectives: organizational and personal
Pressures: from his own boss and others at the same
level
Strengths and weaknesses
Preferred working styles:
 How a boss like to get information? Memos, meeting, or
phone calls
 Does he thrive on conflicts or try to minimize them?
 Should be more sensitive to work styles of a new boss
 Should seek out this information on a going basis as
priorities and concerns change over time
Understanding yourself
Boss is one-half of the relationship
You: the other half and have more direct control
Effective working relationship: know your own
strengths, weaknesses and personal style.
Not change the basic personality structure of you or
your boss
But be aware of what is about you that impedes or
facilitates working with your boss
Take actions that make the relationship more
effectively
Understanding yourself
Gaining self-awareness and acting on it based on past
experience
Subordinates more dependent on the boss: frustrations
Handle these frustrations based on predisposition:
Counter-dependence
Over-dependence
Understanding yourself
Both these predisposition lead managers to unrealistic
views of what a boss is
In fact: bosses are imperfect and fallible: they don’t
have unlimited time, encyclopedic knowledge, or
extrasensory perception nor are they evil enemies
Awareness of these extremes and the range: useful to
understand your own predisposition, implications, and
predict your reaction and behaviors
Developing and managing the relationship

Compatible work style:

Listeners vs. readers
Decision-making style: involved or not
Complement skills to make up for each other’s
weaknesses
Mutual Expectation
Boss’s expectation: broad or specific
Communicate your own expectation to the boss
Developing and managing the relationship

Mutual Expectation: to deal with inexplicit expectation

of the boss using different approaches that depend on
the boss’s style:
Detailed memo with key aspects of a manager’s work
approved by the boss
Initiate an ongoing series of informal discussions about
“good management” and “our objectives”
Getting information indirectly through those who used to
work for the boss and through the formal planning
systems
Developing and managing the relationship

Flow of information:
How much information the boss needs depends on the
boss’s style, situation and confidence with the
subordinates
How to deal with a good-news-only boss: management
information system, communicate immediately
Developing and managing the relationship

Dependability and honesty

Be consistent and meet the deadlines
Be honest to gain trust from the boss
Good use of time and resources
Boss has limited time, energy and resources: be wise to
draw on these resources selectively
Recognize that managing relationship with the boss takes
time and energy
Effective managers understand that this part of their
work is legitimate
5 Steps To Manage Your Boss

faster decisions, better decisions and more

trust.
The Boss's Influencers
Create a list of everyone who carries weight
with your boss.
Include their job title and whatever you know
about their background and role inside your
firm.
Now craft a variation of your core message that
positions what you're doing as helpful to each
person.
Supporting Messages
Audience (your boss) Message
 VP of Marketing I'm developing a channel
sales program that will increase revenue and profit.
(core message)
 VP of Engineering This new program will get the
products you're designing out to as many people as possible.
 VP of Manufacturing With channel sales, we'll be able
to predict demand, which will cut down on job overruns.
VP of HR The program I'm developing
will let us expand the business
without exceeding headcount
limitations.
CFO With channel sales We can sell products at a
20 percent higher gross
margin than with direct sales.
Learn Everything You Can About
Your Boss's Career

Understand where he came from in order

to know what he expects.
find opportunities (such as during lunch
or offsite meetings) to express a healthy
curiosity about your boss's experience.
Sample Questions for Your
Boss
"I was on the web learning more about our
industry and I noticed that you presented at the
[name] conference. What kind of response did you
get?"
"Your admin mentioned you used to work for
[name of firm]. What was the most valuable thing
you learned from that experience?“
Side effect of this:
your boss will be flattered that you're interested.
Cultivate Compatible Personal
Interests
Do you play golf? Love football? If not, it may
be time to start.

For example, if your boss likes to talk business

while playing golf, learning to play—and enjoy the
game—will inevitably bring you closer.
Create a Core Message for Your
Boss
Bosses are forgetful. Make sure yours knows just
how valuable you are.
Sell yourself Smartly.
To do this, create a "Core Message"—a brief
summary of exactly what you're doing and why it's
vital to the boss's success.
A core message might be, "My team is designing
the follow-on products to our most successful
product line.
 Reassure your boss that you know
what you're doing.
What Your Boss Expects: The Basics

Credibility. Follow through on assignments

Professionalism. Bosses appreciate individuals who are
serious.
Integrity. The test of integrity is whether you'll take a stand
to a decision.
Caring. Show that you're truly concerned about your boss
Knowledge. Bosses need people who have unique expertise.
Summary: Checklist for managing your
boss
Understand your boss and his or her context:
 Goals and objectives
 Strengths, weaknesses, blind spots
 Preferred work style
Address yourself and your needs:
 Strengths and weaknesses
 Personal style
 Predisposition toward dependence on authority figures
Summary: Checklist for managing your
boss
Develop and maintain a relationship that:
Fits both your needs and styles
Is characterized by mutual expectations
Keeps your boss informed
Is based on dependability and honesty
Selectively uses your boss’s time and resources