From Manager to Leader (Part 1): How to Step Up Your Leadership
This post contains edited excerpts from COMPOSURE: The Art of Executive Presence, available now wherever books are sold. Order your copy today!
Over the course of a career, one of the most significant challenges we face is in the transition from managing individuals or a small team, to leading across a multi-functional organization for the first time.
The unfortunate thing is that we’re often left with unprepared leaders. Most professionals earn their place in business due to their domain expertise, moving up in the ranks without necessarily demonstrating real leadership skills along the way. We are rewarded for doing, not for leading. This often puts new leaders in a difficult position, having proved themselves as contributors, but discovering they’re ill-equipped to actually lead once they move into positions of greater power and influence.
This transition requires navigating a difficult set of changes in leadership focus and skills, including moving from being a contributor to a driver, a specialist to a generalist, and a participant to a visionary.
In this article, Part 1 of our Manager to Leader series, we offer guidance on how to take ownership of developing leadership skills as you make this important transition. We’ll hone in on key abilities we’ve identified that differentiate leaders from managers, helping you gain clarity on building your team, focusing your energy, and empowering others to grow as leaders themselves. Let’s dive in.
How do you make decisions?
A prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist who listens to many startup pitches told us that he asks executives a simple question: “How do you make decisions?”
Some leaders can’t answer the question. Others declare that they decide everything by consensus. In either case, this VC sees the warning signs of a leader who may not execute well under the complexities that arise when business dynamics change and the pressure really starts to build.
While it’s vital to be adept at gathering opinions and collaborating, leaders ultimately own decision authority for their organizations. As you define the decision-making roles for you and your teams, it’s important to clearly delineate who owns each of the critical decisions (such as establishing priorities and approving the budget), as well as identifying who makes decisions, who contributes, and who simply stays informed.
This increased responsibility for guiding decisions can be difficult for those stepping into leadership roles for the first time. As founder of Judicata, Itai Gurari describes his experience starting a company as one of trial and error. "When we started, we wanted to be collaborative. My background in law and philosophy made me believe in the power of persuasion. I’ve come to realize that persuasion is not always possible; there are times I need to make the hard call and make a decision, whether or not everyone agrees.”
Roles and Responsibilities
Teams work best when each individual has a clear understanding of his or her responsibilities. Defining those roles is one of the first hurdles for new leaders — and it can be a tough one to accomplish. Execution often falters when unspoken assumptions about ownership and accountability prevent good decision-making.
But when it’s done right, clearly defined roles and decision-making authority foster accountability and collaboration. One vehicle for defining roles is the DACI model. DACI is an acronym for four key areas of responsibility:
DRIVER: The driver is accountable for moving a project forward. One individual fills this role for each area of the business or major project/initiative. Just like driving a car, you never want two people at the wheel.
APPROVER: People in this role sign off on the project and approve major changes. This is often the person at the top of a business unit, department, or company who also wields veto power.
CONTRIBUTOR: Individuals may contribute to multiple projects and business areas. Teams work best when contributors are acknowledged and know exactly what is expected of them.
INFORMED: People in this role are kept informed about status updates and significant changes, but are not called on to make decisions and don’t expect their opinion to carry weight in the decision-making process.
You may not want to use a structured approach like the DACI model for every decision area. But for important business initiatives or controversial projects, a clear definition of roles and expectations will streamline decision-making, increase alignment, and reduce internal conflict.
Protect your time
As you transition from an individual contributor to a manager, then finally from a manager to a leader, you will stretch far beyond your initial scope of expertise. While your role continues to grow, it is essential to learn how to protect your time and energy. An overstressed leader is a liability.
Even though your instinct may be to roll up your sleeves and dive into the work, it’s important to pull back and think through what is yours vs. what needs to be delegated to your team.
When you fail to delegate effectively, you risk spending your precious time compensating for underperforming team members.
Important long-term decisions and actions get sidetracked when a leader is consumed by urgent, tactical activities that would be best handled by her team. If you find yourself too busy to carve out the whitespace that allows you to think strategically about the business and its course, ask yourself these questions:
Do I have the right people in place to manage and scale the critical parts of the business?
What am I spending my time on now that I could delegate if the right person were available?
What are the things that only I am equipped to do? Am I spending enough time on these activities? Am I effectively leveraging my strengths?
When you identify areas that are consuming your time and could be reasonably handled by others, you can create a plan to offload them. If you don’t have the right people to take them on, assess your team and talent gaps, and take the necessary actions to get the right people in place. If you lack internal resources, consider adding consulting resources to offload tasks that are not strategic to the business.
If you are worried about the cost of bringing the right people on board, consider the cost of not taking action. Ask yourself a fourth question:
What would I contribute to the business if I could spend my time and energy on the important things that only I can do?
Therein lie the possibilities of an empowered team led by a resilient learner. As the leader of a growing organization, you are the most critical resource to the business. Your time is limited and precious — it’s time to start treating it that way.
Preserve your time and energy for the tasks that require your attention, abilities, and decision-making — then leave the rest to your team, trusting that the brilliant people you hired will execute the brilliant work that makes your company thrive.
Want to keep reading? Check out From Manager to Leader (Part 2): Level-up by Leading by Example ➞
Kate Purmal is a former CEO and Technology Executive, Board Director, Business Advisor and Executive Coach. She is also a Senior Industry Research Fellow at Georgetown University McDonough School of Business and a lecturer at University of Michigan Ross School of Business. She is the author of two books: COMPOSURE: The Art of Executive Presence and THE MOONSHOT EFFECT: Disrupting Business as Usual.
This post was adapted from The Moonshot Effect, Disrupting Business as Usual by Kate Purmal and Lisa Goldman with Anne Janzer.
For more practical leadership insights, explore the COMPOSURE team’s programs for emerging and existing leaders, including Elevate LIVE, a 12-week intensive program that guides you to step into your full potential as an authentic and confident leader.
