Will what got you here get you there?
Congratulations! You’ve been successfully promoted into a leadership role. Your appointment is a clear vote of confidence that you will be successful in this job. Your new role, however, is different to the one you’ve been capably performing to date.
Mind the gap!
Many of the skills and experiences that helped you to get your current job will be valuable in your new role. However, to be successful you’ll also need to develop different skills and approaches. The initial fit of the new post may be uncomfortable while you get to grips with it. You’ll feel as though you’re wearing ‘L’ plates all over again.
Managing a new team, or former colleagues if you’ve been promoted internally, will require different tactics. Whether you like it or not, there will be a divide between you and those you manage.
Your newly- elevated status means the stakes are higher. You’ll attend management meetings and committees where major decisions are made. You’ll need to ensure your voice is heard. Your political astuteness will need sharpening. You’ll require a thicker skin as well as enhanced diplomatic skills. Whilst your profile is raised, you’ll also be more exposed. The political games that are played will become more complex. Not everyone will want you to succeed.
How can you adapt and grow to meet the challenges of your new role?
1. Consider your development needs
Taking each aspect of the person specification, give yourself a score between 0-10 against each skill. If it’s below a 10, ask yourself what you need to do, to increase it. This will form the basis of your development plan.
2. Time to experiment with the ‘dressing up box of behaviours.’
In her Ted Talk ‘The Authenticity Paradox’ Professor Herminia Ibarra suggests that where something you’re doing in your job is not working as well as it could, it’s time to try a different approach. By giving yourself permission to experiment with new ways of doing things in a playful way, you can evolve and develop more helpful behaviours and skills needed in your new role.
These will feel clunky and unnatural to start. You’ll absorb some approaches, integrating these into your new skills and behaviours toolbox. Others you may try but discard. However, this intentional approach to fast-prototyping behaviours and skills will enable you to move from ‘conscious incompetence’ to ‘unconscious competence’ more quickly.
3. Modelling effective skills and behaviours
Make people watching your new hobby. By observing excellence in others, you can learn a great deal.
Rather than identifying role models, identify those who exemplify excellence in specific areas. Here are some examples of the skills and approaches you may need to develop. The person specification will identify others specific to your role. (Not all of these will be written down).
· Who chairs meetings effectively?
· Who has the ear of the chair in meetings?
· Who always gets their decisions accepted and how?
· Who handles difficult conversations skilfully?
· Who is politically adept?
· Who is skilled at securing funding?
When you watch these individuals in action, make notes not only of what you see but also what you hear and feel. What do they do that makes them effective practitioners?
Talk to them. Ask them how they do what they do so well. They will be flattered you asked and will share tips and advice.
Test out their techniques and approaches. Reflect on how helpful you found them.
4. Seek support
· Life at the top can be lonely. Invest time in developing relationships with peers at the same level in other parts of your institution.
· Connect with those in similar roles at other universities. This can be a great way to gain some distance and perspective as well as support and advice.
· Seek the support of your line manager as they will have some useful ideas to support your development needs.
· There may be specific programmes you can apply for through your institution, such as Advance HE’s Aurora female leadership development initiative
· Find a mentor; someone who has been where you are and who can provide shortcuts and helpful hacks.
· Seek the services of a coach. She/he will challenge and stretch you out of your comfort zone to explore how you can continue to grow and develop.
· Identify a sponsor; someone within your organisation who will champion you and help with introductions to other more senior and influential people.
In summary
When you are promoted, accept that the badge of leadership doesn’t automatically confer all the attributes you’ll need to be successful. Identifying your development needs early and actively will help you adjust to your new role more quickly.
Good leaders are generous to others. As you progress, return the favour by offering to support more junior colleagues who are looking to develop their careers and share the lessons you’ve learned. Help them achieve success more quickly than they may do on their own.
Have fun in the ‘dressing-up box of behaviours.’
Anne Wilson
February 2022