Are you an accidental manager?
There’s a good chance you might be. Research from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) indicates more than 80 per cent of people who enter management positions have not had leadership and management training and regard themselves as accidental managers.
They are promoted because they are good at their job.
But they don’t have the tools or knowledge to lead and manage.
And the CMI argues this is a crucial factor in the growing concern about the quality of management and its impact on workers.
So, what can accidental managers do to help themselves?
This was the subject of our latest masterclass for members of the Media Team Academy – our learning and development programme for comms and media professionals.
The session was led by our managing director James White, and Dan Boniface, head of training, at leadership and management training company The BCF Group.
They began by exploring in more detail what the phrase ‘accidental manager’ means and why they are not keen on the term.
Dan said: “’Accidental manager’ comes up a lot during our training courses.
“There is a risk the person becomes labelled as an ‘accidental manager’. And that’s not right.
“They’ve earned the right to be in that position by being good at their job.”
It is a situation many will find relatable. I was an accidental manager.
I did well in my comms job, and the logical next step was to become the communications manager and lead a small team.
But managing is hard, particularly if you have not had any leadership training. Or that training is sketchy and limited. It can become further complicated if you are managing friends and people you have worked closely alongside.
But help is at hand.
Modelling
Modelling is a good technique for people finding themselves in this accidental manager position.
It means looking at leaders you respect and how they conduct themselves. And thinking about how you could be a bit like them.
“It might be thinking about how they are so good at time management, communication or always seeming like they are in control, for example,” Dan said.
“We could go further and speak to them about it, and they might become a buddy or a mentor.”
The model doesn’t have to be someone you work with. For Dan, it is England cricket captain Ben Stokes because of the way he has removed pressure and the fear of failure from his team.
The crucial thing to remember is that this is not about becoming someone else.
“The best thing about you as an individual is that you are you,” Dan said. “You are unique, and you need to bring as much of that as you can to your management.”
Imposter syndrome
We all suffer from a lack of confidence at times.
We often see it with delegates at the start of our media training skills courses. And Dan often sees it with people taking part in courses delivered by The BCF Group.
As an accidental manager, you may feel like an imposter. You might feel like a failure. Or that you could be demoted at any moment. These feelings are often referred to as imposter syndrome.
“Imposter syndrome is a label that has become well known,” Dan said. “It is not a clinical diagnosis.
“Pretty much everyone has experienced it at some point. And the more people you speak to, the more you realise people get these feelings regularly.
“The key is to reframe those negative thoughts that come into your brain and remember you are the right person for the job.
“You also need to remember the people who promoted you didn’t do it on a whim – they see something in you.”
Dan has a technique – called the 3As – to help you overcome those negative thoughts and feelings.
You Acknowledge the thought is there. Then you Accept it is ok to have those thoughts and that they are a natural response. And then you Arrive at the next positive thought – ‘I do deserve to be here’.
Dan added: “The other thing I would say is that if you have a skills gap, that is ok. As a leader, you don’t need to know everything.
“If you feel you don’t know something, ask the person who put you in the role. How would they deal with it? Is there some training you could complete?
“This will remove some of those feelings of inadequacy.”
James said: “Sometimes you need to put time aside to overcome things like imposter syndrome. You can deal with those thoughts in the moment and find ways to cope.
“But you also need to recognise you feel that way and spend time finding ways to stop yourself feeling the same way in future.”
Understanding yourself and others
Dan believes this is a crucial area for accidental managers.
And it is underpinned by emotional intelligence.
“Emotional intelligence is about understanding yourself and your emotions and the emotions of others,” he said.
“If you get your attitude right, your behaviours will follow off the back of that.
“Most people can recognise how they are feeling. The harder bit is regulating that.”
There are five main components of emotional intelligence: Self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, motivation and social skills.
Self-awareness: Understanding yourself and how you are feeling at any moment
Self-regulation: What are you doing about how you are feeling when you are stressed or anxious? What is your release?
Empathy: Understanding others. Seek to understand before being understood. Don’t confuse it with sympathy.
Motivation and Social Skills: How you put that emotion across and talk to people.
Understanding different character traits is also essential.
It helps you understand who you are and who you work with.
The traits are summed up in four character colours.
Fiery red: Strong-willed, ambitious, decisive, direct, driven, competitive. They want to get on with tasks and are likely to be happy to take risks.
Sunshine yellow: Enthusiastic, persuasive and sociable. Often the centre of attention. May talk too much. Good for morale.
Earth green: Patient, friendly, stable, dependable, consistent and a good listener. Potentially more introverted. But always there to support when someone needs it.
Cool blue: Detailed, careful, logical, systematic, meticulous. They often enjoy data analysis, facts and figures and critical thinking.
James said: “Spend some time thinking about where you and your team sit within these colour charts.
“You are never 100 per cent one of these colours. You will be a blend.”
Dan added: “The colours help us to adapt how we communicate with others. A fiery red might not want lots of detail, whereas a cool blue may want to know all the ins and outs.
“I’m coaching someone who wants to improve their negotiation skills. He’s spent time thinking about how he deals with others and their character colours. Now, when someone is ‘sunshine yellow’, he is a bit warmer towards them. When someone is fiery red, he goes straight into the meat of the conversation.”
Management styles
Managers will find themselves facing different situations and leading different people.
And they need to adapt their approach to navigate this successfully.
Four classic leadership styles were identified by social psychologist, Kurt Lewin.
Autocratic: This is a dictatorship style – ‘this is what we are doing, and this is how we are doing it’. It is a style often painted in a bad light. But in a crisis, it is what you need to do. It is a time-consuming approach.
Bureaucratic: This is a ‘by the book’ style. There are things in our jobs that we have to do and processes that must be followed, such as health and safety legislation and GDPR. Not always the most motivational style.
Democratic: This is about surrounding yourself with experts, building a strong team around you and getting their thoughts on decisions and changes. But someone still needs to be the decision-maker. Otherwise, it will become chaotic.
Laissez-faire: An easy-going, light-touch approach. It is about trusting your team to do their jobs with them having the knowledge you are there to support them. Unlikely to work with new and junior team members.
Time management
Let’s spend some time thinking about time.
As an accidental manager, you can easily lose track of time.
You can quickly find yourself doing less in more time as you adjust to your new responsibilities.
Dan said: “If you ask people how they manage their time, most will say they use a ‘to-do’ list.
“But that is just a list on paper and does not tell us that much.”
He recommends an urgent versus important matrix instead that enables you to prioritise tasks.
The model divides tasks into four areas:
Urgent and Important: If something goes in this box, like a crisis, do it now.
Important not urgent: Most people-based activity goes in this section – appraisals, one-to-one reviews. Give people the time they need and deserve.
Urgent not important: These are the tasks you can delegate. But don’t give them the tasks you don’t want to do. Delegation is about empowerment, ownership and accountability. When you delegate, let the task go – don’t micromanage. But ensure they have the skills and abilities to do the task – set them up to succeed.
Not important not urgent: These are tasks that should not be on your to-do list anyway. Dump them.
Where’s the monkey?
Probably, on your back. And that causes time problems.
The monkey on your back is the next task you are working on.
And the problem for accidental managers is those monkeys can quickly multiply.
Imagine you are sitting at your desk, and someone comes along with a problem, and you take it on. A short time later, someone else stops you in the corridor, talks to you about a problem they face, and you agree to solve it. Suddenly, you have two more monkeys on your back.
Dan said: “This happens a lot, especially early in management.
“You take on the monkeys from your team and end up doing their work as well as your own.
“Even if you think you can do the task quicker, you quickly become time-poor.
“As a manager, you must learn to say ‘no’ and coach your team members. Rather than take the problem on, ask them what they have tried to do to solve it. Let them know you are there to support them, but it is their problem to solve.
“Sometimes it can feel like it will take more time to help and support them than if you complete the task yourself. But if you invest time upfront, you will get a return on that investment.
“It might cost you some time initially. But showing them how to tackle the issue will mean you get more time back in return long term, and you are empowering that person.”
During this exclusive Media Team Academy masterclass, we also explored scenarios accidental managers could face and how they should handle them, looked at a model for challenging conversations and those that involve managing up, and viewed a ‘people versus players’ model for better understanding the people in your team.
If you want access to masterclasses like this, join the Media Team Academy.
Media First are media and communications training specialists with over 35 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
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