Posted July 3 2023
By Ashlene McFadden
As a manager, it’s an exciting thought to be able to grow and enhance your team. There is, of course, the stress of making hires and ensuring culture fit, but it’s an enjoyable challenge to have. However, if you are relatively new to management, perhaps the thought of increasing your team size is something that fills you with dread. How will you handle new personalities? Will you have enough time to dedicate to each person? These are common worries.
Having been there myself, I thought I would share some of the lessons I have learned along the way as I have grown and developed my Accountancy & Finance recruitment team here at HRC.
Feedback, feedback, feedback
Feedback should not flow in one direction. Ask your team for feedback about how you are managing them? This can be directly, in a one to one situation, as part of group work or even an online survey. The important thing is that you take what is said and apply it in a meaningful way to your management style.
Use the data
No doubt, you will have some sort of CRM or system in place that will allow you to track performance. This should be more of a carrot than stick situation. You shouldn’t be using the data to berate your team. You should be using it to encourage, motivate and support. Work out whose strengths lie where and play to that. Monitor performance and growth in a way that nips poor behaviours in the bud and rewards positive contributions.
Know your team
What motivates your team? Who responds well to what style of management? Your team are all individuals, built to learn, communicate and work in different ways. As much as you can, try to cater to this. It’s also crucial to understand what personal and professional goals each team member is trying to achieve so that you can support and motivate in the correct way. As well as asking for feedback, you should be asking your team what you can do for them at each stage of their career.
Build a culture that lasts
We spend most of our time with our colleagues, so it’s really important that that time feels well spent. In order to create a culture of collaboration and support (and fun!), you can start by celebrating wins, both big and small. Acknowledge when the team have gone above and beyond and reward positive behaviours. Root out anything that could cause a distraction – such as poor attitude. Think of inclusive activities for team building outside of work, too.
Be aware of yourself
As a manager, you set the tone for the day. So, if you come into the office stressed and grumpy, this will have a knock on effect for your team. Don’t be afraid to listen to your team when it comes to new ways of doing things – you have to be adaptable to change and cannot be seen as a manager who does things “the same way we’ve always done them”. Be approachable and open – even if you’re delivering bad news.
If you would like to speak to me about roles within the Accountancy & Finance market, I would be delighted to chat to you about the positions I currently have available. Click here to drop me an email.