It doesn’t matter what level of leadership you are at, learning the art of managing up is critical to your success. It is a key foundational skill that all of us need to take the time to learn and refine.
Mastering the art of managing up can mean the difference between getting recognition for the work you do, being considered for exciting new projects, having your opinion heard and creating opportunities for promotion….. or not.
What Is managing up?
Managing up means focusing on developing a strong relationship with your boss to obtain the best results for yourself, for them and for the business.
Managing up means keeping your boss informed, being proactive, focusing on identify solutions and making suggestions for business improvements. It is about ensuring that your boss and other senior leaders know what you do and how well you do it. It includes being visible and having your ideas heard and recognized. It is positioning yourself as an asset to them and the business.
What is it not?
Managing up should never be confused with blatant self promotion, brown nosing, manipulation, political power plays or mind games. This may work for a while but it is more likely to have long term disastrous impact on your leadership and career aspirations.
Ignoring your responsibility of managing up can be detrimental to your career progress.
I was working with a leader recently who was clearly failing to manage up and their reputation as a leader was suffering because of it. They felt that any form of self promotion was icky and uncool and instead were waiting for their results to do the talking. They were leaving it up to their manager to notice the good work they was doing.
Can we really expect our managers to do the work of detective to identify our strengths and our contribution to the business success? Can you really afford to leave your career progress up to them? Of course not! Your career success is your responsibility. To find out more about getting noticed, read this.
Hard work and results should be recognized by others, but we are expecting too much to believe that it will. Your boss, like so many others, are no doubt busy, pre-occupied and focused on their own long list of what needs to be done, to be fully focused on you.
It is up to you to advocate for yourself.
To some degree managing up is about making it easy for your boss to know who you are, what you are good at, what your aspirations are and how you can help them to achieve the business goals and how they can help you to meet your career objectives.
The fundamentals of managing up
Keep your boss informed. Keep your boss informed of your progress towards sales and financial targets, business goals and key projects. Keeping them informed will demonstrate your skills, focus and your commitment to the business success.
Also make sure they find out about the bad news, setbacks or blunders from you rather than allowing them to hear the news second hand from someone else. As a manager once said to me… “please no nasty surprises.”
Be proactive and seek new responsibilities. Take responsibility for finding solutions to problems and identifying new opportunities for business development and growth. Be seen as a valuable asset to the team and as someone who will take on jobs outside your direct responsibility for the betterment of the business.
Participate and add value. Speak up and allow your ideas to be heard in meetings, discussions and conference calls. Give your opinion openly, without confrontation and allow for others to share their views. Share your skills and knowledge with your peers and be willing to help others to grow and develop.
Simply doing your job well should be enough to be noticed, recognized and considered for new opportunities … but most often it is not. Your career is your responsibility and learning the art of managing up will undoubtedly assist you to achieve your career and leadership goals with greater ease.
I would l love to hear your thoughts on managing up. What do you do to be noticed, heard and recognized for the good work you do?