How Individual Contributors Can Manage Up
As an individual contributor, having a positive relationship with your manager can make or break your work experience. There is a power imbalance, sure, but ultimately you are both adults with jobs to do. That’s why some managing up on your part can be a good thing.
Managing up is a soft skill that can make your daily life in the corporate world a lot easier when done effectively. For transitioning teachers, think about how you interacted with your grade level chair or head of department.
The way you communicate with your manager, establish expectations, and understand their goals and needs is all a part of managing up.
A couple things I do to “manage up”:
Share my work schedule preferences (I like to chunk meetings in the morning)
Ask about big upcoming projects where I am interested in serving
Post a list of what I accomplished that week into a shared OneNote with my manager each Friday
Write an agenda for our 1:1s
Proactively share when I am facing a challenge or need support
Basically, I am VERY visible with my manager. My work aligns with their team goals because I study what they want to achieve. This makes my day-to-day so much more enjoyable as I am not worried about where I fit in.
Check out the links below for a few free resources where you can learn more about managing up.
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Free resources:
