Being promoted into a manager position is exciting, but it can be awkward if your new team is made up of your former peers. When you’re promoted over people who have always been friends (or rivals), the power relationship is inevitably altered. Here’s how to ease the transition:
- Meet with each team member one-on-one. Individual meetings let you personalize your message and be more candid than a group setting allows. Talk to each person about what they do and how you can help them.
- Hold a team meeting. Using some ideas from the one-on-ones, discuss the purpose of the team, what should change, and what should stay the same. Explain how you like to operate and how you want your team to work together.
- Deal swiftly with challenges to your authority. If someone resists your leadership or goes behind your back, state your displeasure firmly and ask what’s causing their dissent.
Adapted from "What to Do First When Managing Former Peers," by Liane Davey
