HBR Guide to Managing Up and Across (HBR Guide Series)

by Harvard Business Publishing

Learn his feelings about what’s important in management—such as careful planning, decisiveness, building consensus— and make sure you develop and display those qualities.

Do you keep your boss informed? Reach explicit agreement about how often and in what way you will report progress. Develop a sense of what your boss wants to know.

Those who speak up only when they disagree will usually enjoy less influence than those who have demonstrated prior support. So on those occasions when you do honestly agree with your boss, say so clearly and explicitly.

Do you negotiate expectations when you’re given an assignment? Don’t let your relationship be one in which you simply accept whatever is passed down without discussion. If the expectations are unrealistic, you will have no one to blame but yourself when your team fails. Reach agreement on the results you’re expected to produce— what will happen by when. Do this at the beginning, and update expectations periodically. Warn your boss of potential risks, and play out various scenarios of how you might handle them.

Do you present a problem and expect your boss to solve it? Many bosses resist that approach. Instead, try going in with a problem, an analysis, alternatives, and a recommendation he can react to.

Then, you must agree about how and where you want to grow—what competencies you need to develop, such as building a network, making a plan, managing performance, or assessing subordinates. Have reasonable expectations. Take responsibility for your own development. Besides, your boss probably has no more time and no less pressure than you, and many bosses, unfortunately, are uncomfortable in this role. The more specific the requests you make, the better—to attend a training course, for example, or advice about a specific problem.

You’ll need to understand—quickly and in detail—exactly what you’ve been brought aboard to do, what key stakeholders you’ll need to please, what resources you can command, and how your performance in the job will be measured.

“Make sure the boss knows he can count on you, what he can count on you for, and that you’re there to help make the transition as easy as possible. Be explicit about that. And get in early—don’t wait for him to come to you.”

You know that you should never bring a problem to your boss without a proposed solution.

Know who the thought leaders are across the organization, get to know them personally, and show them how your ideas can further their business agendas.

THE IDEA IN PRACTICE

It was Daniel Goleman who first brought the term “emotional

Analyze: Identify the benefits each of your existing network connections now provides. Does one person give you valuable information? Does another have expertise you need but lack? De-layer: Weed out connections that aren’t helping you, such as people who burn too much of your time. Diversify: Fill the fresh openings in your network with people who can deliver the additional benefits you and your team need to accomplish your work.

Make tough decisions about relationships to back away from. Eliminate or minimize contact with people who sap your energy or offer benefits that others in your network already provide. By de-layering, you make room for people who can help you complete projects.

Core connections must bridge smaller, more-diverse kinds of groups and cross hierarchical, organizational, functional, and geographic lines. Core relationships should result in more learning, less bias in decision making, and greater personal growth and balance. The people in your inner circle should also model positive behaviors, because if those around you are enthusiastic, authentic, and generous, you will be, too.

More specifically, our data show that high performers have strong ties to: people who offer them new information or expertise, including internal or external clients, who increase their market awareness; peers in other functions, divisions, or geographies, who share best practices; and contacts in other industries, who inspire innovation; formally powerful people, who provide mentoring, sense-making, political support, and resources; and informally powerful people, who offer influence, help coordinating projects, and support among the rank and file; and people who give them developmental feedback, challenge their decisions, and push them to be better. At an early career stage, an employee might get this from a boss or customers; later, it tends to come from coaches, trusted colleagues, or a spouse. Meanwhile, the most satisfied executives have ties to: people who provide personal support, such as colleagues who help them get back on track when they’re having a bad day or friends with whom they can just be themselves; people who add a sense of purpose or worth, such as bosses and customers who validate their work, and family members and other stakeholders who show them work has a broader meaning; and people who promote their work/life balance, holding them accountable for activities that improve their physical health (such as sports), mental engagement (such as hobbies or educational classes), or spiritual well-being (music, religion, art, or volunteer work).

Every organization has a political environment—that is, one where human relationships matter—and yours is no exception. To obtain the resources, influence, and at tention you and your group need, you must be able to function in such a setting by actively engaging others, whether you like them or not. The good news: You can do that without succumbing to mean and self-interested tactics. The secret is to build ongoing relationships for mutual advantage.

Relay good news about your team members.

Above all, focus your relationships on what’s best for “us.” If you want an exception to your company’s pricing policy and need a colleague’s help, identify her goals and find a way you can support her and her group, too. And talk to her about what you want to achieve; perhaps there’s a way to serve both your purposes simultaneously. Let “connect and collaborate” be your mantra.

Research shows that trust is based on both reason and emotion. If the emotional orientation toward a person is negative—typically because of a perceived threat—then reason will be twisted to align with those negative feelings. This is why feuds can stalemate trust: New facts and arguments, no matter how credible and logical, may be seen as ploys to dupe the other side. This effect is not just psychological; it is physiological. When we experience negative emotions, blood recedes from the thinking part of the brain, the cerebral cortex, and rushes to its oldest and most involuntary part, the “reptilian” stem, crippling the intake of new information.

Step 1 is to redirect your rival’s negative emotions so that they are channeled away from you.

The essential principle here is to give before you ask. Undoing a negative tie begins with giving up something of value rather than asking for a “fair trade.” If you give and then ask for something right away in return, you don’t establish a relationship; you carry out a transaction.

Talk less, listen more. When you try to persuade people, you can spend too much time explaining your position, and not enough time asking questions, listening, and understanding other points of view. Your colleagues are less likely to resist when they feel you’ve taken the time to acknowledge their concerns. In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey says that the greatest need of human beings—after physical survival—is to be understood, affirmed, and appreciated. He

like. So how can you increase your likability? Play up similarities. We tend to like people who share our background, interests, style of dress, etc. We also like people who like us. We’re suckers for compliments. If your colleague does a good job leading a meeting, tell him what you liked about the way he ran it. Be specific. Ask another colleague about her weekend and listen—perhaps you’ll discover a shared passion for hiking or reading. Then when you need their help, your colleagues will be more likely to offer their expertise.

The subjects who received a Coke from Joe bought twice as many tickets as the subjects who received nothing. The reciprocity rule overwhelmed all other factors—including whether they even liked Joe. The ticket buyers felt an irresistible need to repay him.