How to Overcome Your Predecessor
Overcoming the Legacy of Your Predecessor
Maybe they retired. Perhaps there was some restructuring. Maybe they left the firm, or simply got promoted. In any case, the old boss left, and you were hired to take over. Even for experienced managers, the transition into a new management role is tough and may feel like an uphill battle to win over your new employees. But having to overcome the legacy and popularity of a highly influential predecessor greatly adds to the complexity and challenge of a change in leadership. Fortunately, though, there are some strategies you can use to deal with such challenges that will help you make your mark quickly. Here are some tips for overcoming the legacy of the manager who came before you.
Assessing the Influence of Your Predecessor
Aside from our natural resistance to change, overcoming your predecessor is often difficult because of the established relationships he or she had with the people who are now your employees. It is these relationships that make your employees so loyal to the person who was there before you. Additionally, your employees knew what to expect from your predecessor, and expectations (or lack there of) were clear. Being new, employees may not be sure what to expect from you. Keep in mind, though, that the popularity of your predecessor may or may not have been for the right reasons. To help you evaluate the type of influence your predecessor had, there are three things you will want to assess about your team:
1. Level of Accountability
The most important attribute you need to evaluate about your new team is the level of accountability your employees demonstrate. Do they meet their commitments? Do they stay on task? Are they reliable? While we hope that all employees feel a sense of ownership and personal responsibility, the reality of it is that your predecessor may have been popular because he or she did not hold people accountable and employees to advantage of it.
RELATED: How to Drive Accountability Within Your Team
2. Sense of Urgency
The second aspect you will want to assess with a new team is the inherent sense of urgency that employees share. Is there a general buzz about the office, or are the employees a little too relaxed for your taste?
High productivity is the result of drive and motivation. To achieve the results you are expected, you will need to instill a sense of urgency among your employees. Gaining an early understanding about the level of urgency within your organization will help you make quick changes and break old habits if necessary.
3. Office and Work Conditions
Lastly, you will want to evaluate the work conditions of your team that were created (or tolerated) under your predecessor’s watch. How important was the work environment? Is the office clean, organized and well-taken care of? Do people demonstrate a sense of pride?
The work environment can indicate how your predecessor treated and motivated employees. Why do work conditions matter? The environment your employees are accustomed to indicates the level of expectations your employees will have of you. If your employees are provided with top-of-the-line equipment despite a financially struggling business, for instance, you may want to recalibrate their expectations. If the infrastructure is poor and equipment dated, you may be able to make an initial impression on the team by investing in improvements to their work environment.
Once you have taken some time to evaluate your new organization and some of the ways your predecessor managed the team, you can then shift gears to start making your mark. To do so, here are six tips for overcoming the legacy your predecessor:
1. Get the Inside Scoop if You Can
I often recommend to people interviewing for management positions to try to gather the circumstances for the vacancy – was someone fired? promoted? Before your first day, it’s always helpful to get feel for what’s going on from your hiring manager so you have some sense of what you’re getting into. Doing so will help you get your bearings quickly as well as help you set up your strategy to approach the situation.
The reason this is important is because the situation in which the vacancy was created affect how you are received as the new manager. If an unpopular manager was terminated, you might be viewed in a positive light. If a popular leader was pushed away, the situation may not be so welcoming.
The best type of transition to management is a quick one, so getting the inside scoop when possible will enable you to swiftly figure out your game plan.
2. First Impressions are Important, But Not Set in Stone
As with any new position, there will be a number of different challenges coming your way that you have not had to work through previously. For this reason, you will need to figure things out on the fly as you settle in your new role – the products, the customers, new names, new faces.
During this period, of course, you will spend a lot of time getting to know your new team, just as they will be getting to know you. If it’s a situation where there is great loyalty to your predecessor, do not overlook the importance of setting your own standards. Set up a meet and greet early on and talk about your style, your expectations of them, and what they can expect from you as their new manager. Ask questions. Share your vision for the future. Set the bar high to leave a great first impression.
RELATED: Holding Your First Staff Meeting
3. [Subtly] Offer Your Resume
Making a good impression has a lot to do with making connections with people. A great way to do this – as well as a way to earn some initial street credit with your team – is to slowly disperse your credentials and experience.
The intent here is not to boast and impress, but rather to establish credibility and trust with your employees. Helping employees learn a little bit about your experience will help them gain trust in the decisions you make.
Overcoming your predecessor requires that you make your own relationships and personal connections with your employees. By gently revealing your expertise, you are reassuring your employees that know you know what you’re doing and that you have their best interest in mind.
4. Remind Employees that Change Can Be Good
You are new to the team. Your predecessor may have had a long tenure in the position and have done a good job, but as with most things in life, there are always things that can be improved.
To help reinforce that change is a good thing, meet with employees one on one and ask them where they are frustrated, or how they think the team can be better. Ask for candid feedback. Once you’ve collected the information, you will be able to draw themes between your conversations.
After you consolidate the details, highlight some of those themes and your plans for change to your team. And don’t be afraid to say that the times they refer to are behind you all, and that this is the new order. Talk about the future, and where you see the team is going.
5. Establish Your Expectations
Another effective way to overcome the influence and legacy of your predecessor is to establish your own expectations. Following your initial meet and greet, set up monthly department all-hands-meetings in which you cover a standard agenda (news, announcements, metrics, recognition, etc). As part of your standard agenda, deliberately include a segment for your expectations, in which you focus on one specific topic each month.
Examples of expectations to discuss with your new employees may include:
- Promptness and Meeting Etiquette
- Standard Working Hours
- Respect for One Another
- Communication Preferences
- Professionalism and Attire
Use the time to address something specific that may have occurred in the past few weeks. For instance, if you overheard some of your employees engaging in unprofessional conversation at work, you may wish to emphasize that you expect tolerance and respect from every employee, no matter what the circumstances.
RELATED: Turning Around An Organization’s Culture in 14 Months
6. Reinforce to Show You Mean Business… Quickly
If you really are in a situation where you need to recalibrate expectations left by your predecessor, you need to reinforce your decisions and stand firm on matters of team policy. Additionally, you need to lead by example.
Does this mean you should enter the office like a SWAT team and intimidate everyone on your first day? Absolutely not. But it does mean that, in addition to getting to know your employees, you should reinforce the expectations you set early on and start to establish yourself as an authority to your employees. Reinforcing your policies and setting expectations quickly tells your employees that you mean business, and this will help you overcome the legacy of your predecessor.
Helping Your Team Move On From the Manager Before You
Overcoming the reputation and legacy of your predecessor can be a unique and delicate challenge. Still, it’s important to recognize that the moment you become the new manager of a team, you become responsible for the team’s success. Thus, it’s crucial that you engage the team quickly to make your own mark. Be transparent with your decision-making, and help employees get to know your thought process. Doing so will set you well on the way to success.
I just took a supervisor position August was a year. I was lost on my first day not to know what to expect, how to over come their old boss status, a year later I’m still struggling, some changes i made was okay but wasn’t implemented as it should of had been. Now i have been through three bosses since then, all have had different aspects. A year later still struggling and losing my grip. I have to find my way and find it quickly. From what i read here has helped some by giving me aspect of what i should of done! Unprofessionally this i know, I’ve made waves with some of my employees. What to do now is all i can ask. I ask other supervisions for assistant, all i get it they work for you or hey make them pay.
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the comment and congrats on becoming a manager.
The first thing I would say is to absolutely not ‘make them pay.’ It may work once, may work twice, but certainly won’t work in the long run. It will only encourage employees to make your job harder, and will make them more difficult to manage.
Instead, focus on finding some sort of common ground. Roll up your sleeves and get involved if possible, showing them you’re part of the team, not just a boss who tells them what to do. They may have that desire for their old boss, but that was a different time. Make sure you show them you have their interests in mind. The legacy of their previous boss will only fade when they feel they can trust you, when they see you taking care of them in some way, making positive changes, etc. It takes time, but every day is a chance to start.
Best of luck!