Becoming a Manager

Preface to the Second Edition

It is hard for me to believe that more than ten years have gone by since I began collecting data for Becoming a Manager. At that time, although we knew much about what effective managers did and what they were like, we knew little about how they became that way. My ambition was straightforward: permit new managers to speak for themselves about their experiences of learning to manage and lead. Nineteen new managers allowed me to chronicle the triumphs and tribulations of their first year on the job, and their experiences have resonated with managers around the world. Rarely a month goes by in which I do not hear from a new manager relieved to learn that his or her experience is not unique. As an experienced executive ...