Bench Strength

229M

AKING

M

ID

-C

OURSE

C

ORRECTIONS

There are cer ta in behavioral sig ns that a manager may be lost

in s cope. The ma nager ’s team members may comp lain that th e

leader appears to be reluctant to let go of responsibilities or to

delegate assig nment s. Peers may note a l ack of contribut ions f rom

the leader during discussi ons of key project s or jo b issu es, and the

leader’s manager may find that th e leader is blind t o emerging

threats o r opportuni ties because he la cks the ability to see and

correctly interpret broad er changes in the b usine ss and organiza-

tional environ ment.

2. Excessive Stre ss. The leader who is ove rwhel med by new

responsibilit ies or who is having difficulty making adj ustme nts to

new work conditions may become increasingly anxio us or stress ed.

However, since newly promo ted le aders are hesitan t to lo ok bad in

the eyes of their boss es, don’t ex pect r ecent ly promoted leaders to

disclose any anxiety or hesitati on tha t they might have about their

new jobs. Instead, this anx iety w ill frequen tly reveal i tself indi-

rectly, in that the leader may appear fa r more short-temp ered, emo-

tionally volat ile, a nd ten se.

3. Employee Complaints. Look for complai nts from the new

manager’s work team, peers, and intern al customer s that the new

manager is difficult to work with, adversari al, and unab le to adapt

or change. More importantl y, wat ch the newly promo ted manag-

er’s reactions to the se criticisms. A high le vel of angry defensive-

ness, an unwill ingne ss to listen to feedback, and the tendency to

respond to this type of critical f eedba ck with atta cks on the speak-

ers, are all sure signs that the manager may be having serious di ffi-

culty.

4. Excessively In sular. Each time managers are promo ted or

transferred into new job fu nctio ns, they fac e the task of building a

new base of influence and suppor t . Begin to worry wh en the newly

promoted manag er cut s hers elf of f from other s, hides in h er office,

and shows signs of being increasingly territorial. Chec k with the

manager’s peer s to see whether she is reaching out to those around

her.

PAGE 229

................. 15735$ CH11 02-27-06 09:41:03 PS