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New manager seeks team cooperation

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by nashmi

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Dear Sir/Madam,

My department consists of seven engineers and myself as the department manager. Two of my engineers are highly skilled and have the longest presence in the company. It was six years in this team (as a support engineer) before I was appointed as a manager recently.

My problem is that I always feel a bit uncertain when dealing with the above two guys who are 10years older than I and have more than 14 years of experience in the company’s technical field. They strongly expressed their dissatisfaction when I became a manager and therefore they are least cooperative with me at the moment. On one hand I try to involve them in making decisions on the other hand they always keep critical information to themselves (whichcan be embarrassing sometimes). Do you have any suggestions that could enhance my certainty when dealing with these two colleagues of mine?

Many Thanks

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by oldefar

One of the hardest things to do is transition from a technical or skilled trade position to a business or management position. We want to hold onto the capabilities we feel got us to our current position, and we typically believe it was our skills.

In your case, you feel you were moved into management because of your engineering skills. This is not the case. You exhibited leadership and management skills while working as an engineer, and it is these that are important to your career now.The engineers, including the two with the years of experience and proven expertise, are the tools you use in your job. They are no longer your peer group.

Once you accept your new status, you will find it easier to deal with the issues those twohave with your status.

As a general thought, consider management a different rather than a superior catagory. Each contributes to an organization's success in its own fashion and neither can be successful alone.

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