BUTTER UP BOSS HANDLING
Buttering up your boss and getting yourself in the good grace of management is a smart career strategy when you go about it the right way.
Think of it this way if you can build a better connection and rapport with your boss, they’re likely to get the best possible understanding of your skills, will trust you to take on new challenges, and may have a greater understanding if issues arise that you need additional support. Rather than taking information at face value, such managers are alert to opportunities to test their assumptions by asking questions. They also pay attention to clues to their boss’s behavior. This continuous process of assessment and clarification helps managers stay attuned to the boss’s changing priorities. You may not be able to alter your boss’s fundamental style or your own, but you can become aware of what facilitates and impedes working with your boss, and make decisions accordingly.
Dependability and Honesty - Your boss needs to be able to count on you. Be realistic about delivery dates, and deliver on time. Avoid shading or playing down issues. Earn autonomy through honesty. Be selective about your demands on the boss’s time and energy. Don’t use up the boss’s most precious resources on trivial issues.
Share Common Interests – Your boss is also a human being with interests, passions, and hobbies just like anyone else. A great way to build a rapport with your manager is to take an interest in their interests. Take note of clues, pay attention if you hear them mentioning their weekend jaunt on a fishing trip. Pay attention to their responses and take your cue from them. Some would like to chat while some prefer to be private about them.
To Keep Your Boss Happy - It would be wonderful if success rested purely upon your ability to do your job, but that’s less than half the picture. Raises, promotions, and other perks often depend directly on whether you can manage your manager rather than whether your manager is good at managing you. Fortunately, keep your boss happy and helpful isn’t all that difficult, if you follow these simple rules:
Keep your promises - Your boss wants to trust you to get your job done, so he or she isn’t left in the lurch. Therefore, when you accept an assignment, follow through fanatically. Never over commit and always deliver.
No surprises, ever - Even if you’re afraid some bad news might upset your boss, don’t wait until the last minute to deliver it. This is especially true if your boss tends to “shoot the messenger.” Frequent updates are your best and only defense.
Take your job seriously - Your boss doesn’t expect you to be perfect, but appreciates it when it’s obvious that you truly care about what you do. This doesn’t mean you should take yourself too seriously, though. Be serious about your job but be willing to laugh at your own foibles.
Advice but then Obey - When you see your boss about to make a foolish decision, suggest a better alternative. However, once your boss has made that decision, stop second-guessing and do your best to implement it— regardless of whether you agree.
Provide solutions, not complaints - Nothing irritates a boss more than being forced to listen to you complain about things that either you’re not willing to change or are outside your boss’s ability to change.
Handling New Boss -
You might have known in advance or perhaps the news came out of the blue. But whichever way it happens, the departure of an old boss and the arrival of a new one poses a challenge for most. You may have to deal with an unknown person with a totally different approach to the job. How do you cope with the transition?
Different Ways Of Doing Things -
The new boss is bound to want to make changes and will probably be looking to you for help, The most important thing to focus on is your own attitude. It has to be positive. "You can't afford to think: 'We don't do it like that here' when the new boss suggests different ways of doing things,“
Helping New Boss In Planning -
As an established member of the support team, it's part of your job to help the boss with planning. So if the new boss wants to initiate changes immediately, be prepared to ask some helpful questions such as: 'What are the advantages of doing it like that?'."In fact, you should constantly be reevaluating ways of helping the boss: after all, you are there to save your boss time and prioritize the workload.
Don’t Jump to Conclusion -
Negotiate a realistic deadline, but overachieve by doing the work before the deadline, so that the boss can see you can be relied upon to deliver.
Understanding a new management style cannot be achieved overnight. "You need time to adjust to each other, so don't jump to any conclusions.
Defining Your Goals - When you think about working with your new boss, keep the following goals in mind:
Clarify mutual expectations early.
Begin managing expectations right away. You are in trouble if your boss expects you to fix things fast when you know that the business has serious structural problems.
So it is wise to get bad news on the table early and to lower unrealistic expectations.
Be careful to assess your new organization's capacity for change before making ironclad commitments to your new boss.
Get Commitment for Resources First - Secure commitments for the resources you need.
In conjunction with establishing goals, begin to negotiate for the key resources—people, funding, and knowledge—you need to succeed.
Don't commit to goals without getting corresponding commitments on resources.
Otherwise, you won't have much bargaining power.
Identify What The Boss Cares About -
Aim for early wins in areas important to the boss.
Whatever your own priorities, identify what the boss cares about most and pursue results in those areas. That way, your boss will feel some ownership of your success. But don't make the mistake of doing things you consider misguided or trivial. In part, your job is to shape your boss's perceptions of what can and should be achieved.
Establishing how you will Work together -
It's essential to figure out how you and your boss will work together.
Your preferences may differ, such as over how much information the boss wants (and you want to give) and how involved the boss wants to be (and you want him or her to be) in the details of what you are doing.
Rather than allowing misunderstandings to complicate your relationship, spend some time at the start discussing how you will work together.
Even if you don't develop a close personal bond, doing so will help you create a productive working relationship.
If your new boss used to be your co-worker . . .
When a peer is made the manager, everyone has to adjust to the change in roles.
Your former colleague is now responsible for managing your performance, which can initially be uncomfortable for both of you. Take time to discuss the role change, ask how you can help, and offer your support.
If the two of you were sworn enemies, this is an unfortunate development for you, so try to adjust your attitude and make amends. Or polish up your resume.
If your new boss is a personal friend . . .
When a buddy becomes your boss, that person can no longer be your friend in exactly the same way. After all, your former pal now has to keep certain information confidential, worry about how other employees will perceive your relationship, and do your performance review. Try to understand this change and don’t expect things to be the same.
Planning For Five Conversations - Your relationship with your new boss will be built through a series of conversations. It is critically important that you cover certain fundamental subjects in these conversations. In fact, it is worth planning for five distinct conversations with your new boss.
The Situational Diagnosis Conversation - In this conversation you seek to understand how your new boss sees the business situation.
How did the organization get to this point?
What are the relevant factors—both soft and hard—that make this a challenge?
What resources within the organization do you have to draw upon?
Naturally, your view may be different than your boss's, but it essential that you understand how he or she sees the situation.
The expectations conversation - In this conversation, you seek to understand and negotiate expectations. What are the few key things that your new boss needs you to accomplish in the short term and medium term? What will constitute success? When? How will it be measured? Here again, you may come to believe that your boss's expectations are unrealistic and have to work to reset them. Also, you should take care, as part of your broader effort to secure early wins, to under-promise and over-deliver.
The style conversation - In this conversation, you work to understand how you and your new boss can best interact on an ongoing basis.How does she prefer to be communicated with? Face-to-face? In writing? By voice mail or e-mail? How often? What kinds of decisions does he want to be involved in and where can you make the call on your own?How do your styles differ and what are the implications for how you should interact?
The personal development conversation - Finally, you need to discuss how your time in this job will contribute to your personal development. Are there projects or special assignments that you could get involved in (without sacrificing focus)?Are there courses or programs that would strengthen your capabilities?
In practice, these five conversations are interwoven and take place over time. But there is a sequential logic. Early conversations should focus on situational diagnosis, expectations, and style.As you learn more, you can move to resources, revisiting situation and expectations as necessary. When you feel the relationship is reasonably well established, you can begin the personal development conversation.
To sum up - Managing your boss effectively is important.
It can simplify your job hugely.
See this video on Boss Management to handle even the most difficult boss.
How To Deal with a Difficult Boss Corporate training sessions Video by Vivek Bindra India.flv
Give your comments and likes.Let me know if any of these points have helped you butter up boss handling.
