New Job Advice

[dazzler]

Hi All

I have been offered a new job as a team leader with an organisation that I havent worked for before.

From what I understand the team has low morale and is against change which I am essentially being brought in to drive. The team is happy working the way they have for years but management are branching into new areas. It will take me a few weeks to get up to speed with the day to day running of the section so I cant afford to make life too difficult until I am full bottle.

Any tips on how best to manage the transition into the workplace?

cheers

[rsser]

Congrats; hope it works well.

Your question doesn't have a simple answer.

My fave in this field is R. Heifetz Leadership without Easy Answers

It outlines the leader's role in creating the conditions for change to occur.

[dazzler]

Congrats; hope it works well.



My fave in this field is R. Heifetz Leadership without Easy Answers

Thanks Ern

is there a;

'leadership WITH easy answers'

cheers

[joe greiner]

Thanks Ern

is there a;

'leadership WITH easy answers'

cheers

Only in wartime.

Cheers,
Joe

[chrisb691]

You don't make change for the sake of change, there must always be a good reason.

You cannot make valid changes, until you absolutely know what needs changing. This means you need time to understand the current processes/procedures.

Once you understand the current processes, you will identify what can be improved by change. You will also identified things that are good in the current processes, and these need to be be re-inforced (pats on backs?).

You will probably come under pressure, to make changes that are someone else's perceptions of what is required. Be sure to understand the ramifications of these, and agree with them, before actioning them. If you don't agree, or are not yet convinced, defer them until you have had the time to give them proper consideration.

Hope the new position goes well.

[Lignin]

My son, a PO in the RAN has the "Motto"
"The floggings will continue until morale improves"
His team love him!!!!

[masoth]

Much will depend on 'what' the team provides for the organisation, and the low morale is possibly because there is no leader - no buffer between the team and management.
The earlier suggestions are good, and I will add that what changes you plan to introduce should be discussed to some extent with the supervisors of any other section within the org and then when finalized talked through thoroughly with your team. Involve them in the "ownership" of any new service as this is is always a good start for a new broom.
Take your time! Everybody effected by your changes must know where your team service is heading, and developing regular measures (statistics) of team performance is a good idea too to lift morale.

soth

[Steve Fryar]

Supervising can be thankless but it can be rewarding too when change is implemented successfully.Involve your staff in the changes you need to make to the point of letting them do it.But remember this your rock show so you have the final say.Staff respond well to change when they think they are in charge.This way ideas will come forward that you may not have thought of.Keep an open mind to these suggestions.Manipulate them a little to suit your needs if you have to but reward positive thinking and results.A simple pat on the back with a "well done" goes a long way with staff.Share results with your staff too.Low morale can come from being left in the dark too long as well.
I have more if you like.All from the "Baker Hughes Cornerstone for Supervisors" blurb.

[Keith_W]

Hi Dazzer,
If you are taking on this new job I would get in writing from management a clear understanding of what they want, the time frame in which it is to be implemented and what resources are available to you to get the job done.
Any information on what has been tried before and worked and didn’t work also would be helpful to you in taking your course of action.
You need to look at the dynamics of the team and I suggest you have a HBDI (Herrman Brain Dominance Instrument) Profile done on each of the members of the team. This Profiling tells you how people will react to circumstances, there strengths etc. With this information you can better arrange the tasks that the team have to complete and when you make the changes that Management want how the team members will react to them.
As others have said in your post get buyin from the team members as this is better than forced change which could cause resentment and make your job a lot harder.
Good luck with the job if you take it and it would be nice to hear how it went.

Regards
Keith.

[rsser]

Thanks Ern

is there a;

'leadership WITH easy answers'

cheers

LOL. Nope.

Distinguish leadership from management from direction from supervision etc.

You can't direct people to change. They will resist, subvert, comply on the surface only etc etc. Workgroups are powerful.

You have to ask yourself 'what would encourage these people to change long-established practices?' and 'what is my role in creating the conditions for them to do so?'.

There are some summaries of Heifetz out there in webland if you want a taste of his 'protocol' for leading adaptive change.

(I worked for ten years in leadership and change support roles in universities and read a lot about how to do it. Have the grey hair to show for my scant success).

[masoth]

Dazzler, are you at liberty to say what the job is?
I ask only because other members may have worked in the same industry and/or position; eg I worked 24 years in the regular army and 20 years in local government records and archives, and two other insignificant jobs, after leaving school, with no responsibilities other than to turn up each day.

soth

[toolbagsPLUS]

Hey Dazzler, Having once been placed in a similar situation, the environment was a Gaol, from experience I would suggest you aim to gain their respect instead of Friendship. People do far more for someone they respect than they would for someone they like. Any other ex-military out there than would like to attest to that??

Cheers

Steve

[Pheonix]

Your last name isn't Turnbull by any chance?

[dazzler]

Hi

The role is managing a team of council compliance officers in a large council with a mix of urban and rural areas.

Historically they have dealt with dog control, fire risk, stock control, misuse of public lands - basic council ranger stuff. However management has decided to multiskill them into building and development compliance and parking enforcement among other duties. It is these last two that seem to be the stumbling block of change.

From the interview I gathered management is interested in benchmarking therefore I imagine they are not happy having to justify thier day. My last govt job had every minute of the day accounted for and attributed to a job number so I am used to that.

In the past I have always had the runs on the board with the team so to speak so could effect change with a minimum of grumbling. Coming in cold will be a different experience.

Talking about the army.....years ago I went to a Govt driver training conference and each member had to give a 10min presentation on "Motivating students to learn".

The army bloke gets up and says: "They are motivated to do it because I can yell louder than them and they will do as there told." Then sat down!

[dazzler]

Your last name isn't Turnbull by any chance?

Na, Peter from Melbourne, electorate of higgins