How to use the manager support materials

Take the manager behaviour alignment quiz to help identify areas for development. Use the reflection/feedback questions these to reflect and get feedback from others about the extent to which you show capability in the different areas of manager behaviour.

Hints and tips on getting feedback

Why? 

Getting feedback on your behaviour can help you to build your self-awareness and develop your management capability. However, seeking feedback needs to be done carefully and with sensitivity if it is to be honest and useful.

Who? 

The person or people you ask for feedback do not always need to work directly for you, but they do need to have a good knowledge of the way you manage your team and to have observed your everyday management style. It is important that whoever gives you feedback is honest and open when answering the questions. Please be sensitive to how they might feel about giving you honest feedback and consider this in both choice of, and approach to, whoever you ask.

What? 

It is generally helpful if the feedback is specific. So rather than asking whether you are, for example, ‘supportive’, ask people to give specific examples of what you did (or did not) do, what you said/wrote, and how it came across. This may include non-verbal cues.

How? 

You may find it helpful to let others know that you are looking to develop your management capability. Ask them to consider the relevant feedback questions before talking to you and arrange a time to discuss their feedback.

When? 

It can be difficult to take on information and reflect objectively when you are unprepared or feeling emotional. Before meeting to discuss feedback, take some time to get into the right frame of mind so that you can listen and respond openly.

Using your reflections and any feedback you have gathered, as well as the recommendations from the behaviour alignment quiz, identify aspects of your management approach that you feel are particular strengths and note them down. Choose two of these to focus on as priority areas. Don’t feel that you need to do everything at once: you can come back to the other areas at a later stage. 

Based on the strengths you identified and the recommendations from the behaviour alignment quiz, choose aspects of your management approach that you feel you want to develop. Pick the top two of these to focus on as priority areas for building your capability. Don’t feel that you need to do everything at once: you can come back to the other areas at a later stage. 

Taking the areas of behaviour you identified in steps 1 and 2, plan out what you are going to do to build on your strengths and make changes. You may find the action plan template below helpful.

Top tips on action planning:

• Keep it simple.
• Be as concrete as possible about the actions and steps you are going to take.
• Put the dates for when you will take the first step on each area into your calendar.
• Don’t feel you need to do it all on your own: get support from your own manager, your team, your peers and/or your employer.

Put a date in your calendar to review your entire action plan, to see where you have got to and what more you want to do.

Even though you want to be a positive, supportive manager, you might find that your circumstances or situation get in the way. Below we have identified some of the most frequently mentioned barriers, together with suggestions for how to overcome them. You may want to add actions based on these to your action plan.

Every journey begins with the first step. There is no need to be perfect or do it all at once, just take one step at a time. 

Changing behaviour is hard, so be patient and kind with yourself and get help when you need it. 

On the date that you set for your action plan review, take a little time to reflect on the following.

• What have you achieved so far? How will you celebrate your achievements?
• What have you not fully done – or not done at all? For these areas:
• What got in the way? You might want to revisit step 6 to explore this further and identify how to overcome barriers.
• Do you need to change the plan or do you just need a little more time?
• Do you need extra support and help with taking action?

What more do you want to do? If you want to take on further areas of change, you may find it helpful to go back to steps 2 and 3.

Based on the responses to these questions, take a moment to update your action plan or create a new one and set a new date for review.