What does your manager do all day?
Photo by Emily Morter on Unsplash
Month to month I hear a statement like "I know you are busy, but I really don't know what you do all day". Or assumptions like "all you do is deal with escalations" and "you must spend so much of your time in 1:1s".
I was challenged by a few in my team to write down everything I did in a day. The resulting list was surprisingly long. Manager roles vary from company to company, role to role and person to person. Taking this into account, I wanted to share what my average day looks like. In the spirit of opening the curtain to reveal the behind the scenes of a manager role. Below are ten of the main things I would do on an average day.
One. Problem-solving. In any given day, a manager will solve several problems. Anything from asking someone to move a vital calendar invite that was double booked. To navigating a severe gap on a project amongst many stakeholders with different goals and insufficient time and budget. Even though the problem list is long. It doesn't mean it is all doom and gloom. We enjoy solving dynamic, complex problems or helping others solve them.
We try not to view them with an emotional lens. Problems are just puzzles waiting to be solved. We focus on solving small issues quickly and breaking big problems down into solvable pieces. We include the right people to assist with brainstorming or solutions and attempt to minimise any impacts the problem might cause.
Problems are just puzzles waiting to be solved.
Two. Traffic director. We get a lot of questions from team members, managers, cross functionals and walk-ups. 'Where can I find this?', 'How do I do this?', 'Can you get someone to complete this?', 'How do I work with a difficult person?'. We work through one by one to prioritise them and solve them one at a time. If we cannot answer the questions, we try to know who to redirect them to. We understand that the questions being asked are someone's obstacles. Our role is to remove as many obstacles as possible to allow our team members to carry on with their work in a more straightforward fashion.
Three. Escalations. You all knew this would make the list. It is true we deal with escalations. I often hear people say they wouldn't want to be a manager because all they do is deal with escalations. I am here to tell you it is not all that bad. The word has a negative stigma. The stigma is that if there is an escalation that someone is getting in trouble. This is not the case. A lot of the time, it means that the issue needs more attention to be resolved. Escalations can come from internal or external stakeholders. The earlier we know about them, the more comfortable they are usually. Some are resolved over one meeting. While others might take a few months.
Conflict resolution is another type of escalation that comes up. It takes time to understand both sides of the story and get to the root cause. I have found that 90% of the conflict is due to misunderstanding and miscommunication. Acting as a facilitator to help the two sides understand how they can work differently and define a path forward that is a mutual win.
Four. The weight of feelings. Managers are not robots, although we try and stay calm and composed throughout the day and sometimes look like a robot. Having conversations with people that are sad, impatient, anxious or feeling down compounds over the day. It is our role to learn to work with those emotions and not let the weight drag us down. We can't let a high from a 1:1 carry into the next 1:1 where someone is dealing with profound challenges. Occasionally, we just need a few minutes to ourselves to reset and ensure we are ready for the next conversation.
Five. Meetings, meetings, meetings. Managers are often responsible for an area of the business. This requires several meetings including operational, team 1:1s, project specific, strategic and ad-hoc. The main issue with the meetings is that they can consume so much time and leave you no time to do your deliverable work. Getting better at calendar management is a crucial skill. An even better ability is getting people onto chat apps where possible to discuss smaller topics and avoid another meeting. So when your manager is running around or maybe hiding on a different floor. It is usually to have a quiet moment to complete a task with a focused mind.
Six. Changing channels. Also known as context switching. Looking back in my career, I would say one of the significant differences is I went from fewer tasks requiring a lot of hours. To multiple tasks that use fewer hours. We are usually jumping from small jobs, numerous chats, emails, escalations, intranets @mentions, approvals, meetings, back to the chat app. Getting better at changing channels while still understanding what is happening on each channel can be challenging. We are always a little paranoid that one of the balls will be dropped or we don't give something or someone our full attention.
Seven. Managing stress. We all deal with stress in our unique ways. Although it might seem like some of us are always calm, it doesn't mean we are not worried about something going on or coming up. We could be worried about an upcoming 1:1 that will be a challenging conversation. Or worried that the team's results are not as good as we expected for the months and thinking through what can be changed to improve the next month. Part of our day is working on the big blocks that are causing the majority of the stress. While finding our own way to keep our stress levels down and stay level headed.
Eight. Keeping the cogs turning. Sometimes it feels we are just a cog in a big system. This feeling comes from ending the day and feeling like you didn't do anything. As a manager, we are working with less tangible items. Solving problems, dealing with escalations, meeting with co-workers to find new work or fighting for funding. We are setting up initiatives, checking in with people, coaching, mentoring removing blockers.
There are also operational and admin tasks, checking reports and creating an action list. Sometimes it feels like all you do is keep the lights on. Other days you feel like you are the strategic leader, and you have value. Prioritising and focusing on the value add tasks in the day is a significant factor in how you feel at the end of the day. Without ignoring all the smaller operational tasks that keep the team moving.
Sometimes it feels like all you do is keep the lights on.
Nine. Influencing people. You might think that having a manager title allows you to get what you want. That is not the case. There are so many things we need for the team or for the strategy that we need to ask for. Resources in an organisation are finite, so there are always competing priorities. To ensure we get what we need. Who, how and when we ask for it is essential. We adapt our communication style to increase our influencing ability. We change our tone, our speed and depth of the conversation. We use data or vision boards, depending on the audience. This usually takes a significant amount of time but is rewarding when you get things through.
Ten. Thinking about our own careers. When we have ticked enough things off the list. Helped our team and cross functionals. Worked through several escalations. Helped a fellow colleague out. We may get a bit of time to do something extra that will help progress our career. Finding this time is difficult and usually takes a back seat to all the other things going on. On a rare occasion, a direct report will ask how they can help my career with a genuine interest. Which is quite rewarding to hear as a manager.
I hope this gives some insight into what your manager does all day. Maybe it will help you appreciate them a little more or even better help you be inspired to take the next step and become a leader in your organisation.
Updated: Click here to find out what your manager is now doing while working from home in my article What is your WFH manager doing all day?
Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer.