What should I read before I become a new manager?
March 20, 2019 5:07 PM Subscribe
In a few weeks, I'll be starting a new job, as the manager of a nascent research program at a medium-sized nonprofit. What should I read to get ready?
This job will be a step up in authority and responsibility for me, and I'm excited but also apprehensive. My first challenge will be to build partnerships with other researchers and institutions in the community, begin to collaboratively formulate new research projects, and garner funding. I won't have any direct reports at first. What should I read? (Or watch or listen to?)
I find that many books aimed at new managers assume a business setting and a profit motive. I'd prefer materials that are either more generally applicable or about the research or nonprofit environments. I'm particularly interested in guidance on effective communication, strategic planning, and leadership in general. Above all, I'm not interested in hokey self-help. What's good out there?
My boss has recommended I take a look at The First 90 Days, and I have Alison Green's Managing to Change the World, too.
This job will be a step up in authority and responsibility for me, and I'm excited but also apprehensive. My first challenge will be to build partnerships with other researchers and institutions in the community, begin to collaboratively formulate new research projects, and garner funding. I won't have any direct reports at first. What should I read? (Or watch or listen to?)
I find that many books aimed at new managers assume a business setting and a profit motive. I'd prefer materials that are either more generally applicable or about the research or nonprofit environments. I'm particularly interested in guidance on effective communication, strategic planning, and leadership in general. Above all, I'm not interested in hokey self-help. What's good out there?
My boss has recommended I take a look at The First 90 Days, and I have Alison Green's Managing to Change the World, too.
For a really short, quick read The One Minute Manager is a classic. It's very much about the people though, so maybe more relevant when you have directs.
Until then I do want to challenge the premise/wording of the question title a bit - there is a very distinct difference between being a manager and being a leader. I feel you're more asking about the latter here. Might help in your hunt for reading material if you focus with that frame of reference.
posted by cgg at 5:28 PM on March 20, 2019
Until then I do want to challenge the premise/wording of the question title a bit - there is a very distinct difference between being a manager and being a leader. I feel you're more asking about the latter here. Might help in your hunt for reading material if you focus with that frame of reference.
posted by cgg at 5:28 PM on March 20, 2019
The First 90 Days is a really good one, but a little more focused on you as employee than as boss. The hokily-named Be the Boss Everyone Wants to Work For is great for a first-time manager. I also really like High Output Management.
You may get many recommendations for the podcast Manager Tools. I couldn't get into them but I recommend the episode on 1:1s.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 5:34 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
You may get many recommendations for the podcast Manager Tools. I couldn't get into them but I recommend the episode on 1:1s.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 5:34 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
I recommend Crucial Conversations, especially if you foresee engaging in negotiations, dealing with difficult people, or needing to improve your communication in general.
posted by SquidLips at 5:37 PM on March 20, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by SquidLips at 5:37 PM on March 20, 2019 [3 favorites]
Seconding Crucial Conversations. I also found Radical Candor really helpful and insightful.
Five Dysfunctions of a Team might be less relevant to your situation, but it's a quick read and it was illuminating for me. The writing was physically painful to read, but IME getting the useful information out of management books requires the ability to get past that.
posted by asterix at 5:49 PM on March 20, 2019 [2 favorites]
Five Dysfunctions of a Team might be less relevant to your situation, but it's a quick read and it was illuminating for me. The writing was physically painful to read, but IME getting the useful information out of management books requires the ability to get past that.
posted by asterix at 5:49 PM on March 20, 2019 [2 favorites]
At my old job, we tasked new project managers with working through Project Management for Dummies. It's an absolutely great resource. I highly recommend it.
posted by General Malaise at 5:52 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by General Malaise at 5:52 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
Ask a Manager, the book and the blog.
posted by saturdaymornings at 5:54 PM on March 20, 2019 [4 favorites]
posted by saturdaymornings at 5:54 PM on March 20, 2019 [4 favorites]
Peopleware.
Seriously, it's the best book on management I've ever read, certainly the best focusing on team-oriented technical leadership. (I can only think of a few other, better books on leadership generally, and none are focused on a business context.)
You can go ahead and buy an old version of it for cheap, I don't think the salient points have really changed much. For better or worse, they've been making largely the same arguments since the first version was published in the late 70s. The later editions just have more evidence to back things up and more case studies, from what I can tell.
Some of the stuff in the book, like the optimal layout of offices, may be out of your control. And you may want to marry up some modern methodology (Scrum, Agile, whatever-is-hot-this-month), which is fine. Their advice is largely methodology-agnostic. But there's a ton in there for basically any manager.
I have given away a bunch of copies to various people since I first read it (I think as the result of a recommendation here on AskMe, years ago) and nearly everyone has said some variation of either "I wish I had read it sooner" or (mostly later-career people) "it's the book I would have written if I had the time/energy".
posted by Kadin2048 at 6:29 PM on March 20, 2019
Seriously, it's the best book on management I've ever read, certainly the best focusing on team-oriented technical leadership. (I can only think of a few other, better books on leadership generally, and none are focused on a business context.)
You can go ahead and buy an old version of it for cheap, I don't think the salient points have really changed much. For better or worse, they've been making largely the same arguments since the first version was published in the late 70s. The later editions just have more evidence to back things up and more case studies, from what I can tell.
Some of the stuff in the book, like the optimal layout of offices, may be out of your control. And you may want to marry up some modern methodology (Scrum, Agile, whatever-is-hot-this-month), which is fine. Their advice is largely methodology-agnostic. But there's a ton in there for basically any manager.
I have given away a bunch of copies to various people since I first read it (I think as the result of a recommendation here on AskMe, years ago) and nearly everyone has said some variation of either "I wish I had read it sooner" or (mostly later-career people) "it's the book I would have written if I had the time/energy".
posted by Kadin2048 at 6:29 PM on March 20, 2019
With no disrespect to you or your workplace about whom and which I know nothing, I suspect it would be instructive for any manager to read Graeber’s Bullshit Jobs.
posted by Smearcase at 6:37 PM on March 20, 2019
posted by Smearcase at 6:37 PM on March 20, 2019
I'm a manager at a non-profit. I thought the First 90 Days was a waste of time. Managing to Change the World was better. The best actually was reading the archives of Ask A Manager - I just plowed through a couple years of them because they deal really well with communication, collaboration and navigating tricky and unusual situations. The podcast is also fine.
posted by Toddles at 7:32 PM on March 20, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by Toddles at 7:32 PM on March 20, 2019 [3 favorites]
Familiarize yourself with the variety of communication styles there are in the workplace, and realize that you need to deal with different people differently to get the best results. Here's a quick and dirty flowchart version: https://www.lucidchart.com/blog/types-of-communication-styles
Conflict resolution skills are a must. I got a lot of value from reading a bunch of different articles from the Harvard Business Review's Communications topic: https://hbr.org/topic/communication -- not all of them apply to all situations, but you should be able to find a bunch of applicable topics to your situation.
posted by erst at 7:36 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
Conflict resolution skills are a must. I got a lot of value from reading a bunch of different articles from the Harvard Business Review's Communications topic: https://hbr.org/topic/communication -- not all of them apply to all situations, but you should be able to find a bunch of applicable topics to your situation.
posted by erst at 7:36 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
I also liked Managing to Change the World. It is really practical, which I appreciate.
posted by yonglin at 7:37 PM on March 20, 2019
posted by yonglin at 7:37 PM on March 20, 2019
I was seconded to a management role for a year. I found this AskMe thread very helpful, as well as reading the Ask A Manager archives.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:28 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:28 PM on March 20, 2019 [1 favorite]
I think Manager Tools is also good. They have been podcast-oriented, but they have recently written a book as well. I especially recommend their work on the nuts and bolts of having one-on-ones with your direct reports.
posted by elmay at 8:16 AM on March 21, 2019
posted by elmay at 8:16 AM on March 21, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by saeculorum at 5:16 PM on March 20, 2019