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The Many Hats of a Good Manager 🎩

3 mins
A visual way to look at management.

I recently stumbled on a tweet from John Cutler (product evangelist) that showcased how people described the role of manager, without using the words manager or leader. Here’s the tweet and graphic he created with the answers:

Manager Roles - John Cutler

My Take #

I found the results to be quite accurate and compelling. It breaks down the jobs of a manager in a very visual and non-prescriptive way. I decided to rearrange them a bit to align with my thinking. Here are the specific roles I believe befall to mangers:

  • The Motivator: motivate the team - individually with direct reports and as whole for the group. Try to keep people happy and up beat.
  • The Role Model: have the personal credibility to command respect from your team and others.
  • The Expert: be the person that people come to when they have a problem and need help.
  • The Mentor: be someone that can teach others to do their job well. Not just tasks, but career coaching too.
  • The Shield: filter your team from external pressures. Be the filter that says no to asks when not right. Take the heat for failures.
  • The Champion: help your team members advance in their own careers. Celebrate their successes and push them forward.
  • The Organizer: Assign projects and tasks to the right people and hold them accountable.
  • The Recruiter: Find good talent to bring onboard so that the team continues be successful.
  • The Sage: be the leader with wisdom on how to steer the team right when there are conflicting interests and goals.

Beyond Roles #

Good managers have a few systemic tasks that they need to complete well to find success. That includes:

  1. Hire a great team that is self-sustaining.
  2. Structure a team for successes. That means have the right amount indians:chiefs, with the right dotted line structure.
  3. Hire independent leaders rather than only good executors. You want a team that you can trust to operate independently without your constant guidance.
  4. Develop a team strategy for delivering on goals.
  5. Hold your team accountable to metrics and goals that drive your strategy.

Final Notes 🎩 #

There is a lot to do as a manager. You can easily spend a day a week on each hat/role and that means there’s not enough time to cover it all. But agility is key; pivot when needed and do your best to hire a team that operates well on your behalf too.