Signs of an Awesome Manager

A conversation series between Lindsay Boccardo and Lauren Moffatt, HR expert.

Lindsay: You and I met, Lauren, because we're in the same field of career development. And I was impressed when we first met couple of years ago because you had been a VP of HR for a decade. You help executive level clients get the next job that they want in the C suite. You're working with people that have an awesome track record, that have a longer career. And I tend to work with people who are new to the marketplace, who just graduated college or they're in like their second job and they hate it and they're trying to figure out what they want. They have a ton of potential but don't have the track record yet.

But the thing that you and I both see is when a manager is awesome, and we can see that through the client. Just based on the client's point of view and experiences, we can tell if a manager is pretty doing a great job, but we also see managers who are toxic. I'm curious, what are some signs of an awesome manager?

Lauren: Well first, it's an obvious one, but at the same time it's still rare. It's really this investment of growing and developing each employee as a person.

Lindsay: So a manager who's like, "Hey, I know I don't own you. I'm here to help you grow.
I want to see you develop. Ultimately that's good for us and it's best for you."

Lauren: Right. The opposite would be, "I'm just going to do this because I want you to perform well for me." The subtle difference is a manager who cares about employees because of humanity over results. It's a human thing. I care about your wellbeing. Take that with you wherever you go.

Lindsay: I see that too with forward thinking people who own companies. They're like, "I know you're not going to stay forever. I'm not going to make a big deal out of that, but I want to help you while you're here because you become an ambassador if you leave." Okay, what's another sign of an awesome manager?

Lauren: They listen to you. Another one that's really simple, but it says a lot if your manager's willing to listen to how you feel or what you think or asking you
questions. That's just a sign of someone that's also coaching. So if they're listening more than talking, they're likely much more engaged.

Lindsay: Yeah, that's good. So the third one is when you have a manager that actually co-creates with their employees. There's not an org chart where it's like, "Give me your ideas and I will take credit for them and take them to the boss!", but to be somebody who gets in the middle of their team and helps come up with solutions as a team -- co-create as a team. They give credit to other people easily and generously.

Lauren: Yeah, it means that the manager believes that the team can create something better if it's outside of just themselves. They want you to feel that traction. They want you to know you did a great job. They step aside and give credit because it's about uplifting the people that support the team. That's a good sign of a manager, when they're willing to say, "No, this is all you. Enjoy it."


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