Leadership Strategies for Managing Peers Who Are Now Direct Reports

Have your peers recently turned into direct reports? Are you struggling to balance workplace friendships with leadership formalities?

Leading a team of peers who have become your direct reports can be challenging. It requires a careful balance between maintaining former friendships and fulfilling the requirements of being their leader.

Across numerous coaching sessions, I have observed the following three challenges repeatedly arise for newly minted leaders.

Three Challenges

1. Managing Roles

Moving from interacting with a peer to managing them as their leader dramatically changes team dynamics. A first step to managing this effectively is openly discussing the new dynamics and setting clear expectations early on. Approach this conversation with empathy and an open mind, sensitively yet firmly, ensuring everyone understands and respects the new boundaries.

2. Maintaining impartiality and Avoiding Bias:

As a leader, you must ensure everyone feels equal and not discriminated against. Despite the best of intentions, old friendships can cloud your judgment. Making peers aware that you have a new role and setting the right expectations is an excellent foundation for the changed relationship. Also, showing up with objectivity and mindfulness can help you be transparent, fair, and just.

3. Communicating Role Changes:

A leadership transition may also involve role changes in the team. This needs to be handled with care and sensitivity. Communicating with integrity, transparency, and patience is critical to ensuring the teams feel heard and clearly understand the upcoming changes and implications. Create sufficient time to understand their thoughts, questions, and concerns and clarify them objectively.

As you navigate these challenges, here are some questions you may want to reflect upon:

Reflections

Do I deserve this role?

Your internal makeup says a lot about how you will show up with your new teams. A deep conviction will evoke confidence in your interactions, making it easier for the team to embrace the change. Begin by reflecting on your achievements and affirming your capabilities. List your strengths and past successes and refer to them whenever you need a confidence boost.

How open am I to discussions about team dynamics?

Practice open communication by hosting regular one-on-one meetings and use these conversations to discuss their expectations, concerns and suggestions for improving team dynamics. By putting yourself out there proactively, you signal openness, accessibility and empathy.

Where can I bring the most value to my team?

Make it your top priority to help your team members succeed. Understand them, their talents, and their role requirements, and help them bridge gaps.

Ideate how your expertise and experience can add value to their roles and commit to making it happen. This can be one of the fastest ways for the team to bond and embrace you as their leader.

How open am I to receiving feedback?

While you bring years of expertise and experience, you must stay open to feedback about what you are planning and whether that works for your teams and resonates with each of them.

You may not like what you hear. However, accepting and acknowledging the feedback conveys humility, confidence, and openness, all traits your team would use as role models under your leadership.

Enable a structured feedback process. Hold monthly or fortnightly sessions where the team shares insights and areas for continued improvement.

What do I appreciate and acknowledge about my team?

Look for what your team does well, identify strengths and hidden talents, and appreciate and acknowledge them. Be genuine and generous in your praise. Show them you see them, that you care and are prompt in recognising their efforts. Celebrate small wins, support them in leveraging their learnings and teach them to appreciate and acknowledge each other.

How fair are my leadership decisions?

Regularly review your choices with a mentor or peer outside the team to ensure they remain objective and fair. Open yourself up to constant improvement. Embrace feedback and commit to making changes that sharpen and add more objectivity to your decision-making.

How can I inspire my team more?

Share your challenges and achievements stories, and get other leaders and senior industry veterans to address your teams. Create a book club and get the team excited about being the teacher of the fortnight. Increase your presence by participating in team activities and being more accessible during work hours.

Engage and Grow Together

Transitioning from a peer to a leader doesn’t happen overnight. It requires consistent effort, adaptability, and a willingness to learn. By addressing these challenges and integrating these strategies into your approach, you can manage the transition effectively, inspire your team, and establish your credibility as a leader. Remember, leadership is a journey, not a destination; every experience is an opportunity to learn and improve.

Points to Ponder

1. What assumptions and preconceived notions do I carry about my peers, who are now my direct reports?
2. What fears and concerns might they have?
3. How can I make it easy for them to work with me?