Comments on So You Think You Want to be a Manager

Birgitte Rasine — Tue, 29 May 2007 21:51:46 GMT

Erin,

Thanks for a well thought-out and supportive article. I’m a writer but in my business I’m responsible primarily for running it, which means a LOT of delegating, not just to other writers but designers and other creatives. Curiously, I project manage as well as produce, although now I am really trying hard to delegate the project management role to someone else on our team, b/c the workload has simply become overwhelming. So a lot of what you say rings very true, and I appreciate your having taken the time to write this piece.

I thought I would add a little from my own experience… it’s not just about the right attitude and people management, it’s also about having the right tools. In our company, for example, we do print design, web design, photography and communications. So on a daily basis we handle very disparate and diverse projects. About a year and a half ago we were desperately looking for some kind of online project management system that would enable us to track time and our work properly. After several failed trials with a number of application we found it—Intervals (www.myintervals.com)—and have never looked back since. I have to admit one of the main reasons we love it is b/c it’s designed so well! But in all seriousness… it’s helped us pull our team together and pull out a fair amount of billable hours we would have otherwise lost (as in, not even known they’re billable).

But the trick there is not to let the tool take over your life, either… you still have to keep the person front and center and not treat him or her like a mere resource. That’s where the human element comes in, and you’ve captured that quite well.

So, again, thanks so much for taking the time to write this—I’ll keep an eye out for your other pieces!

All the best,
Birgitte (writer turned producer)

guy song — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:39:57 GMT

Tom Peters is indeed a business expert, i like his works.

PS: some of his works you can download here:
http://www.5s5f.net/index.php?s=Tom+Peters

Scott Noblit — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:21:48 GMT

Yes, really good article Erin. I have recently had to experience the reality of going through this trasition and have found it to be a welcomed challenge, albeit a little frustrating. Taking to helping other designers grow and learning to lead and inspire has been a great part of this transition. The difficulty isn’t always managing my employees but the act of managing the other managers and being sometimes caught in the middle.

Shiv Singh — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 10:34:17 GMT

Great article! And the reality is that one has to live through being a first time manager to recognize the importance of some of the points made. Sometimes we may think we’re letting go when we’re actually controlling more than we should.

I agree with Dante’s point that in many organizations one can be a manager on one project and a contributor on another. Sometimes that’s a good way to balance the urge to design and the interest in leading a team or an initiative. Other companies don’t necessarily allow for that. Personal projects are also one way to stay in touch with actual design!

Peter Gremett — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:22:12 GMT

Its great to get the message out that you don’t have to be a manager to progress and grow in your career. So many people think that you have to be a manager to get paid more, recognized by an organization, etc.

Another point people should also know is that the path of a manager or an ic (individual contributor) for that matter, is not fixed. At different points in your career there is nothing stopping you from moving back and forth between the roles. This is especailly true for the dynamic places that we work in today.

Regnard Kreisler Raquedan — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 22:44:11 GMT

Hi, Erin.
Your article seems spot on in my situation—I know I’m good at something but I have to step aside because I’m called for things for a “higher purpose.” I miss designing and I’ve only been on the job for a few months. Your article, in some ways, allays my fear that I’ll never be good at what I’m doing.

Joe Sokohl — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:22:20 GMT

Nicely done, Erin. It’s an important topic that many of us find ourselves in at one time or another. Often it’s not that we want to be managers; we end up having to become managers, whether it’s because of a promotion path or need for a new job with higher salary.
A lesson I learned in Chicago years ago as a manager of a small team came from my great boss, the VP of development. He said, “As a manager, you don’t get to do the fun stuff.” Instead, you have to delegate, you have to mentor, you even have to let people fail.
I would also postulate that being a manager and being a leader are even more distinct than you make it. Rare is the person who’s adept at both. Too, most companies really want managers, even though they bloviate about wanting leaders. Manager wrangle resources; leaders inspire people.
Thanks much for this article!

David Shen — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:26:21 GMT

Great article Erin! I too remember the days when I switched from being an individual contributor to managing a design team.

One other comment I’ll make is that as design manager in a corporation, your job is to push forward the design strategy of an organization in a unified, cohesive fashion (this is less true in an agency where your team members are working on projects for many corporations). This can be extremely hard, given that designers are typically half-artists and artists tend to sway toward individual work and less so towards the cohesive whole. You may find yourself trying to bring a bunch of individualists along the same path, when they are itching to break onto their own side paths!

Heavy handed management can be successfully employed by some design managers, meaning “You’ll design my way, which is the company way since I’m boss, or it’s the highway.” But this can lead to dissatisfaction among the team members and ultimately a high turnover rate.

I would recommend another way. This would be setting constraints and expectations as early as possible, and then employing the concepts in your section, “Giving Orders is Costly.” By early as possible, I mean that during the hiring process you need to let potential hires know clearly that they will be designing to the corporation mission and their ability to express themselves individually will not be the way, but also emphasizing that there is still room for creativity within the corporate mission. Then, you should create and employ design standards which are approved by the organization as a template within everybody operates, and hopefully is flexible enough to let creativity flourish as well. The design standards will set everyone clearly on the same path thereby releasing you as manager of the headache of dragging everybody onto the same path, and they are free to walk the path in an individual fashion, and also the way you help manage it.

Last note: A word on creativity: designers are creative by nature; to deny that is to deny that part of their DNA which is natural and essential to their well-being. Creating constraints, such as design standards, which leave almost no room for creativity will have the opposite effect and produce a dissatisfied design team just like if you were to employ the heavy handed method of design management. Find ways to leave flexibility in the design standards for creativity and teach and encourage people to be creative in a constrained environment, even when they think they are being handcuffed by the standards.

Madonnalisa G. Chan — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:22:30 GMT

Like teachers managers have another responsibility…inspiring (removing the obstacles from your contributors so they can succeed)...

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” – William Ward

Erin, Great article. All of the points are relevant in many aspects of one’s life not just in a work environment. Thanks!

Michael Beavers — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:53:53 GMT

The timing of this article is really great, so thank you. Our company is growing and we are constantly bouncing between hiring managers from within and hiring outside people who have “chops” that their soon-to-be reports will respect and admire.

“You are still designing” is right…only what you design is shifting. For those of us who have the generalist’s curse, and know a little about a lot, rather than a lot about a focused area; sometimes management is the best path. A lot can be said for having a very candid conversation with an internal candidate about what gets them going every morning. Is it the design, or the design process? Is it the work, or the collaboration and your ability to inspire it? We’ve found that only by having these conversations can you create an environment where people feel like they’re advancing their skill focus or their skill breadth.

Thanks for this article. I’ll be sure to pass it along.

Dante Murphy — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:25:48 GMT

Erin-

Nice job describing the ethos of becoming a successful manager of design professionals. While I agree that the primary objective of a manager is to delegate work and provide opportunity for staff members, I also fnid tremendous value in continuing to work on a diverse cross-section of projects as a contributor. The key is to make sure that management tasks and objectives are met before rolling up your sleeves.

It’s also important not to “cherry-pick” taking the most interesting or high-profile projects away from your team members. If you are going to step on the field of play, try to do so as a role-player, delivering great design (as you should) why learning about the process of design and the corporate culture from a first-hand perspective.

This is a technique that is proven to be effective by companies that require all staff members to periodically work in the company call center, getting customer feedback first-hand and learning about the challenges of after-market support. The investment company Vanguard requires everyone to participate in what they call “Swiss Army”, from the CEO down to the entry-level staff. It’s become a keystone of the corporate culture.

I would also add a couple suggestions to your article. The first is to dedicate more time than you ever did before to reading and attending industry events. A big part of leadership is constantly expanding your professional vocabulary.

Thanks for posting such a well-crafted article.

Dante Murphy

sarah browne — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:53:52 GMT

Erin,

What I like most about this very thoughtful and insightful article is that I know first-hand that you are walking-the-talk with your team. I hear about your guidance, inspiration and guru-ness, especially after a staffer has just emerged from a 1-on-1 with you.

Kudos!

Sarah

(Sarah Browne, Redmond Browne Research Group)

Alok Jain — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:53:52 GMT

Erin,

Very grass root level points here. I fundamentally believe that the organizations must provide both dimensions of a growth path – horizontal and vertical. Horizontal being where one remains an individual contributor and growth comes from increasing area of influence to handle more and more complex challenges and verticle where one grows through management ranks. I have not seen that in many organizations though.

Also, leadership is independent of role and title, one does not need a team to be a leader. Leading is about leading onself as much as it is about leading a team.

very relevant article!

Regards
Alok Jain
http://iPrincipia.com

David Gammel — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:26:39 GMT

I recommend reading Tom Peters’ “Professional Service Firm 50”. Great little book on how to be an outstanding service firm as an in-house department. Lots of good ideas and inspiration for anyone who manages a creative group.