• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

People Equation

Leadership Development and Career Success Tips

  • About
  • Services
    • Leadership Communication Coaching
    • Leadership Messaging
    • Writing Services
    • Thought Leadership
  • Portfolio
  • Blog
  • Contact

Managerial Expectations – Don’t Keep ‘Em Guessing

by Jennifer V. Miller

Communicate with Clarity
Communicate with Clarity

From time to time, Mr. People Equation and I talk shop about managerial things. As a director-level leader who has supervised technical professionals for more than a decade, he’s been around the block and I value his insights.

The other day, he mentioned an Expectations List that he gives to employees new to his department.  It’s a document that he pulled together a few years ago to give employees a sense of expectations that might not be clearly written into their job descriptions.

He’s agreed to share it for the benefit of The People Equation readership. Some of the expectations are very specific to his organization, so I’ve included only those excerpts that I think translate well to any manager who supervises knowledge workers:

  • Be professional.  We’re pretty relaxed yet very busy.  Promote yourself as a competent technical resource and you will boost your opportunities.
  • Look for work.  I expect you to keep yourself occupied on work related tasks. If you are waiting for someone to notice that you need another assignment, you risk the impression that you are not dedicated to promoting the success of our company. Be proactive!
  • Follow through.  If someone owes you a deliverable – you have my permission to, tactfully, be a pest!  E-mail them, voice mail them, send them notes in the inter-office mail, I don’t care if it is [name of company president] who promised you information.  I will back you up.
  • Persevere.  Being wrong is NOT a failure; it is a learning opportunity.  Risk taking will lead to learning opportunities.  Not progressing because you don’t have all of the answers will give the impression of a lack of ability.  Creating open issues will generate the needed actions and get others involved.  Take calculated risks and be known as a “doer”.

In addition to sitting down with new employees, Mr. People Equation sometimes does a refresher meeting on these expectations – such as when an employee needs to be reminded, or at performance review time. In that sense, it’s a “living document”, meant to drive conversation about performance and whether or not expectations are being met.

These talking points are simply the start of a dialog between manager and employee – a way to open the door to a conversation that will help both parties better understand expectations –for the duration of the employment relationship. Being part of a viable organization requires accountability and action to ensure strong communications and a workplace culture primed for success.

Image credit:

Jun 20 2013 · Categorized: Communication, Team Effectiveness · Tagged: communications, employees, Expectations, Leadership, talking, team

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Master the people equation.
Elevate your leadership.

Tips for how to make the most of interactions with your boss, peers and colleagues; show up in a way that’s positive and respectful.

Topics

  • Bad Boss Diaries
  • Book Review
  • Business Management
  • Communication
  • Food for Thought Friday
  • Guest Blogger
  • Human Resources
  • Leadership
  • Learning
  • Office Politics
  • Personal Effectiveness
  • Social Media
  • Team Effectiveness
  • Training Delivery
  • Weekend Reflections
  • Workplace Issues
  • Zen of Jen

The People Equation blog by Jennifer V. Miller is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License.

Footer

Follow the People Equation

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure Statement

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Sign Up

Copyright © 2023 · People Equation