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Writer's pictureSam McCleary

How To Manage Up: Our Top 6 Tips



If you want to be successful in your career, it's important to learn how to manage up. This means building a positive relationship with your boss and learning how to work together as a team. In this blog post, we will share our top 6 tips for managing up effectively!

 

What Is Managing Up?


Managing up is the process of working with and through your boss to get the resources, information, and support you need to be successful. It's about building a relationship of trust and mutual respect. Managing up is important because your boss is in a position of power and authority. They can make or break your career. A good relationship with your boss can lead to promotions, raises, and greater job satisfaction. A bad relationship can lead to demotions, pay cuts, and job loss.


However, it's important to remember that bosses can no longer simply tell you what to do and expect you to do it. That's not how the modern workplace works. In today's world, employees are expected to manage themselves and take responsibility for their own success. That means that managing up is more important than ever before. By managing up, you can take charge of your own career and work toward a more successful future. You can also enhance your career development and develop a great working relationship even with the most difficult boss.


By managing up, you aim to make your manager's job easier. You will also make your performance reviews more satisfactory, which means that you have already mastered your boss's style enough to establish a shared understanding of your manager's goals.


 

Key Benefits of Managing Up


Now that we've established what managing up is, let's explore some of the key benefits of doing so:

  • Developing a better understanding of your boss' goals and objectives: One of the main objectives of managing up is developing a better understanding of what your boss' goals and objectives are. By doing this, you'll be able to align your own work with their goals, making it more likely that you'll be able to contribute to their success. Not everyone will be faced with bad bosses. If you are, you need to determine what makes your boss tick and strive to get on the right foot with your boss.

  • Building a stronger relationship with your boss: Another key benefit of managing up is that it can help you build a stronger relationship with your boss. When you take the time to manage up, you're showing that you're invested in the success of your boss and the organization as a whole.

  • Increasing your own visibility and impact: Managing up can also help increase your own visibility and impact within the organization. When you manage up, you're more likely to be noticed by senior leadership and given opportunities to contribute in a meaningful way.

  • Gaining insights into how your boss likes to operate and communicate: Managing up also gives you insights into how your boss likes to operate and communicate. This can be invaluable information that you can use to manage your own work and interactions with your boss more effectively.

  • Learning how to best support your boss and add value to their work: Managing up can also help you learn how to best support your boss and add value to their work. By taking the time to manage up, you'll gain a better understanding of what your boss needs and wants from you in order to be successful.

These are just some of the key benefits of managing up. When you take the time to manage up, you're not only helping your boss, but you're also helping yourself and your career. So don't hesitate to start managing up today!


 

6 Ways to Successfully Manage Up


If you're looking to be successful in your career, it's important to know how to manage up. Managing up is all about building a good relationship with your boss and other people in positions of authority. Here are our top six tips for successfully managing up:


1. Be Proactive and Take Initiative


One of the most important things you can do to manage up successfully is to be proactive and take initiative. This means being proactive about your work, taking on new assignments, and offering up ideas.


It also means being proactive about your relationship with your boss. Make sure you're regularly checking in with them, asking for feedback, and keeping them updated on your work. Asking key questions and learning how to effectively manage your tasks will impress even the most difficult boss.


2. Communicate Effectively and Keep Your Boss in the Loop


Effective communication is key to managing up successfully. You need to make sure you're keeping your boss updated on your work, letting them know about any challenges you're facing, and asking for their input when needed.


It's also important to communicate effectively when giving feedback or raising concerns. Make sure you're diplomatic and respectful, and that you're able to back up your points with data or examples. A great boss will appreciate what most employees do, but if you want a better relationship with your boss, you need to do more than the bare minimum to impress the higher ups.


3. Be a Team Player


Another important aspect of managing up is being a team player. This means being willing to help out other members of your team, collaborate when needed, and generally just be someone that people enjoy working with.

It also means being an advocate for your team, and standing up for them when necessary. If you're seen as a team player, people will be more likely to trust and respect you.


4. Be Positive and Solution-Oriented


It's important to manage up with a positive attitude, even when things are tough. This means being solution-oriented and looking for ways to improve the situation, rather than complaining or dwelling on problems. If you can be positive and solution-oriented, people will be more likely to want to work with you and listen to your ideas.


5. Be Flexible and Willing to Compromise


In any relationship, it's important to be flexible and willing to compromise. This is especially true when managing up. You may need to adjust your schedule or priorities to accommodate your boss's needs, and you may not always get your way. However, if you're flexible and willing to compromise, people will be more likely to trust and respect you. They'll also be more likely to be willing to compromise with you in the future.


6. Build Relationships and Network


Finally, one of the most important things you can do to manage up successfully is to build relationships and network. Get to know your boss and other people in positions of authority, and try to build a good relationship with them.


It's also important to network with other people in your field. This can help you learn about new opportunities, get advice and feedback, and generally just expand your professional network.


 

How Does Managing up Affect the Recruitment Process?


Managing up is a term that is often used in business circles, but how can it affect the recruitment process? Managing up affects the recruitment process in a number of ways. Let us explore these ways below:


1. Managing up can help you get your dream job.


If you manage up well, it can put you in a good position to be promoted or to get a raise. This is because when your superiors see that you are managing up, they will be more likely to trust you with more responsibility. As a result, they may be more willing to give you the job that you want or to give you a raise.


2. Managing up can help you avoid getting fired.


If you manage up well, it can help you keep your job in a difficult economic climate. This is because companies often look to manage their employees more carefully when times are tough. If you can show your superiors that you are managing up well, they may be more likely to keep you on staff.


3. Managing up can help you get ahead in your career.


If you manage up well, it can give you an advantage over other employees who do not manage up as well. This is because when companies are looking to promote or to give raises, they often look favorably at employees who have demonstrated their ability to manage up. As a result, managing up can help you get ahead in your career.


4. Managing up can help you build better relationships with your superiors.


If you manage up well, it can help you build better relationships with your superiors. This is because when you manage up, you are demonstrating that you are willing to work hard and that you are willing to take on more responsibility. As a result, your superiors may be more likely to trust you and to give you more responsibility.


By maximizing the benefits of managing up, you can improve your chances of getting the job that you want, keeping your job in a difficult economic climate, and getting ahead in your career. So, if you are looking to improve your career prospects, be sure to manage up!


 

What Does Successfully Managing up Look Like?


Successfully managing up means different things to different people. In general, it includes being able to manage your own work while also taking on additional tasks or responsibilities that help further your team's or organization's goals. It can also mean proactively finding ways to improve processes or procedures, or offering suggestions on how to do things better. Below are examples of what successfully managing up looks like:

  • Anticipating your manager's needs and taking on additional tasks or responsibilities without being asked.

  • Going above and beyond your normal job duties to help further the goals of your team or organization.

  • Proactively finding ways to improve processes or procedures.

  • Offering suggestions on how to do things better.

  • Being a team player and always putting the team's or organization's goals first.


Talk to a HR consultant


Talk to one of our qualified HR consultants for more information:

 

Bottom Line


By definition, managing up means taking on more responsibility than you typically require. It's important to remember that successfully managing up doesn't mean doing your manager's job for them, or trying to take their place. It simply means being a proactive member of the team who is always looking for ways to improve the team's overall performance.


If you need some help getting started, contact HR Coach today. We can help you manage up in no time! Contact us today to get started.

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