Looking At the Ultimate New Manager Competencies to Have

There’s no golden ticket to becoming a successful leader, but there ARE six competencies that a new leader needs to have within their first 100 days on the job to set themselves up for long term success.

Leaders should have product, business, and industry acumen as well as company culture insight. Being effective requires a deep understanding of their organization, of the goals needed to be achieved, and of the environment in which they’re leading. They need to see how all the puzzle pieces of the full picture fit together in order to Lead in Context.

A newly hired or newly promoted manager will need to consider their team’s background through assessments; lead engaging team meetings; align on a vision; collaborate on setting measurable goals; and provide feedback (sometimes fun with recognizing achievements and sometimes not so fun with tough conversations). Before they can produce a high performing team, they’ll need to Activate Their Team.

Understanding the what, the who, and the how things get done on one’s team and in the organization allows new managers to analyze, synthesize, and optimize changes and improvements.  But to move themselves, their team, and the organization in the right direction, they’ll need to Uncover any Pain Points and Unlock Opportunities.

New managers will be introduced to direct reports, peers, cross-functional teams, mentors, internal, and external stakeholders. Without understanding who’s who, it’s easy to get lost in the lay of the land. They’ll need to identify, engage, and Nurture key relationships. 

Charting a course is imperative for new leaders. This proactive path provides clarity, focus, and measurable goals for their new role and to effectively contribute to the organization's success. They can’t think about long term success without the navigable steps needed to Cement a 100-Day Plan.

Here is where the planning work doesn’t stop. Sure, the first 100 days are critical. And these 6 competencies are critical to work on in the first 100 days. But these competencies are about setting up long term success.  By building upon their quick wins, following the organization's top priorities, and extrapolating from their 100-day plan, a new manager needs to Hone their long term management strategy.

How do new managers build these competencies to become successful leaders? Don’t worry, you’re golden with FromJump’s L.A.U.N.C.H. philosophy.