We recently received an e-mail from member Julius Roberts,
who touched on an important issue many LAN administrators face. Julius leads a
LAN/WAN team for a private multinational IT firm in Australia and has been
working in IT for four and a half years. He had a stellar career as a technician
before his recent promotion to team leader. Because of staffing constraints,
Julius must continue to handle many of his technical duties. However, as team
leader, he also has numerous managerial responsibilities. Julius wants to know
how to continue his successful work as a technical expert, for which he is still
measured, while assuming his managerial responsibilities and building a strong
team and an environment where people want to work.
New IT managers who are required to continue handling many of their technical responsibilities are placed in a difficult position. Most managers believe that there are not enough hours in the workday to adequately fulfill all of their responsibilities. So how can they hope to successfully manage their teams and also handle technical tasks? The answer is that they can't—at least not without compromises.
The answer to Julius' question lies in the very concept of management itself. Effective managers demonstrate the ability to embrace (or at least accept) uncertainty, properly analyze environmental conditions that have an impact on their team's ability to perform work, and mold work processes to address those conditions. Julius, like many other IT managers, must walk a tightrope between being the team leader and working alongside other team members as a technician. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you are in the position of being a "player/manager:"
- Attempt to clarify the priorities of senior management—just what are the expectations anyway?
- Analyze the characteristics of your team and the work environment to determine your own priorities.
- Develop a plan that will permit you to be both manager and technician.
- Examine your own motivations and actions to ensure that you are not compromising your own ability to manage.
Clarify senior management expectations
If you're required to continue as a technician, you need to determine what senior management considers most important. For example, if senior management is just looking for a contact person when things go wrong with the LAN, your technical role within the team will probably take precedence over the managerial role. However, if senior management is looking for you to build a strong work team, maintain strong customer service, and anticipate future LAN needs, the managerial role will be more dominant.
Determine your own priorities
Effective managers are rarely passive in the way they manage. Although it is critical to determine the expectations of senior management, you also need to develop your own strategy for making the team successful. For example, if the competency level of work team members is high, you can probably spend less time on front-line technical requirements and more on managing the team. However, if some or all team members lack the basic skills to work independently, you will most likely need to focus more on technical responsibilities, at least initially.
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