Читать книгу Lead Upwards - Sarah E. Brown - Страница 18

While you'll enjoy camaraderie with your fellow executives, don't expect to be chummy with your team in the same way, especially if you were promoted from within the ranks. Being the team leader gives you power and a position of authority that won't allow you to act as you did before, even as a manager. That power is significant. You can't expect to be on “even footing” when you could fire, promote, or give pay rises to your people. Their livelihood is now tied to your decision‐making, and that puts you in a position of power that shifts the dynamics within your relationships.

You're also dependent on your team. No startup executive would be successful if they didn't have a high‐performing team rallied around them, but it's inherently imbalanced and skewed by authority dynamics. It's much harder for a report to get their boss fired than vice versa. If you fail, your team may stay on and you may see the door, but it wouldn't be them making that decision. Because of this power imbalance, you must act accordingly.

We must not abuse this power imbalance or put our direct reports in positions that could hurt them (for example, dating them, or engaging in behavior that's inappropriate for the hierarchy). Some startup executives have too much power over their teams and reports. Unlike at big companies, some startup leaders can get away with a lot without oversight, which is thankfully becoming less the norm thanks to movements to increase equity and inclusion and expose and enforce consequences for bad behavior. The checks and balances within the startup ecosystem have been lacking for too long. Thankfully, many startups are creating opportunities for employees to have a real voice in giving feedback on their managers and supporting a healthy, inclusive culture on teams.

Acknowledging inherent imbalances, we can still create strong, positive relationships with individuals on our teams. Even though we can't be peers while we're managing our reports, we can get to know them as individuals, help them be stewards of their own careers, give them growth opportunities, and support their contributions and productivity. We can do our best to treat everyone with the kindness and respect they deserve and ensure they have a psychologically safe and affirming work environment that honors their individual needs as well as the collective team needs.

If you're signing up for an executive role, embrace the fact that your ability to consistently perform these management responsibilities makes a true difference in people's lives. Aspire to do this well, knowing even with good intentions you can and will make plenty of mistakes along the way. We'll talk about how to deal with this later in the book in the section on team management.