Managing Your Boss Series: The MYB Document

By Michael Wilkinson, CMF
Managing Director, Leadership Strategies, Inc.

Imagine…

It’s your first day to work at a new organization.  You have a new office, a new set of policies and procedures, a new culture, a new group of office workers, and a new boss.  It’s this last point that has you most concerned.  During the interview process, your new boss seemed knowledgeable and relatively personal – in a “boss” sort of way.  However, you know it takes a while to figure out how to manage a new boss – learning what she expects from you, what’s important to her, how to communicate with her, and so on.  Imagine your reaction when, within your first hour on the job, she sits down with you to review a document labeled Secrets to Managing Your Boss: Things to consider if you work for Jane Smith?

Imagine if you had such a document on the first day of work for your current boss.  Imagine if your boss had shared such a document with you.  What would it say to you?

• Would it say to you that she is demanding and inflexible and is insisting that you work with her a certain way?
• Or would it say to you that she wants you to be as effective as possible as soon as possible and so she is giving you this document to try to short-cut the learning process and bypass some easily preventable mistakes?
• Or would it say something else to you?

In our course, From Management to Leadership, we encourage leaders to create such a document.  The purpose of the document is the same as the second bullet above: to help your people be as effective as possible as soon as possible in working with you by short-cutting the learning process and giving them an opportunity to bypass some easily preventable mistakes.

The contents of a typical Managing Your Boss (MYB) document include the following sections.

I. Overview of My Objectives

II. What I Expect From You

III. How to Communicate With Me

IV. Principles to Guide Your Actions

V. Decision Making

VI. When You Make a Recommendation to Me

VII. If You Want More Responsibility

Let’s take a closer look at the first four sections from a sample document.

The first section provides your people with a broad overview of what you are trying to achieve, the barriers that are standing in you way, and the key factors you have identified for success.  By understanding these things, your team will be better able to ensure that their actions are helping achieve your objectives, as opposed to adding to your barriers.

I.Overview of My Objectives

If you work for me, it is very important that you understand my key objectives, the barriers I am facing, and what I believe my critical success factors are.

The second section broadly defines the expectations you have of each of your people, without defining specific roles.

II.What I Expect From You

• At a minimum, I expect you to do the following.
• Meet your monthly requirements (e.g., reports, units, contacts)
• Maintain a good working relationship with partnering organizations and entities
• Keep positive relationships with other members of the team – be a team player
• Stay abreast of potential opportunities for growth and share these ideas
• Make the people we work with aware of changes we are undertaking (i.e., network with others) so they may be an additional referral source

The third section provides your people with insights on how to communicate with you effectively.  The reference in the sample is based on the DISC communication style assessment used in our courses.

III. How to Communicate with Me

When you speak with me, it would be very helpful if you understand that I typically communicate in a Hi-S/Hi-C style.  Therefore, here are the things you should do and not do when communicating with me.

Through “Principles to Guide Your Actions,” you define key concepts for your people to keep in mind as they make decisions and choices. 

IV. Principles to Guide Your Actions

These are the things I would like for you to keep in mind on a day-to-day basis as you do your duties.

1. Be fair and consistent with your decisions.
2. Take initiative (e.g., eliminate problems, be willing to offer help where help is needed).
3. Maintain good relationships with other staff members and with outside organizations.
4. Have integrity; if you say you are going to do something, do it, and by the time you say you are going to do it (or notify me); I shouldn’t have to go back and check.
5. If you don’t understand something, ask for clarification; don’t assume.  I won’t get mad at you for asking questions.
6. I am open to new ideas so feel free to challenge me (e.g., “Why are we doing it that way.  Have you considered…”).  Challenging gives opportunity for improvement.  But don’t be confrontational (e.g., “That’s stupid.  That won’t work.”)  Confrontation makes people defensive. 
7. If you make a mistake, tell me, own it, correct it, and figure out how to prevent it from happening again.
8. I don’t enjoy discussing problems.  All challenges have a solution.  If you come to me with a challenge, be sure to have at least one possible solution. It shows me that you are not just complaining; but instead, you have thought it through and are taking initiative. 
9. If I ask you to do something, either do it or discuss with me what you think is a better idea.

You can learn more powerful leadership approaches through our course, From Management to Leadership.   If you would like help in having your leaders develop their own Managing Your Boss documents, contact us about our executive coaching services.

Michael Wilkinson is the Managing Director of Leadership Strategies – The Facilitation Company and author of  The Secrets of Facilitation and The Secrets to Masterful Meetings.  He is a Certified Master Facilitator and a much sought after leadership trainer and facilitator.

www.leadstrat.com/