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Q: I need to motivate a senior employee, by making him a manager or even a director. What are the pitfalls I should look out for?

Jan 20 2009

Answered by: Ashley de Safrin     Ask a question

You need to ensure that your employee has the right tools to be able to do the job. It is often the case that someone who is very good at one job is promoted to a managerial position (e.g. sales executive becomes a sales manager) but has never managed staff. It is essential they do both an induction and some leadership/people management training.

The other pitfall to watch out for is that up to now the senior employee has been at the same level as some of his colleagues. He will now have to make the break and be able to manage those colleagues himself. This is hard when you have become especially friendly with a fellow peer. At the same time, you risk alienating and creating resentment with other senior colleagues who have not been promoted, so the imperative here is to act cautiously and sensitively.

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