They're the reason you have the word 'manager' and your success can only exist if theirs does. Without them you are just an enthusiastic person talking to powerpoint slides.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI)

Definition

Creating an environment where people of all backgrounds feel valued, respected, and able to contribute their best work. This includes addressing bias, ensuring equitable opportunities, and leveraging diverse perspectives for better outcomes, including cross-cultural and global team considerations.

Why It Matters

Companies with diverse leadership teams are 70% more likely to capture new markets and 45% more likely to report growth in market share. Inclusive teams make better decisions and are more innovative, while team members perform better when they feel they belong.

This Is Strong When:

  • Your team composition reflects diversity in multiple dimensions (background, experience, perspective)
  • All team members participate meaningfully in discussions and decisions
  • You actively address bias in hiring, promotion, and performance evaluation
  • Different cultural perspectives are valued and integrated into team approaches
  • Team members feel comfortable expressing their authentic selves
  • You can manage across time zones and cultural differences effectively
  • Underrepresented voices are amplified rather than overlooked

Warning Signs:

  • Your team lacks diversity or certain groups are underrepresented in leadership
  • Some team members consistently dominate discussions while others remain quiet
  • Cultural differences create misunderstandings or tension
  • Hiring and promotion decisions consistently favor similar types of people
  • Team members code-switch or hide aspects of their identity at work
  • Global team members feel disconnected or undervalued
  • You don't notice or address microaggressions or exclusionary behavior

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Learn about unconscious bias and implement bias interruption techniques
  • Read "The Culture Map" by Erin Meyer for managing across cultures
  • Actively seek diverse perspectives when making decisions
  • Create psychological safety for people to share different viewpoints
  • Examine your hiring and promotion processes for bias
  • Learn about different cultural communication styles and adapt accordingly
  • Partner with DEI experts or employee resource groups for guidance
Coaching and Mentoring

Definition

Helping team members develop their skills, advance their careers, and solve problems through asking powerful questions, providing guidance, and sharing experience rather than just giving answers.

Why It Matters

Teams with managers who coach effectively are 21% more profitable and have 40% lower turnover. Coaching develops your team's capabilities, increases engagement, and creates succession planning for key roles.

This Is Strong When:

  • You ask questions that help people discover solutions rather than telling them what to do
  • Team members come to you not just with problems but with proposed solutions
  • You can see potential in people and help them develop new capabilities
  • Your team members are getting promoted and advancing their careers
  • You share relevant experiences and lessons learned without making it about you
  • People seek you out for career advice and guidance
  • You tailor your coaching approach to each person's learning style and goals

Warning Signs:

  • You immediately jump to solutions rather than helping people think through problems
  • Team members don't seem to be growing in their roles over time
  • You're the bottleneck for decisions because you haven't developed others' judgment
  • People don't come to you for career guidance or development conversations
  • Your team members struggle with the same issues repeatedly
  • You give advice based on what worked for you without considering individual differences
  • Team members feel like they're not learning or being challenged

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Learn the GROW model: Goal, Reality, Options, Way forward
  • Practice asking "What do you think?" before giving your opinion
  • Read "The Coaching Habit" by Michael Bungay Stanier for practical techniques
  • Help team members set development goals and create learning plans
  • Share stories about your own career journey and lessons learned
  • Connect team members with mentors and opportunities outside your team
  • Ask questions like "What would success look like?" and "What obstacles do you foresee?"
One-to-Ones

Definition

Regular, structured conversations between you and each team member focused on their growth, challenges, career development, and alignment with team goals. These are private spaces for building relationships and providing personalized support.

Why It Matters

Research shows that managers who conduct effective 1:1s have teams with 3x higher engagement and 5x lower turnover. These conversations are your primary tool for understanding each person as an individual, catching issues early, and building the trust necessary for high performance.

This Is Strong When:

  • You consistently hold them (weekly or bi-weekly) and rarely cancel
  • You prepare with an agenda but let them drive the conversation
  • 70% of time focuses on their development vs. project status updates
  • You ask open-ended questions like "What's energizing you?" or "What obstacles can I remove?"
  • You follow up on commitments made in previous sessions
  • Team members come prepared and seem engaged
  • Difficult topics get addressed before they become bigger problems

Warning Signs:

  • Sessions frequently get cancelled or postponed
  • Conversations turn into status meetings about projects
  • You do most of the talking
  • Team members seem disengaged or give only surface-level responses
  • Issues that come up in 1:1s surprise you later in larger settings
  • People stop bringing up challenges or concerns
  • You feel like you don't really know your team members as individuals

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Read "The Making of a Manager" by Julie Zhuo - excellent chapter on 1:1s
  • Try the "Start, Stop, Continue" framework for structured feedback
  • Use the "Manager Tools" podcast approach: 10 minutes their agenda, 10 minutes your agenda, 10 minutes career development
  • Ask better questions: "What would make your job more enjoyable?" "What's something I could do differently as your manager?"
  • Create a simple template to track themes and commitments across sessions
  • Shadow other managers' 1:1 approaches or get coaching from your own manager
Growth and Progression

Definition

Actively supporting team members' career development by providing opportunities, stretch assignments, feedback, and advocacy for advancement both within your team and throughout the organization.

Why It Matters

Employees who see a path for growth are 2.3x more likely to be engaged and 5x more likely to stay with the company. Your investment in people's growth drives retention, performance, and creates a pipeline of future leaders.

This Is Strong When:

  • You know each team member's career goals and actively support them
  • You create stretch opportunities that challenge people to grow
  • Team members are getting promoted, both within and outside your team
  • You advocate for your people in promotion discussions and performance reviews
  • You help people develop skills beyond their current role requirements
  • You connect team members with mentors, projects, and learning opportunities
  • People feel challenged and excited about their future prospects

Warning Signs:

  • Team members don't have clear development goals or career conversations
  • People have been in the same role for years without advancement opportunities
  • Your team members don't get promoted or seem stuck in their careers
  • You're not sure what your team members want to do next in their careers
  • You don't provide challenging work that helps people grow
  • Team members leave for opportunities they could have had internally
  • You focus only on current role performance without developing future capabilities

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Have annual career planning conversations with each team member
  • Create individual development plans with specific goals and timelines
  • Read "The First 90 Days" by Michael Watkins to understand career transitions
  • Identify stretch assignments that align with people's growth goals
  • Advocate for your team members in leadership meetings and promotion discussions
  • Help people build networks and relationships across the organization
  • Connect team members with learning resources, courses, and external opportunities
Performance and Discipline

Definition

Setting clear expectations, monitoring progress, addressing performance issues promptly, and taking appropriate corrective action while maintaining respect and focusing on improvement rather than punishment.

Why It Matters

Clear performance management protects high performers, helps struggling employees improve, and ensures team standards are maintained. Avoiding performance issues hurts team morale and productivity while being unfair to everyone involved.

This Is Strong When:

  • You set clear, measurable expectations for all team members
  • Performance issues are addressed quickly before they become bigger problems
  • You document performance conversations and follow through on improvement plans
  • You can distinguish between skill gaps (need training) and will gaps (need accountability)
  • Team members understand exactly what good performance looks like
  • You support improvement efforts while maintaining accountability
  • High performers feel protected from having to carry the load of underperformers

Warning Signs:

  • You avoid having difficult performance conversations
  • Performance issues persist for months without being addressed
  • You're not sure how to measure or evaluate good performance
  • Team members complain that poor performers aren't held accountable
  • You hope performance problems will resolve themselves
  • You focus on personality rather than specific behaviors and outcomes
  • You haven't documented performance issues properly

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Learn your organization's performance management process and use it consistently
  • Practice giving specific, behavioral feedback about performance gaps
  • Read "Crucial Conversations" by Patterson for difficult conversation techniques
  • Set clear expectations and check in regularly rather than waiting for formal reviews
  • Work with HR to understand proper documentation and improvement plan processes
  • Focus on behaviors and outcomes, not personality or character
  • Provide support and resources for improvement while maintaining clear consequences
Accountability

Definition

Creating a culture where commitments are taken seriously, people follow through on promises, and there are appropriate consequences for both success and failure. This includes holding yourself accountable and modeling the behavior you expect.

Why It Matters

Teams with high accountability are 2.5x more likely to be engaged and achieve better results. Accountability builds trust, ensures reliable execution, and creates an environment where people can depend on each other.

This Is Strong When:

  • Team members consistently follow through on commitments without being reminded
  • You model accountability by keeping your own promises and admitting when you don't
  • There are clear consequences for both meeting and missing commitments
  • People take ownership of problems and work to solve them rather than making excuses
  • You have systems to track commitments and follow up appropriately
  • Team members hold each other accountable, not just you
  • Accountability feels supportive rather than punitive

Warning Signs:

  • Commitments are regularly missed without consequences
  • You're constantly following up on the same people for the same things
  • Team members make excuses rather than taking ownership of problems
  • You don't follow through on your own commitments consistently
  • People don't trust each other to deliver on promises
  • Accountability only happens during formal review periods
  • The team culture tolerates mediocrity and missed deadlines

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Implement simple tracking systems for commitments and deadlines
  • Practice the "No excuse, just facts" approach to missed commitments
  • Read "The Oz Principle" by Connors for creating accountable cultures
  • Make your own commitments visible and report on your progress
  • Create team agreements about how you'll hold each other accountable
  • Celebrate when people follow through on difficult commitments
  • Address accountability issues immediately rather than letting them slide
Unblocking

Definition

Identifying and removing obstacles that prevent your team from being productive, whether they're technical, procedural, political, or resource-related. This includes escalating issues appropriately and shielding your team from unnecessary friction.

Why It Matters

Removing blockers is one of the highest-leverage activities for managers. Teams that feel supported and unblocked are more productive, engaged, and able to focus on high-value work rather than fighting against organizational friction.

This Is Strong When:

  • You proactively identify potential obstacles before they impact the team
  • You can quickly escalate issues to the right people and get them resolved
  • Your team feels comfortable coming to you when they're stuck
  • You shield your team from unnecessary meetings, processes, and distractions
  • You have good relationships that help you navigate organizational challenges
  • You can distinguish between obstacles the team should work through vs. ones you should handle
  • Your team can focus on their core work without being bogged down by friction

Warning Signs:

  • Your team frequently complains about things that are "out of their control"
  • The same systemic issues keep causing problems without getting fixed
  • Team members spend significant time on workarounds for broken processes
  • You don't have the relationships or influence to get organizational issues resolved
  • Your team gets pulled into meetings and requests that don't add value
  • People feel stuck on issues that could be resolved with the right escalation
  • Productivity suffers due to technical, procedural, or resource constraints

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Regularly ask your team "What's slowing you down?" and "What can I remove for you?"
  • Build relationships with key stakeholders who can help resolve common blockers
  • Learn your organization's escalation paths for different types of issues
  • Create a simple system for tracking and following up on unblocking efforts
  • Practice saying "no" to requests that don't align with your team's priorities
  • Develop templates and processes for common organizational requests
  • Partner with other managers to address systemic issues together
Recruitment

Definition

Attracting, evaluating, and hiring talented people who will succeed in your team environment and contribute to organizational goals. This includes writing job descriptions, interviewing effectively, and making sound hiring decisions.

Why It Matters

Hiring is the most important decision you make as a manager. A great hire can elevate the entire team, while a poor hire can drag down performance and culture. The quality of your hiring directly impacts everything else you do as a leader.

This Is Strong When:

  • You clearly define what success looks like before starting the hiring process
  • Your job descriptions attract strong candidates and accurately represent the role
  • You use structured interviews that assess both skills and cultural fit
  • Your new hires consistently succeed and stay with the organization
  • You can identify potential in candidates, not just proven experience
  • You involve your team appropriately in the hiring process
  • Your hiring decisions support diversity and inclusion goals

Warning Signs:

  • You struggle to attract qualified candidates for open positions
  • New hires frequently don't work out or leave within the first year
  • Your interviews don't give you reliable information about candidate potential
  • You make hiring decisions based on "gut feel" rather than structured assessment
  • You hire people who are just like you rather than bringing diverse perspectives
  • The hiring process is so long or difficult that good candidates drop out
  • You don't check references or verify candidate claims thoroughly

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Learn structured interviewing techniques and use consistent evaluation criteria
  • Read "Who" by Geoff Smart for systematic approaches to hiring
  • Define clear success criteria for each role before posting job descriptions
  • Practice interviewing skills and get feedback on your approach
  • Include diverse perspectives in your hiring process
  • Check references thoroughly and ask specific questions about performance
  • Track your hiring success rate and adjust your process based on outcomes
Onboarding

Definition

Systematically introducing new team members to your organization, team, and role so they can become productive quickly while feeling welcomed and supported during their transition.

Why It Matters

Effective onboarding increases new hire retention by 82% and productivity by 70%. The first few months set the tone for someone's entire experience with your team and organization.

This Is Strong When:

  • New hires have a clear plan for their first 30, 60, and 90 days
  • You assign buddies or mentors to help new people navigate the organization
  • New team members understand team culture, norms, and ways of working
  • People feel welcomed and included from their first day
  • New hires become productive quickly without being overwhelmed
  • You check in regularly during the first few months to address questions and concerns
  • New team members would recommend your onboarding process to others

Warning Signs:

  • New hires feel lost or confused about what they should be doing
  • It takes months for new people to become productive contributors
  • New team members don't understand team culture or norms
  • You don't have a structured plan for bringing new people up to speed
  • New hires quit within the first few months due to poor onboarding experience
  • Existing team members get frustrated with having to answer the same questions repeatedly
  • New people don't form relationships with team members quickly

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Create a detailed onboarding checklist and timeline for new hires
  • Assign experienced team members as onboarding buddies
  • Read "The First 90 Days" by Michael Watkins for transition best practices
  • Schedule regular check-ins during the first few months to address questions
  • Create documentation for common questions and team processes
  • Ask new hires for feedback on the onboarding experience and iterate
  • Plan team activities to help new people build relationships
Psychological Safety & Team Wellbeing

Definition

Creating an environment where team members feel safe to take risks, make mistakes, ask questions, and express their authentic selves while also supporting their mental health, recognizing burnout, and promoting sustainable work practices.

Why It Matters

Google's Project Aristotle found psychological safety to be the #1 factor in team effectiveness. Teams with high psychological safety are 67% more likely to report significant breakthroughs and 27% less likely to experience turnover.

This Is Strong When:

  • Team members openly admit mistakes and ask for help without fear
  • People feel comfortable disagreeing with you and each other respectfully
  • Your team takes appropriate risks and tries new approaches
  • You notice signs of stress or burnout and address them proactively
  • Team members support each other through challenges
  • People can be authentic and bring their whole selves to work
  • Difficult topics get discussed openly rather than avoided

Warning Signs:

  • Team members hide mistakes or avoid asking questions
  • People agree with everything in meetings but express different opinions privately
  • Your team plays it safe and avoids taking any risks
  • You notice signs of burnout but don't address them
  • Team members don't support each other or work in silos
  • People seem to put on a "work persona" rather than being authentic
  • Conflict gets avoided rather than resolved constructively

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Model vulnerability by admitting your own mistakes and uncertainties
  • Read "The Fearless Organization" by Amy Edmondson on psychological safety
  • Respond to mistakes with curiosity ("What can we learn?") rather than blame
  • Check in regularly on workload and stress levels
  • Create team norms that encourage healthy risk-taking and learning
  • Address burnout early with workload adjustment and support
  • Practice inclusive behaviors that make everyone feel valued and heard
Cross-team Collaboration

Definition

Effectively working with other teams and departments to achieve shared goals, manage dependencies, and create value that no single team could accomplish alone.

Why It Matters

Modern organizations require seamless collaboration across functional boundaries. Your ability to work effectively with other teams directly impacts your team's success and your organization's ability to execute complex initiatives.

This Is Strong When:

  • You proactively reach out to other teams to coordinate shared work and dependencies
  • Other teams actively seek to partner with you on initiatives
  • You can navigate competing priorities and find win-win solutions
  • Your team has strong relationships with key partner teams
  • Cross-team projects run smoothly with clear communication and accountability
  • You understand other teams' goals and constraints, not just your own
  • Conflicts between teams get resolved quickly and constructively

Warning Signs:

  • Your team operates in a silo without regular contact with other teams
  • Cross-team projects consistently run into miscommunication or delays
  • Other teams see your team as difficult to work with or unresponsive
  • You don't understand how your team's work impacts other departments
  • Dependencies between teams cause regular bottlenecks or conflicts
  • You compete with other teams rather than collaborating toward shared goals
  • Communication only happens when there's a problem or crisis

Pathways to Improvement:

  • Map your key partner teams and establish regular communication cadences
  • Learn about other teams' goals, metrics, and challenges
  • Read "Getting to Yes" by Fisher & Ury for collaborative negotiation techniques
  • Create shared documents and communication channels for cross-team work
  • Participate in cross-functional initiatives and task forces
  • Practice seeing issues from other teams' perspectives before proposing solutions
  • Celebrate successful collaborations and share best practices