Setting Managers Up to Fail – Why Training Before Appointment is so Important When Promoting Managers to New Positions Within Organisations

The typical route that most organisations follow when they appoint someone to a new management position is usually something like this:

First step
Select someone who appears to have what it takes for the management position you need to fill. They seem to have the right mix of skills and capability and they have impressed you in some way with things they have done or said.

Second step
Appoint them to the role and get them started in the job.

Third step
Leave them to it! Just walk away and let them get on with it.

Fourth step
Come back again and take a look at how they are doing when you begin to get wind of things not going too well. The grapevine is humming a little, people are whispering in corners or maybe there has been a hue and cry amongst the people who report to this poor manager!

Fifth step
Send them on a management development programme!

Sounds familiar? Many of us have either been in this position or know someone who has. It happens all the time and the damage it causes is far reaching and sometimes beyond repair.

Here’s why organisations should choose a better route than this:

 it severely lowers the confidence and self esteem of the manager who has been placed in this position
 their credibility is tarnished as they expose themselves as appearing to be incompetent or insensitive
 it has a detrimental effect on the people who report to this manager as they become the victims of the management blunders that are being made
 productivity may fall and performance may suffer
 clients or customers may be affected and complaints or lost sales may follow
 the reputation of the business may be badly damaged if serious issue arise


What can organisations do differently to prevent these problems arising? Is there another route that could benefit everyone concerned? We believe there is a better way and this is the route that we recommend:

Step 1
Before the designated employee is appointed to the management position, carry out a thorough assessment of their knowledge, skills and behavioural traits. Assess what they are capable of against clear criteria for the job that you have in mind for them to do.

Step 2
Next, conduct a detailed training needs analysis, based on the outcome of the assessment. Identify the gaps in their knowledge and skills and the areas in which their behaviour needs to change.

Step 3
Select an appropriate and trusted training provider who can deliver a reliable management training and development service. Explore with your chosen provider the best solution to the learning needs of your manager and develop a customised programme that matches and meets their individual needs.

Step 4
Following training, appoint the person to the management role and arrange for a series of coaching sessions so that your manager can apply what they have learned and really transfer new knowledge and skills to the job, with great results. Gather feedback from the people who report to the manager as well as feedback from the manager themselves.

Step 5
Agree a personal learning and development plan that the new manager can follow in the coming months and meet with him or her regularly to review progress, monitor results and give constructive feedback.

The only thing left to do is to congratulate yourself on selecting the best route for everyone concerned and for removing the risk of damage to your staff, your managers, your clients or customers and your business!