Managing Technicians

[Mr.Ben]

Hello fellow Edugeekers,

 

I'll be off to a new job at the end of the month, and I will be line managing 2 technicians.

 

This is a very general question: Does anyone have any tips to ensure that I get off on the right foot and ensure that communication within the team is as good as it can be.

 

Thanks in advance, Mr.Ben

[featured_spectre]

Ask them what they want and expect from you and you do the same for them. Then find out personal goals, training goals etc, and back them in their endeavour to get training or their goals.

[TomDunlop]

My advice would be to try and refrain from using email as your main method of communication. Get into the habit of talking to each other from the start and it should become normal later on.

[newpersn]

As a tech. Try not to use email to start off

 

Try and speak to them in morning for update and jobs that need doing.

 

Don't shy away from them. Try to keep them invold in related subjects of.

 

Wish my line magnger was like this

[t4ll1f3r]

Make sure they have time to play.

[jamesfed]

Friday doughnuts helps as well

[teejay]

Hobnobs always start things off in the right direction, a cattle prod is good for keeping things in the right direction.

You need to build their trust and confidence in you and build your confidence and authority as their line manager. Give em space and be supportive but make sure they are working for you.

[garethEds]

Take them all for a beer.

 

GJE

[teejay]

Take them all for a beer.

 

GJE

 

That's the Head of ICT's job, they get paid more and they really want their room treating as a high priority:p

[garethEds]

Ahh yes. I agree totally.

 

Gareth

[Rozzer]

I think its hard to say how to generically manage technicians. You may have one which needs a lot of hand holding or you may have a tech who likes to fiddle a lot. Go with your gut and make it natural. I have seen network managers become friendly with techs and it can blow up in your face so be cautious.

[pcstru]

I like teejay's summary. I might add :

 

Practice the art of listening.

Pick your battles.

Practice the art of projecting an air of exterior calm, even if you boileth over inside.

Before saying anything, try and understand the other persons point of view.

Sit back and just learn the lay of the land for at least a month. Obviously I don't mean put your feet up and chill out with a G&T, but don't jump in with big boots and instigate any changes (even if they are sorely needed and obvious). After that, if possible, try and steer your technicians into suggesting the changes you do want to make.

Organise, Prioritise and Communicate (translation : make lists, put numbers on them, pin them to the noticeboard ;-) ).

 

But ... that might all be bollox!

[Roberto]

Say what you mean and mean what you say: In other words, whatever you do, be consistent in how you do it. Remember that no matter how "friendly" you want things to be, as their manager your words will carry certain weight (so be careful what you say is understood properly) and that they will need to be sure you will take their concerns seriously. And you need to be sure they know when to take you seriously too.

[featured_spectre]

Treat day was something Ashman and I did...3 times a term. We would bring in cakes/doughnuts and soft drinks. We had a limit of £5 each per treat day...it was awesome as it brightened our day, and we generally had enough to last us a few days

[Grey-gear]

Where I work I'm the only full time tech and the school highers 3 placement students from the local University to work for a year, I tend to start off the relationship with them by talking about them (family, were they came from, uni storys) and then talk about things that we have common intrests in. Not using e-mail right away is a good call, and every so buy food for them.

[sonofsanta]

Are you all in one office? If so: put the radio on. Makes it much easier to turn round and start a random conversation when you're not breaking a silence by doing so.

 

EDIT: Now I'm back from briefing, some more in-depth bits. I only went from tech to manager a couple of years back so not long been through the learning curve as well.

Trust your technicians; give them projects and trust their answers. You might need to coax them through a project in the early stages but once people get used to the responsibility, you'd be amazed what they can achieve. Have a little belief.

Be constructive, not just critical: if someone's done something wrong, or in a way you don't like, don't get angry, just point out how you'd do it and why. A lot of the time it's just pointing out how their actions might appear to others; as a manager you have to be more aware of public perception of you and yours, and those lower down might not necessarily be aware of it.

And tying into that public perception, as @alan-d said - back your team in public. Be on their side. Make what polite excuses you have to to other staff and then have quiet (and constructive) words in private.

Edited April 27, 2012 by sonofsanta

[alan-d]

Be firm but fair

Treat each individual appropriate to their personality and ability

Publicly protect your team - if issues crop up deal with them behind closed doors wherever possible

If you make a mistake - admit it.

Don't be afraid to ask for advice either from your team or anyone else.

Don't micro-manage - Let the team do their stuff, check progress occasionally if required but don't sit on their shoulders!

 

There are many more do's and don'ts most of which are common sense and you will find them out as you gain experience, if in doubt think back to a manager you worked for in the past and think 'how would they have handled this and did it work?'

[Earthling]

All I would add to all of this is that, at the end of the day, it's not a democracy. You're going to be held responsible for the dept, so you'll be making the decisions. End of.