We’re getting closer to the end of the year and with that comes a lot of goal-setting and new year’s resolutions. We hope you continue getting value from this newsletter, the Supermanagers podcasts, Fellow’s Youtube channel, and many other resources as you continue your leadership journey in 2022! 🚀
Now, back to the usual programming. In today’s newsletter, we’re covering…
- How to welcome new employees in 2022 (the right way!)
- Setting new year’s resolutions for your team
- Free template: one-on-one meetings with your manager
- and more…
Let’s get into it!
👋 How to Welcome a New Employee the Right Way (& 21 Example Welcome Messages) (8 min read), Fellow Blog
TLDR: First impressions are everything and you want to make sure that your onboarding process makes your new teammates feel comfortable, right from the get-go. Here are 3 (out of 5) best practices you can apply next time a new person joins your team to help them feel valued and motivated!
- Remind them why they got hired: In a recent episode of Supermanagers, Renée Solorzano (Director of Product Design at Faire) shares why a welcome email is a fantastic way to make your new employee feel welcome:
“… we send every new hire the day that they join a welcome email, that retells the story of why we hired them. And I think it’s just such a special moment, in terms of, you know, feeling like, ‘oh, I’m recognized already’. And this is why I’m ready to join. And this is what I’m going to bring to this community, which I found inspiring.” - Encourage coffee chats: Encourage your existing team members to invite your new hire for a coffee chat to make them feel welcome and comfortable. You could make this a part of the onboarding checklist.
- Stay patient and available: There’s going to be a learning curve for any new employee. Be sure to assure your new employee that it’s normal to have tons of questions and that you are there to guide and support them. It’s a good idea to let them know the best way to ask their questions (i.e., via Slack, email, phone call, come to your desk, etc.).
💥 Delegation 202: Finding the Right People and Setting Them Up for Success (9 min read), LeadDev
TLDR: When delegating a project, initiative, or process, the first step is to figure out WHAT can be delegated. The second step is to figure out WHO will be responsible for that task. Neha Batra (Sr. Director of Engineering) recommends asking yourself the following questions to get a good idea of who to consider:
- “Who seems to be bored and looking for a bigger challenge?
- Who has gotten feedback on their last performance review that they need to increase their impact before they can get promoted?
- Who is new enough to not know where to spend their energy but has the time to take something on?”
Then, when it’s time to delegate the task, make sure to go through the following 3 steps:
- Clarify the context: What’s the background on how this came about?
- Point out the relevant people and processes: Who has the expertise? Who can you go to for guidance? Who should be informed of the decisions made?
- Boost their confidence: Don’t forget to tell them you trust them and share why you think they’ll be successful.
🎯 Expert Advice to Set and Support Your Team’s 2022 New Year’s Resolutions (5 min read), Fellow Blog
TLDR: New Year’s resolutions give your team an important mission to work towards. These goals can vary from quantitative goals like increasing your monthly revenue by a X amount to more qualitative goals like fostering a better work environment. Check out these 3 (out of 6 new year’s resolutions) that our expert panelists shared to set you and your team up for a year of accomplishments:
1. Create a psychologically safe team
A psychologically safe environment is one where everyone feels safe to share their ideas. According to Alexandra Sunderland, Engineering Manager at Fellow, the way that she fosters a psychologically safe environment with her team is through:
- Being upfront about your own mistakes
- Running blameless retrospectives
- Being open about the feedback that you’ve been given
- Giving people space to talk
2. Learn to say no (and when to ask for help)
It’s often natural to automatically say yes when asked to take on more tasks. You want to be helpful and be viewed as hardworking. However, understanding when to say no or “I need help” is just as important to ensure that your mental health and quality of work don’t suffer.
3. Master difficult conversations
Difficult conversations are often inevitable. Nevertheless, they’re important for team development. When faced with a difficult situation: Prepare in advance, let silence do the heavy lifting, and deliver the message with conviction and compassion.
📚 My Favourite Books for New Managers (7 min read), Kim Moir
TLDR: One of the questions that Kim Moir (Engineering Manager at Mozilla and member of Fellow’s Supermanagers community) often gets from people considering engineering management is – “what books should I read to learn more?”. Check out Kim’s top book recommendations for new managers and leaders and add them to your 2022 reading list!
1. The fundamentals
- The Manager’s Path by Camille Fournier (listen to our Supermanagers interview with Camille)
- Resilient Management by Lara Hogan (listen to our Supermanagers interview with Lara)
2. Feedback, culture, and feelings
- Thanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving feedback well by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen
- The Culture Map by Erin Meyer
- No Hard Feelings: The Secret Power of Embracing Emotions at Work by Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy
📅 [Free Template] One-on-One Meetings with Manager
Here’s another new year’s resolution to add to your list: To always show up to one-on-one meetings with your boss feeling prepared and confident by following this agenda template!
🎙 New on the Supermanagers podcast
We interview leaders from all walks of life to tease out the habits, thought patterns, and experiences that help them be extraordinary at the fine craft of management.
- Hire for Curiosity Over Experience: How Willingness and New Perspectives Lead to Transformational Results with Hamish Thomson (author of It’s Not Always Right to be Right)
- Do You Need a Decision-Making Framework? How to Empower Your Team to Take Ownership through Intrinsic Motivation with Kevan Lee (VP of Marketing at Oyster)
… and that’s a wrap! We hope that the content we curated inspires you to continue growing as a leader!
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Thanks for being part of our community,
Manuela & the Fellow.app team