Effective relationship management with your boss

As the Executive Officer of my not-for-profit, I am accountable to the board. This sounds great, but in reality, this means that instead of having one boss, I have 10. In order to effectively manage my time and achieve the business goals, I need to be really good at managing up and leading my bosses. This is how I do it. 

Over Communicate

One of the most impactful ways of leading up is by communicating effectively and often. Every Monday morning I send my board a weekly update. In this update, I include an update from the last week, anything that is coming up or planned for the week ahead, and any key dates or events in the near future. What this does is it lets the board know that their priorities are being actioned, what I am working on, what my workload is, and anything that I need them to deliver for me. This builds trust. They don’t have to guess and there is a paper trail of what I am working on. It helps to keep everyone accountable. 

You may need to increase or decrease the frequency of communication with your boss, but the goal is to keep them informed and aware of what’s going on. This needs to be proactive on your end. Don’t wait for your boss to ask, you need to be ahead of their thinking. It doesn’t have to be an email either, it could be a text, or phone call. If you are really clever, you could set up a live dashboard (PowerBi is great for this). 

Have Written Priorities

A classic move made by bosses everywhere is to move the goal posts. This is done because the boss’s objectives may be moving and they pass this on to you. If you don’t manage this situation, it can get frustrating. The best way to stop this is to have a written list of priorities. This list should be agreed upon by you and your boss and should be updated as you complete tasks. Trello is great for this, especially if you can give your boss read access so they can see what you have in your que at any point in time. 

Set Firm Boundaries

Finally, bringing it all together, you need to set firm boundaries. This can be difficult depending on your relationship with your boss, but having these tough conversations can save you, and your boss, a lot of heartache. I will give you a scenario. 

Your boss comes to you with a whole suite of tasks that they want you to complete as soon as possible. Instead of taking them on, in addition to your current workload, and burning yourself out, speak to your boss. 

“Hey boss, I would be happy to do these extra jobs for you, but I have a lot on my plate right now, can you help me prioritise my workload?” 

This simple sentence works wonders because it validates the boss’s ego, lets them see your workload and how much you have on your plate, and allows them to give you guidance in achieving the desired outcome. This works for you too because you can show your boss how hard you are working, in a non-confrontational way, and allows you to keep your boss accountable as you now have a paper trail of them de-prioritising tasks in your workflow. 

Actively managing up is one of the best ways to build relationships and trust with your bosses. You have a manageable workload, and your boss has clear visibility on what’s going on. In my mind this is as important as managing down. 

-ST