Do you have an over dependent team?
I saw a post in a manager’s Facebook group this morning where an office manager posted that she was currently off with a short-term illness and bedridden. Her issue is that her team members are constantly on the phone to ask her questions which is making her worse.
The answer to this issue is very simple (the actions takes training, discipline and time) but so many other managers, of all experiences, are suffering with the same issue…
…An Over-Dependent Team.
My advice to all managers, team leaders and supervisors is to work themselves out of a job!
In my experience it will never happen (working yourself out of a job) and you will always have a job but just imagine what your team will look like if your management and leadership team teach the person directly below them (in the chain of command) their role.
That manager will be able to:
👍 Have a day off
👍 Go on holiday with peace of mind
👍 Concentrate on their main roles (to hit targets and keep people)
👍 And to rest easy if they become ill
“…but Adrian, that’ll never happen in my team/business/organisation”!
Yes, it will!
I’ve helped 1000’s of managers develop their own team and remove overdependency
In fact, I’ve just made it easier by launching an online leadership and management training academy which comes with weekly support and an accountability group.
The academy will help you or your managers develop confidence, allow their team to make their own decisions, use delegation as a development tool and stop over-dependency (and much more).
The academy is for team members who have been promoted without much training and/or team members you need to train as part of their development before they get the promotion
You'll find more information in the video (on the right) of what to expect when you or your team member enters the training academy.
It's an amazing platform that you, or your team member/s have access to for 12 months and they work through one module per month (about 4 hours per week).
It's ideal if you only have one or two team members and can't find an open program for them to join or your trained team need a little support from an external tutor
This very action focused academy is designed to make a difference instantly and Adrian Close (the tutor) and your learner's line manager are there to hold them accountable for achieving the learning objectives
There is also an accountability group to ensure that all training goals are achieved - like I said there is nothing else like it!
£99 per month for 12 months or a one-off payment of £997
Both the above are per person for 12 months access to the academy, the support group and the accountability group. If it's easier we can invoice you and set up your learner/s for you
So how do you prevent an over dependent team.
Everyone in the management and leadership team, at every level, needs to:
More on the above and more in the online leadership and management training academy which comes with weekly support form Adrian Close, a multi-award-winning business manager and leadership training specialist.
I remember once I was sitting in the office of a client who was also a friend of mine. She was having issues managing her time so she asked me to shadow her for a couple of days in and around her business.
On the first day we were in her office. She was doing her work and I was doing some of my own in the corner. There was a knock at the door (the door was open as my friends had that sort of [policy).
The team member said "Hi, I have an issue with next Wednesday because off... (whatever problem they had).
My friend said, "No problem, leave it with me and I'll get it sorted".
Now my friend is the director of a multi-million-pound business with team leaders and supervisors, but they came to my friend because they knew the answer. "OK, leave it with me"?!
A little later in the afternoon the same team member came back to my friend's office and said, "Hi, have you sorted my problem out yet"?
Who is managing who?
If my friend had said in the first encounter. "Oh, I see. make sure you get the appropriate team member to cover and let me know when you have done. How's your day going...?"
Or if she had implemented a more effective chain of command then the team member would have gone to their team leader with a solution rather than bringing a problem for someone else to solve.
A lot of the time people struggle to manage their own time because others around them are poor at managing theirs!
NB: The issue I have with an open-door policy is that your team can come and disturb you whenever it suits them?! My advice is to have at least one (2 would be better) 90-minute sessions that are yours and no-one else's. I recommend the first 90 minutes of the day dedicated to the tasks that HAVE to be done now (your category A tasks that I talk about in the time management sessions). Then allow people to come and see you (after a cuppa of course)
Please contact us to discuss any training requirements you have, we either deliver for you or sell you the course for your trainers to deliver to your team
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An over dependent team. How to prevent team members constantly asking their managers and team leaders for the answers to questions that they can work out for themselves
Preventing an Over Dependaent Team