New Managers and Fostering a Supportive Work Culture

Name: New Managers and Fostering a Supportive Work Culture
Author: Khin Hnin Soe

Learn to foster a supportive work culture.

Preview the first lesson free — get full access to all 6 lessons.

Course: On-Demand

As a new manager, how can you foster a supportive work culture that encourages everyone to do their best? In these lessons, you'll learn about how to establish your work culture and manage performance. We'll also address how to adopt a long-term vision for your team and employ practices that motivate teammates. You'll also learn how to establish a coaching framework and promote continuous professional development. As a manager, you're recommended to create a work environment where the norms and values are meaningful for you and your teammates. Your team's culture is like your team's personality. It defines how you and your teammates normally get things done and what you all value. You can assess your current team's culture by asking yourself, what are three ways I can describe my team? How does my team behave among each other or with me? When we face challenges and mistakes, how do we behave? And if someone asks me about the experience of working on this team, what would I say? Then you can ask those questions to each of your teammates. After that, consider your aspirations on how you want your team to be. You can reframe the prior questions like so. What are three ways I want to describe my team? What are three ways I want others to describe my team? How do I want my team to behave among each other or with me? And when we face challenges and mistakes, how do I want us to behave? You could also suggest to your teammates that they ask themselves the same questions. After you have you and your team's answer, you can compare them and find common points. You can facilitate the discussion to include some positive culture, like how to respect each other when there are disagreements, how to support each other, especially during difficult times, and not to blame each other when things go wrong. You and your teammates can then create the list of norms and values leading to the dream culture. Try to be realistic and work out the top 10 things to do to achieve the dream culture. This exercise will bring you and your teammates closer, because all of you get to be involved in the whole process of creating the kind of culture you all want. It's also setting an inclusive, contributive culture where people are appreciating and building on each other's ideas. As their manager, you can also build a culture of giving feedback and use it to manage your teammates' performance. Let's imagine you have a one-on-one session with your teammate to prepare for the coming quarter. You can list all the projects for the month and set clear expectations of what you expect your teammate to deliver in those projects. During the quarter, meet at regular intervals to give task-specific feedback. Those can be as frequent as required. It's best to give task-specific feedback soon after your teammate completes the task when it's still fresh in their mind. For example, you might say something like, the data you included in the monthly report is comprehensive. I like that you put the summary of key findings at the top of the page. It makes them easy to find. It's best to observe your teammates' behavior and give feedback on that using specific examples of incidents. For example, you can say, I noticed that you sound defensive when people question your work. The other day, when Zuri asked about the way you filled in the budget, you cut her off by saying, just trust me. Instead, you could have asked her to elaborate regarding her concern so you could come to an understanding. It's easier to praise or acknowledge good work than pointing out areas that need improvement. When that happens, you can also ask, how can I help to support you to make those improvements? That'll help ease the situation and make your teammates feel like you aren't blaming them, but showing your support for them. To build the desired work culture for your team, you can. Keep highlighting the key points and assessing the status of your team's culture. Walk the talk. Be the role model in your daily work in accordance with the culture you want to create in your team. And acknowledge, appreciate, support and reward those who try to achieve or contribute to the team culture.

Intermediate Provider : Khin Hnin Soe 6 Lessons · 18m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Urdu, Chinese

Course Description

As a manager, you’re only as good as the team and team members you manage. So how can you encourage everyone on your team to do their best? The key lies in cultivating a workplace culture that supports your team and allows them to work at their peak performance. While there’s no absolute method for creating that type of culture, there are certain avenues you can follow that will put you and your team on the most effective, efficient path.

These lessons on New Managers and Fostering a Supportive Work Culture will explain how to create the optimal work culture. You’ll learn to critically assess your current culture and to work toward the “dream” culture. Then, you’ll see how to set a jointly created long-term vision for establishing that culture. Finally, you’ll discover some practices for motivating teammates, and how you can establish a coaching framework that will improve your team.

What You'll Learn

Build your team's culture by critically assessing your current culture and working toward your "dream" culture
Use regular feedback to manage performance and motivate teammates
Adopt a jointly created long-term vision for establishing your desired culture
Apply practices that motivate teammates as their new manager
Set up a coaching framework to improve your team
Promote continuous professional development for the team

Key Takeaways

A manager is only as good as the team and team members they manage, so cultivating a supportive workplace culture is central to helping the team perform at its peak.
There is no absolute method for creating a supportive culture, but certain avenues put a manager and team on the most effective, efficient path.
Creating an optimal culture involves critically assessing the current culture and working toward a "dream" culture through a jointly created long-term vision.
Regular feedback is used to manage performance and motivate teammates.
Establishing a coaching framework and promoting continuous professional development help improve the team.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is this course for?

This course is designed for new managers who want to foster a supportive work culture that helps their team perform at its peak.

What does this course cover?

It explains how to create an optimal work culture, including assessing your current culture, setting a jointly created long-term vision, motivating teammates, establishing a coaching framework, and promoting continuous professional development.

What skills will I gain from this course?

The course develops skills in coaching, team motivation, adoptions, and career development.

What lessons are included?

The lessons are Work Culture and Performance Management; Adopting a Long-Term Vision; Employing Practices that Motivate Teammates; Establishing a Coaching Framework; Promoting Continuous Professional Development; and a Test Your Knowledge assessment.

How does the course approach building a supportive culture?

It notes there is no absolute method for creating that type of culture, but presents certain avenues you can follow to put you and your team on the most effective, efficient path.