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Taking on a new team is as much a leadership challenge as a management one. This guide gives new managers — whether they are brand new to management or experienced managers joining a new organization — a structured approach to the first 60 days.
Covers: the listening tour, early 1:1 conversations, understanding team dynamics, identifying what is working and what is not, setting clear expectations, and building a management rhythm. Part of the Complete Manager's Guide.
FAQS
Q Who is this guide for — a brand-new manager or someone new to a specific team?
Primarily the latter. The New Manager Guide is focused on taking on a new team — whether you are a first-time manager or an experienced leader joining a new organization or inheriting an existing group. The First-Time Manager Playbook addresses the IC-to-manager identity transition; this guide addresses the new-team-to-established-manager challenge, which has different dynamics.
Q What is the listening tour and why does the guide recommend it?
The listening tour is a structured set of 1:1 conversations with every direct report in the first two to three weeks, focused entirely on understanding each person's perspective before forming any views or making any decisions. The guide provides a specific question framework for these conversations. Its purpose is to build trust, gather information, and demonstrate that the new manager values the team's perspective rather than arriving with a fixed agenda.
Q What should a new manager prioritise in the first 60 days?
Three priorities: understand (listen and learn before deciding), establish (set up the working rhythms that will govern the team — 1:1s, team meetings, communication norms), and engage (have honest conversations with each person about what they need from a manager). Most new managers make the mistake of moving to action before they understand the team well enough to act wisely.
Q Does this overlap with the Complete Manager's Guide?
Yes — the New Manager Guide is included in the Complete Manager's Guide. If you are buying the Complete Guide, you already have this content as one of its eleven parts.
Taking on a new team is as much a leadership challenge as a management one. This guide gives new managers — whether they are brand new to management or experienced managers joining a new organization — a structured approach to the first 60 days.
Covers: the listening tour, early 1:1 conversations, understanding team dynamics, identifying what is working and what is not, setting clear expectations, and building a management rhythm. Part of the Complete Manager's Guide.
FAQS
Q Who is this guide for — a brand-new manager or someone new to a specific team?
Primarily the latter. The New Manager Guide is focused on taking on a new team — whether you are a first-time manager or an experienced leader joining a new organization or inheriting an existing group. The First-Time Manager Playbook addresses the IC-to-manager identity transition; this guide addresses the new-team-to-established-manager challenge, which has different dynamics.
Q What is the listening tour and why does the guide recommend it?
The listening tour is a structured set of 1:1 conversations with every direct report in the first two to three weeks, focused entirely on understanding each person's perspective before forming any views or making any decisions. The guide provides a specific question framework for these conversations. Its purpose is to build trust, gather information, and demonstrate that the new manager values the team's perspective rather than arriving with a fixed agenda.
Q What should a new manager prioritise in the first 60 days?
Three priorities: understand (listen and learn before deciding), establish (set up the working rhythms that will govern the team — 1:1s, team meetings, communication norms), and engage (have honest conversations with each person about what they need from a manager). Most new managers make the mistake of moving to action before they understand the team well enough to act wisely.
Q Does this overlap with the Complete Manager's Guide?
Yes — the New Manager Guide is included in the Complete Manager's Guide. If you are buying the Complete Guide, you already have this content as one of its eleven parts.
