First year in office (Original book, 2nd edition)

Author: Hill
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-02-01
Features: "This is a rare book I have read, describing the anxieties and uncontrollable emotions experienced during the transition from a salesperson to a sales manager. It is indeed a must-read for newly promoted managers." — Edgar Schein, a pioneer and founder in the fields of corporate culture and organizational psychology, Professor of Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management, author of The Corporate Culture Survival Guide "Get a close look at the heartache of transitioning from a high performer to a manager, understanding the challenges, fears, successes, and failures. This book can help new managers gain more insight into their experiences." — Morgan McCall, Southern California University Leadership Institute "This book is not only highly valuable for both new and experienced managers but also provides thought-provoking material for supervisors of new managers." — Ellen Camp, Managing Director at Morgan Stanley "A sensitive and measured introduction to management. Hill humbly listens to the opinions of those surveyed, giving us a certain understanding of this difficult transition period." — Karl Weick, University of Michigan Ross School of Business
On today's bookshelves, there are many books about management and how to be a manager, but few are based on empirical research, and even fewer view this phenomenon from the perspective of new managers or consider their career development experiences. Most of them are introductory books that list the knowledge managers need to master in their work. Many approach management from a single task-based learning perspective, meaning acquiring necessary skills and building necessary relationships. The author describes the development process of new managers from targeted different angles. The new managers themselves narrate their learning experiences in their new careers, which showcase a rich understanding of this new challenge. Listening to their stories, you'll realize that the transition to management is not just about acquiring skills and building relationships. The process of learning to think, feel, and evaluate like a manager represents a profound identity transition. For many people, the shift from an excellent salesperson to a competent manager is a test, even a painful experience. In this book, Linda Hill tracks the management performance of 19 new managers in their first year on the job. Through face-to-face interviews, she highlights the complexity of this transition process and analyzes the expectations of new managers, their subordinates, and their superiors. The new managers themselves describe how they elevated their understanding of their roles and responsibilities, how they learned to build effective working relationships with their subordinates, how they leveraged organizational and personal resources, and how they handled the pressures and emotions of the transition. Crucially, they explain what it means to adopt a new identity. This engaging book explores two major themes. First, during the process of taking on new responsibilities, the transition from an individual contributor to a manager involves a profound psychological adjustment (transformation). Second, the process of becoming a manager is primarily one of learning from experience. Through experience, lessons, observation, and understanding, new managers learn how to become effective business leaders. This book offers unique insights into the challenges faced by new managers. Whether you are an HR manager, someone responsible for management development, or a new manager struggling with this difficult transition to a new identity, this is a must-read.