This may be your chosen career path, or you may have reluctantly agreed to give it a try. As you contemplate your new mission, consider the following list of action items. You can't tackle every promising idea at once, but the recommendations described here will help you focus on actions that will improve both your own effectiveness and that of your team. Perhaps the most significant step you can take initially is to consciously set your priorities as a manager.
Effective leaders know their top priority is to provide services to the members of the team.
These services include coaching and mentoring, resolving problems and conflicts, providing resources, setting project goals and priorities, and providing technical guidance when appropriate. Make it clear to your team members that you are always available to help them. I find it valuable to think of myself as working for the people I supervise, not the reverse. Your second priority is to satisfy your organization's customers. As a manager, you have little direct ability to satisfy customers, since you no longer personally provide the products and services that accomplish this.