how do you manage someone who knows more than you

^{How to Manage People Who Know More Than You}

• Be Honest. If one of your direct reports asks you something that you don’t know the answer to, be honest. ...
• Learn From Them. Instead of fearing your employees’ knowledge (and what they’ll think of your lack of knowledge), take advantage of it!
• Ask For Their Feedback. Employees who have been with a company for more than 10 years have inevitably seen processes change time and again.
• Give Them Your Respect. Finally, remember to pay attention to your own frame of mind. ...

Full Answer

How do you manage people who are older than you?

That’s the most important. You don’t really “manage” other people, you manage their talent, expertise and any knowledge that is indeed more than what you do know. One of the most important jobs a manager does is hire someone that in fact, does know more than the manager knows, about a particular field.

What do you do when you feel inadequate as a manager?

 · You'll hire a data scientist. We often hire to fill gaps in skills on our teams. This means we'll often hire a person who will be the expert in the room. There are two major ways of providing feedback in areas we're not familiar with. Proxy feedback - Utilizing the expertise of others to gather feedback.

How do you manage your team effectively?

 · If you’re managing people with more experience than you, prepare to meet this challenge by checking your ego, embracing learning opportunities, and leading confidently. 1. Check your ego. When it comes to the relationship with your more experienced employees, you’ll be able to keep your ego in check by owning your strengths — like the ability to lead — while …

How do you manage your employees effectively?

 · He recommends saying something like, “I know you have more experience and expertise than I do, and I understand you have concerns about that.” Don’t go in “trying to protect your ego.” Instead,...

How do you deal with someone who knows more than you?

How to Manage People Who Know More Than YouBe Honest. If one of your direct reports asks you something that you don't know the answer to, be honest. ... Learn From Them. ... Ask For Their Feedback. ... Give Them Your Respect.

How do you handle an employee who thinks they know more than you?

5 Steps to Better Manage Employees Who Think They Know EverythingStep 1: Reframe the Situation. ... Step 2: Setting Quantifiable Boundaries. ... Step 3: Providing Consistent Check Ins. ... Step 4: Walking Them Through Their Progress. ... Step 5: Don't Take An Excuse For An Answer.

How do you manage someone better than you?

How to Lead People Who Are Smarter Than YouDon't be intimidated. ... Confront your fears. ... Don't micromanage. ... Get educated. ... Stay vulnerable. ... Seek good counsel. ... Add value.More items...

How do you deal with people who are smarter than you?

Don'tIgnore feelings of insecurity; confront your negative emotions and seek advice on how to deal with them.Feel threatened by your direct report's specialized knowledge; instead seek opportunities to learn from him.Be arrogant; if you come across as overconfident, your team won't trust you.

How do you handle employees who overstep their boundaries?

Make Them Feel Involved Leaders who feel overstepped should actively involve those employees in the decision making process. They can do this by reframing the conversation and asking questions to make them feel like their opinion matters as well as further explaining the why behind the final decision.

How do you deal with an employee who thinks they know everything?

8 Tips For Dealing With A Know-It-All CoworkerDo you have a coworker who thinks he knows everything? ... Be empathetic. ... Pick your battles. ... Lead by example. ... Be armed with your own facts. ... Keep your sense of humor. ... Ask probing questions. ... Take the person aside and offer constructive feedback on their behavior.More items...•

How can you tell if someone is smarter than you?

Here are the signs of smart people:They don't talk as much as you do, because they know they got smart by listening.They know lots of things other than what they're specialised in. ... They juggle home, work and personal interests with dexterity and never fall back on the tired old refrain about “work life balance”.More items...

Should you hire someone smarter than you?

Success-focused employees will always choose candidates who complement their skills and abilities. Hiring people who are smarter than you means that the work can be confidently delegated over time. Then focus on the important stuff — growing your business and hiring more A players.

How do you manage a smart employee?

3 Things Smart Bosses Do to Effectively Manage Smart PeopleCreate a learning environment. ... Recognize those who make significant contributions. ... Let knowledge workers know what's going on.

What are characteristics of an intelligent person?

7 common traits of highly intelligent peopleThey're highly adaptable. ... They understand how much they don't know. ... They have insatiable curiosity. ... They ask good questions. ... They're sensitive to other people's experiences. ... They're open-minded. ... They're skeptical.

How do I stop being Oversmart?

Originally Answered: How can I avoid being oversmart? Ask within yourself that question. Keep your life simple, do not be over-confident about anything. Also remain connected to the ground, don't fly in your limitless imaginations.

How do you spot a genius employee?

These are the skills that set exceptional employees apart.They're willing to delay gratification. ... They can tolerate conflict. ... They focus. ... They're judiciously courageous. ... They're in control of their egos. ... They're never satisfied. ... They recognize when things are broken and fix them. ... They're accountable.More items...•

How to manage people with more experience?

If you’re managing people with more experience than you, prepare to meet this challenge by checking your ego, embracing learning opportunities, and leading confidently. 1. Check your ego. When it comes to the relationship with your more experienced employees, you’ll be able to keep your ego in check by owning your strengths — like ...

How to keep ego in check?

When it comes to the relationship with your more experienced employees, you’ll be able to keep your ego in check by owning your strengths — like the ability to lead — while accepting that you won’t have the most functional expertise on the team.

Why is it important to do internal work?

Doing internal work helps us succeed externally. If you’re managing people with more experience than you, prepare to meet this challenge by checking your ego, embracing learning opportunities, and leading confidently .

Is it dangerous to ignore self doubt?

Hill agrees, adding that it can be dangerous to ignore self-doubt. For one thing, “if you feel threatened, other people will pick up on those signals.”. For another, “if you don’t feel comfortable coaching someone who has more experience than you, you might end up neglecting that person.”. Seek counsel.

How to deal with a direct report?

Ignore feelings of insecurity; confront your negative emotions and seek advice on how to deal with them. Feel threatened by your direct report’s specialized knowledge; instead seek opportunities to learn from him. Be arrogant; if you come across as overconfident, your team won’t trust you.

How do you know where trouble lurks?

How to know where to intervene: How do you know where trouble lurks? One useful tactic is to sit in on a meeting between a direct report and his subordinates. If the conversation is two-way, that’s a good sign. If the manager does all the talking and the subordinates are passive, that’s a bad sign and you need to dig more deeply. Notice that you don’t need any expertise on the subject they are discussing; you just need to decide if the conversation is healthy.

How to be an executive presence?

Notice how they connect to the audience through sincere emotion. Notice the behaviors, practice them, and get feedback —that’s the path to executive presence.

What does a specialist manager know?

A specialist manager knows what to do; the generalist manager knows who to call. The specialist leader tells her staff the answer, the generalist brings them together to collectively find the answer.

Can a generalist do the work directly?

As a generalist you cannot do the work directly, but you can enable things to happen. A big part of enabling things to happen when you are not the expert involves knowing when to leave things alone and when to intervene.

Why do you get feedback from your network?

Another tactic is to get feedback from your network—a network which exists because in the generalist style you focus on relationships. If your network says one of your teams isn’t delivering, but the team leader insists everything is on track, then you know there is a problem.

What does it mean to be a compassionate manager?

Being a compassionate manager means showing kindness, treating others with respect and demonstrating a willingness to help everyone on your team. But it doesn’t mean employees can take advantage of you, simply because of your young age.

What does it mean to be a good leader?

A good leader is part of the team and willingly participates; a bad boss expects the team to work for them.

How to build trust in a team?

Most people appreciate honesty about strengths and weaknesses, so be willing to share yours with the team and encourage others to do the same. Being truthful with your team will also help to build trust. Share your vision, but ask for the input and feedback from others.

Do HR specialists help new managers?

Don’t feel like you have to go it alone. Most HR specialists are excellent at helping new managers create career development plans, connecting them with experienced mentors and helping them obtain training to learn all the necessary skills for managing others.