4 steps to overcome your skills gap for a management role 🪜

Stepping into management is a career pivot, not just a promotion. The skills that made you a top individual contributor (technical expertise, speed, independent execution) are often not the primary skills needed to succeed as a manager.

Your first step is to recognize and bridge this skills gap. You need to shift from doing the work to enabling others to do the work.

The core shift is from being a high-performing individual contributor to a role focused on leading, guiding, and empowering a team to achieve collective goals.

Here’s how you can step up in 4 simple steps.

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The shift from individual contributor to manager requires you to trade personal achievement for team success.

Your work values must change from focusing on self-recognition (getting praise for your own tasks) to gaining satisfaction from managing the performance and celebrating the success of your team. Your job is now to deliver results through others.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

So how different is the work when thinking in the shoes of a manager? Here are several areas you'll have to consider as a manager.

Individual Contributor

• Focus: My tasks, goals, and technical output

• Skill set: Technical proficiency, specialized knowledge

• Success metric: Speed and quality of my own deliverables

Management Role

• Focus: The team's performance, development, and success

• Skill set: Emotional intelligence, communication, conflict resolution

• Success metric: Engagement, productivity, and retention of the team

Quiz: Conflict & Success

A critical production issue arises on your team. Luckily, a seasoned engineer uses their specialized knowledge to resolve the root technical cause quickly. However, a team conflict happens during the post-mortem discussion regarding the issue

As the team manager, you have to mediate and resolve the conflict swiftly.

To improve your chances of becoming a manager, try to gain practical experience and exposure. Look for opportunities within your current role to act in a managerial capacity to build up your skills.

Lead and Organize

Request the opportunity to lead a small project or initiative. Use this chance to actively practice planning, organization, setting goals, and guiding team members toward a common objective.

Coach and Guide

Volunteer to mentor and train newer employees, interns, or colleagues. This is a vital managerial function — actively build your experience in coaching, providing constructive feedback, and developing others.

Observe and Absorb

Shadow and learn from your current managers and senior leaders. Ask for their advice, observe their daily management style, and seek out formal or informal mentorship to understand leadership dynamics firsthand.

Support and Step Up

Proactively offer to assist your supervisor with managerial tasks. Take the initiative to help with things like managing a team schedule, running a portion of a team meeting, or presenting a project on their behalf. This demonstrates your commitment and readiness to take on supervisory responsibilities.

To build your management capability, research various courses available. A good course can be a valuable step toward getting your first management position.

• Focus on management training programs to build a strong foundation.

• Check your company's HR/L&D department for internal workshops or mentorships.

• Pursue external professional certifications (like CMI in the UK or AMA-CPM in the US ) or relevant higher education (MBA).

• Use online learning platforms (LinkedIn Learning or Mindtools) for core skills like conflict resolution and delegation.

Don't keep it a secret! Don't assume people know you want to manage. Explicitly share your goal with your manager during reviews and one-on-ones. Being open puts you "front of mind" for promotions and ensures they support your development path with the right opportunities.

Here is a sample script that you could use to start a conversation with your manager.

Sample Script: Expressing Management Ambition

"I've been very focused on excelling in my current role and maximizing my contributions to the team. Looking ahead, I'm eager to intentionally increase my management experience.

My long-term career goal is to transition into a managerial position here at [Company Name]. I'm motivated by the prospect of guiding and empowering a team toward collective success.

I'd like to take on immediate leadership tasks (e.g., team check-ins, mentoring, or leading a small project). What specific developmental areas or programs do you suggest for me to start to build essential management skills now?"

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

To overcome your management skills gap: