“Are our managers getting this training?”

Any trainer who has delivered a first level management programme will have heard this refrain – for participants, the training they are now receiving will be highlighting the shortcomings of their own leaders.

The problem with untrained managers

For the most part, untrained managers make it kind of work – the important tasks get done and profits don’t plummet. By patching the gaps in management skill with the sticking plasters of experience, higher technical know-how, use of status, or just being nice, untrained managers can get by – well, from their perspective!

The negative repercussions of “kind of ok” management tend to be a slow burn: morale may drop, results may plateau, or people may leave but these can be blamed on other factors: the competition enticing people away with higher salaries, the high expectations of the ‘new generation’, people working from home, and so on.

Employees might be going home and screaming at the cat, or crying to their partners, but the manager doesn’t see that... or just as bad, they are the ones burning the midnight oil to maintain standards because it is “easier” than dealing with conflict.

Why do managers avoid the training?

When those managers get promoted once more, suddenly, from this elevated view, they can see the problems more clearly.

The inconsistent approaches, the imperfect systems, the problems caused by new managers avoiding the difficult conversations they themselves once avoided too, and they realise: “I could have done with some training back then.” So, they arrange it for the people now having to manage those issues.

For them, they have a bunch of different problems to solve and different stakeholders screaming for attention. So, they won’t go on the training just yet - while they absolutely SHOULD do this training, from their perspective it really is more essential and beneficial that the new generation of managers get the chance first.

So, when I hear people moaning that their managers need training, I have a collection of responses from which I will pull the most useful:

1. “Wow. No training! It must have been very difficult for them”

2. “I expect they secretly know”

3. “Think of all you’ll be able to teach them!”

4. “I am glad they have at least seen how useful it will be for you”

5. “Great, I’ll include a bunch of stuff on managing upwards!!”

Then I go back to the L&D manager and we work out a plan.