RE: Teams Leaders what are they, and do we need them? - Extension from Re: Re: Do C-Level managers, and business drivers really need to know about XP?

Charlie,

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Charlie 
> 
> Glen,
> 
> > > Generally, I use the word "leader" to refer to the person who
> > > has emerged as a natural leader of the team. This person has
> > > a role that basically serves the rest of the team in trying
> > > to accomplish its goals. I find that teams and their leaders
> > > can learn to think of it this way and that it's up to
> > > management to avoid seeing the leader as some sort of a
> > > junior boss on the team.
> > >
> > > So I do have team leaders... but they don't do things
> > > like make work assignments, evaluate people or make
> > > decisions about the direction of the project. They do
> > > present the view (or views) of the team to the manager
> > > who does need to make some sort of a decision.
> >
> > [>] Does this separate leadership from management? There is likely
to be
> > good leaders who are poor managers, as well as very good managers
who
> > are not leaders.
> 
> At this level - I was taking this thread to deal with the hands-on
> leader of a team of about half a dozen developers - I think separating
> team leadership from management is a good idea. In part, I suppose
> I've arrived at this position by watching a few good managers trying
> to lead and doing it poorly.

[>] That would be my conclusion as well. This avoids the issues of
"business management and leadership," and focused on delivery of the
project type leadership.

> Groups at this level are sometimes saddled with a full-time person
> who "manages" as well as leads. I have seen this fail more often
> than succeed, so I like to avoid it.

[>] We've got similar problems. The technically competent managers get
larger groups and then transition to a "manager" role. So far our only
approach has been to move them out of the technical role into managers
IIF they want to head that way. If not, then we usually insert a manager
over them.

This is a serious problem everywhere and I know of no real solution,
other than to make the process visible very early in the cycle of
management development.

> Obviously - to me anyway - management skills are needed somewhere
> up the line. From what I've seen, a good manager can handle five
> or six projects like this - each with their own team leader. It
> helps of course if the manager also has good leadership skills,
> but it seems to be less important when dealing with teams this
> way as opposed to directly.
> 
> > > Obviously, such a person can't really be appointed,
> > > they have to arise from the situation. But in practice,
> > > the /recognition/ of such a leader has not seemed to
> > > be that difficult: often everyone on the team would
> > > name the same person if asked - although sometimes
> > > not the actual leader.
> >
> > [>] This is the "leader" from within. We have those folks here, but
also
> > we have appointed leaders as well, doing just a good a job.
> 
> Do you try to appoint those with leadership ability, or do they
receive
> it as a side-effect of their appointment? ;-)

[>] So far we've promoted from within or hired externally. Our org is
pretty flat, with a dozen or so first line managers, half dozen
directors and 4 VP's.

Receiving management as a side effect is usually disappointing in the
end. The B-school credential is very valuable here, since the training
is already in place and all we need to be is "educate" them on our ways
of doing things. They have the deep technical skills to "guide" the
technical folks, but are focused on the management and business aspects
of our work.

> Charlie 

[>]Glen B. Alleman


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