Credit at work.(steps to improve credit management)(Column)

Dear Andy,

I've recently been promoted to a management position within my credit department. This will be my first experience managing a group of individuals, which makes me a bit nervous. What advice do you have for this transition?

First of all, you should congratulate yourself. You've no doubt been promoted to a management role because you've demonstrated a capacity for leadership. The combination of your accomplishments and potential has led others at your company to believe you can motivate others to produce high quality work.

But as skilled as you may be at analyzing financial statements or conducting credit risk assessments, it will take a new set of abilities to effectively manage other employees. By studying and adopting a few basic techniques you can avoid becoming overwhelmed by your new role, especially when unexpected management challenges arise. Here are some ideas to consider:

* Set the Stage. Your first priorities should be to learn about the issues facing your department and determine a strategy for addressing them. Schedule private conversations with each person you will be managing and ask about their challenges and obstacles. Once this feedback has been gathered, meet with your supervisor to discuss a strategy for moving forward, expectations for your role and how success will be measured.

* Encourage Open Communication. Excellent communication skills are not only helpful for a new manager, they're indispensable. Your ability to inspire employees to interact as a cohesive team is largely dependent upon your facility for expressing yourself clearly and persuasively. What does each of your staff members want from their job? Does one person prefer a high degree of autonomy while another performs better with closer supervision? Speaking individually with each of your staff members about these areas will enable you to make subtle adjustments to your style, which ...