New HR Manager Struggling with Team Loyalty to Previous Leader – How Can I Connect?

Hi,

I have recently joined a software firm as an HR Manager and I am handling a team of 3 members. The previous HR manager had been with the organization for 3 years, along with the same team. The team is still emotionally attached to the previous manager.

I have tried to help them and approach, but I have failed. How do I proceed now?

Regards,
Seema_hr

Hi,

This is indeed an interesting problem.

First, they may be overwhelmed in their relationships with the old boss, but I hope that they have nothing against you!

You are placed in a situation of having to build NEW relationships at work.

I suggest as under:

1) In the office, lean on them to understand how the system of the new office works. Insist on "learning" from them.

2) NEVER obviously praise or criticize the old boss. Speak highly about the old boss to others and NOT your assistants who might feel that you're "using" their "hero" to get close to them and may even resent your attempt. But if they hear from others of your talking highly about the old boss, they will feel happy and justified in their devotion to him and for that reason may lower their guards vis-a-vis you.

3) Socialize on issues not connected with work. You could engage them in their hobbies, preferences, likes, and dislikes, etc.

4) Speak well of them also behind their back.

5) In face-to-face interactions, be objective but not harsh, critical but not cruel. Project your commitment to "what" rather than "who" but remain humane all the time.

In all this, you are trying to get "accepted" by them psychologically. Never lower yourself. Maintain dignity. Treat them as adults but as human beings, and sooner than you think, the ice will melt.

I know from personal experience as a long-time ago, I was in the place of one of the three that you have to deal with presently, and I recall lucidly how our new boss won us over. He respected our old boss and proved himself worthy as a good boss himself but in a new frame. Eventually, we accepted him, though, looking back, I feel our behavior was purely childish. He had understood and strategized to cure us of this childish infatuation with the old boss. He did it without criticizing him but by respecting him simultaneously establishing himself as no less in stature and worthy of our admiration.

It's a matter of time, and you will help them get over the hangover of the past. Just do it subtly. Don't rush. Delicacy and tact are the keys to your problem. But do not "cheapen" yourself in their eyes.

Report results.

Regards,

Samvedan

December 5, 2006

Hi Seema,

I also faced this problem last year. I would like to give you the same advice I was given at the time by my boss:

1. Give your team members time to transition from their ex-boss to you. It is perfectly alright for them to remember a good boss. And we all know good bosses are so very rare...

2. Stay professional throughout this transition period. Focus on the quality of your work. Build up your position by 'showing' your professionalism and quality of work to your team members.

3. Don't try to replace the ex-boss. You are you, that person is somebody else. You have your own strengths and merits which will definitely be appreciated once the results begin coming in.

A small team has a higher degree of emotional attachments. With time, I am sure you will also develop close relations with your team. Just be patient.

Regards, Devjit

Hi,

Not that I have been in an exactly similar place, but still, here are my two cents if they are of any help.

1. Be pleasant but professional.

2. Don't consciously try to get close to them as a 'friend' or 'colleague'. If you recall the best bosses you have had, they are the ones who knew their job and helped you solve problems; you got close to them automatically, and the bonding was a byproduct of a job well done. Also, note that however friendly, caring, or supportive a boss is, if he is doing a bad job of guiding his team and making decisions (however harsh they may be), he will never get any real buy-in.

3. Be friendly, try to go to lunch with your team at least 2 or 3 times a week but not every day. Make sure that you help them go home on time and you do not leave before them regularly (this is basic boss advice not necessarily for your situation only). But keep a distance. Do not get personal. Do not ask them for their family details overly much. At least for the next 3 months, DO NOT take them out for a treat. It will be uncomfortable at best!

4. Learn from them and help them create processes to simplify their life, and of course, follow the earlier advice. Hold weekly update meetings. This helps; I can't exactly explain how.

5. Most importantly, attrition is imminent in your department. Get your team to document everything that they do so you do not lose the intelligence gained over the last few years.

6. This has nothing to do with your case, but it may help you. See if you can do some job rotation in your team. If the team has been doing the same roles for the last 3 years, they are most likely looking for some excitement. But do not do this for at least the next 4 months.

Hope that helps.

A

Hi, I am trying my luck here. Hope anybody here can help me.

I am working in the Middle East as an admin executive, but recently I am getting an offer in an MNC in India with almost the same salary package but in the HR department. I have a background in Personnel Management, but for the last 6 years, I have been abroad. How should I go about this interview? How should I prepare? (Do I have to memorize any labor laws?) Feeling a bit confused.

If anybody can provide me with a proper definition/expectation of a newly appointed HR Executive, it will be more than helpful to me.

Please help me.

Regards, Spk

My email address is spk_kum@hotmail.com

Hi Seema,

This is a very common phenomenon that can be observed in corporates. Almost everybody working in the corporates goes through this period at least once.

I have been through the same situation a year ago when my boss moved out. Our team had very high regards for her. The important fact here is that we were a stable team; all of us were working together for the past 2 years.

My boss used the strategy of "Never whip a running horse"; he never tried to rock the boat. He was very patient and took a lot of time to understand the business from all of us. He never tried to make changes in the workplace to suit his style of working. He had great respect for the work culture in the team.

This eventually worked out for him. We slowly started to accept him, and at this time, he started to put his plans forward. Again, all the plans were thoroughly discussed before finalizing.

It's more than a year now, and we have the same trust in the new boss as we had in the earlier boss. A lot of changes happened in the way we approached business, but it never pinched us. We understood that this change was not to suit the working style of the new boss but to achieve new targets.

Persistence is the key, and as you said, the team is already 3 years old; therefore, processes would have been very well defined.

Therefore, no need to worry. Give them the time they want, and most importantly, respect the team culture and experience. You will also be liked as the earlier boss was.

Regards,

Srikanth Ch

Hi,

It's nice that you have shared your problem, but always remember one thing: "incomplete information does not get the best solution." Based on the information provided, I will suggest the following:

- Be professional.
- Have a one-to-one discussion with the executives. This would help you to understand them better and understand why the previous manager was the best. I think this would help you to understand the merits and the reasons for bonding.

Regards,
Veena Jain