Navigating Authority: First-Time Management Challenges

Getting taken seriously as a new manager is challenging for anyone. You can go from being friends with your peers to suddenly being their boss. It’s easy to make missteps, like playing the part too much—acting the way you think a manager is supposed to act. On the other hand, you may feel you have nothing to offer your direct reports, some of whom may have more experience than you. You may even fall back too much on what you already know well. These are common challenges in anyone’s first rodeo as a manager. But bias can make overcoming them especially difficult for women.

In this 2023 episode of Women at Work, as part of the “How to Manage” series, McKinsey senior partner Lareina Yee discusses these challenges—and how to overcome them—with host Amy Bernstein and former HBR editor Kelsey Alpaio.  

Key episode topics include: leadership, managing people, management, personal growth, resilience, communication, gender

HBR On Leadership curates the best conversations and case studies with the world’s top business and management experts, to help you unlock the best in those around you. New episodes every week.

• Listen to the original Women at Work episode: How to Manage: Being Taken Seriously
• Find more episodes of Women at Work.
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