1. Background
We need to clarify two questions: Why do we need to manage upward? What is the main purpose of upward management?
First of all, the first questionWhy manage up? The essence of upward management is to bring the best results to the company, your boss and yourself at the same time, and to consciously cooperate and change working methods, so that individuals or teams can ultimately achieve the company's preset goals and achieve established benefits.
Secondly, we need to considerwhat is the main purpose of upward management? The most important communication is to establish effective communication with direct leaders. We mainly need to do a few important things. First, align goals. We need to establish effective communication with our superiors and have a consistent understanding of the goals, so that employees can align their goals. Goals are fully integrated into work to ensure that individual and team work is consistent with the goals required by the company/leadership. Otherwise, the faster you do it, the more mistakes you make, which will bring huge losses to the company. Second, coordinate resources. After clarifying the goals, we need to evaluate the resources needed to achieve the goals, give full play to the effectiveness of the resources, and allow the resources to be used Take full advantage and ensure that the resources needed to achieve your goals are fully prepared. When a certain resource is needed, it can be provided to the project team in a timely manner and in sufficient quantity. Third, track progress, assign tasks to someone, and hand down tasks. As a leader, you need to control the progress of the entire work. Fourth, feedback issues. If problems arise during the project advancement, timely feedback should be provided to avoid further problems that will have a greater impact on the project.
So upward management is very important in our work, because it involves the goals of our work and the core aspects of human, financial and material development. If we want to successfully achieve our goals, we need the help of our superiors. Weobtain resources, solve problemsand more.
2. Build trust
Upward management is not only a way of working, but also a way of building interpersonal relationships. Through honest and reliable cooperation, collaboration and dependence, we can build trust with our superiors and become someone they can trust.
We are required to treat our superiors as our VIP customers. We first need toaccurately understand customer needs, that is, establish a unified goal with customers. Only when the goal is confirmed can we carry out the next work smoothly. Secondly, prioritize processing, and classify the work into important and urgent levels. When facing the work of superiors, You can't just "grab your beard and eyebrows", you need to prioritize. Then, communicate in a timely manner provide timely feedback and communication on the progress of the project work and problems that arise, seek help and coordination from the leadership, and promptly respond to problems when they arise. Correct deviations and don’t let errors turn into mistakes.
3. Clarify the goal, that is, how to receive the task
I saw a joke before about how the post-00s generation improved the workplace. The characteristic of the post-80s generation is that when they receive work assigned by their superiors, they directly reply "received" message. When the post-90s generation receives the tasks assigned by their superiors, Reply "ok", and then the post-00 generation will find a lot of excuses when receiving a task, and then reply "I can't do this", and then the theme of this joke says that the post-00 generation has finally renovated the workplace.
The above is a joke I saw. I have a neutral attitude towards this joke. I don’t recognize how good the post-80s and post-90s generations are at their work, and I don’t recognize how unreliable the post-00s generation is. I think when we accept When it comes to the tasks assigned by the leader, you may not understand what the leader wants to do and what his goal is. When receiving a task assigned by the leader, as an employee, you should first ask a question, "Why do you want to do this?" In fact, it means asking the leader the core needs of the author. For example: Mr. Zhang: "Xiao Wang, help me prepare a computer". Xiao Wang: "Received", and then Xiao Wang went to work. He went to the equipment department to coordinate with his leader, and then went to the network department to activate the network. After a few days of busy work, he installed a desktop computer in the leader's office. I put a line on the table, opened the network, and then went to tell the leader. However, when my colleague Xiao Li encountered the same arrangement, he did this: "Excuse me, what do you use the computer for when you are a leader?" Then Mr. Zhang said: "There was an investment meeting recently and I needed a laptop to facilitate the presentation. PPT", and then Xiao Li asked: "Mr. Zhang, would you like to put this notebook in your office after the morning meeting tomorrow?", and then Mr. Zhang: "Okay." Then Xiao Li went to work. Xiao Li coordinated various departments and did not find a suitable notebook. There was only a projector in the spare conference room that could project mobile phones. Then he thought of what Mr. Zhang said before, so he went to find Mr. Zhang. Li: "Mr. Zhang, can the PPT presentation on Wednesday be directly used with the mobile phone projection projector in the xxx conference room? We are currently coordinating the xx department. Due to the current busy business of the company, all notebooks have been loaned out. I will immediately inform all participants that Wednesday's meeting will be moved to the xxx conference room. On Wednesday morning, I will put the PPT you need to demonstrate into the reserved conference room and prepare the laser pointer needed for the demonstration. Do you think this is okay?" Mr. Zhang: "Very good."
From the above story, we can summarize a few points. The first thing to do when receiving a task is to ask forcore requirements , maybe your superior only needs to demonstrate the PPT, and does not need a complete desktop computer. If the requirements behind it are not fully explained due to the negligence of the superior, we will work according to the superficial understanding, and our output will be in line with expectations. The most important thing is to ask (Why) before knowing what to do (What). Secondly, we must have a full grasp of what to do, where to do it, and when to do it (When). At this time, we are actually aligned with the leader achieved the goal. Of course, what we can do better is to "further confirm", that is, after receiving the work assigned by our superiors, we can also briefly describe the key points to our superiors face to face. Tolerance to ensure understanding is in place.
4. Skills in proactive communication and timely reporting of work
Reporting work in a timely manner is actually very important for superiors to understand the work progress, correct work deviations, and help us solve problems when problems arise in the project. We emphasize doing well in our work, but often we also require that only by doing well and speaking well can we get the best results. In our work, we report according to the normal work reporting tree. Our reporting objects should bedirect leaders, but it is inevitable< a i=3>Leap-level reporting This kind of leap-frog reporting should be avoided as much as possible in our work. Next, let’s talk about the reporting skills:
-
4.1. What principles should we follow in reporting work?
A way of thinking is very important at this time, which is empathy. If you are a leader, you are listening to your subordinates. When giving a presentation, what do you want to hear first? Of course it is conclusion, so the first principle is conclusion first, and opinions first, and the second one is that the above is unified into the next Each level is a summary and summary of the next level. Third, Categorization and groupingThe content of each group must belong to the same logical category. Fourth, logical progression, the content in each group must be arranged in a logical order. The above is also in line with the pyramid expression method summarized by McKinsey and Company during regular consultations. -
4.2 What factors should we consider when reporting?
The timing of reporting is, for example: when there is a milestone in the work, when there are changes in the work (increased resources, increased workload, changes in goals, or errors in the work), timely reporting is required.
I think reporting can be carried out according to each link of the Deming Circle PDCA. When P (plan) clarifies the goal and formulates a plan to achieve the goal, the report should be made. This will allow the superiors to have overall control over the entire work, such as overall completion. Time and key milestones are under control. Report at the D (do) node, that is, when a milestone is completed, and when you need to coordinate resources during work. At this time, you are asking your superiors to coordinate resources for you. In the C (check) inspection stage, I think this work runs through the entire work. It is necessary to check and summarize at any time, so that when problems arise in the work, they need to be reported in time. The last step is to execute in A (Act), process the summary results, and improve the work completion stage, that is, complete the work. We have to report to let the superiors know that the work is over. It is best that we can also summarize, Summarize the rules and methods, the advantages and disadvantages of the work, so as to continuously improve the working methods and improve the work efficiency.
- 4.3 What time periods should we avoid reporting on?
Regarding the choice of reporting time, I think it is best to avoid reporting when the leader is busy and when he is off work. why? It is human nature, because when your superiors are having complicated matters, you go to report them. On the one hand, your superiors do not have enough time and patience to listen. If you are not careful, the report will turn into a disaster. Secondly, when you get off work, you can finally go home after working all day. If you report at this time, your superiors may have other arrangements and may not listen to your report as carefully as usual. In the above two situations, you need to observe the leader at work and choose the right time to report to avoid becoming a problem for your superiors.
a) For important and urgent matters, it is best to report face-to-face and in a timely manner. After the report is completed, the written text should be confirmed with the reporting superior to ensure that the information is received correctly.
b) For important but not urgent matters, face-to-face reporting is required depending on the timing.
c) For unimportant but urgent matters, face-to-face reporting can be used. Report by phone, WeChat, QQ, or internal communication tools.
d) For unimportant and non-urgent matters, you do not need to report them, or report them incidentally, that is, you can mention an important matter incidentally when reporting it.
The above is what I think is the reporting content, as well as the reporting opportunity and reporting time selection. In fact, it has covered most scenarios and is enough to cope with 80% of the scenarios in the workplace. However, there is another scenario we may encounter, which is cross-level reporting. Although in the workplace We want to avoid over-the-top reporting, but there are situations where this happens.
- 4.4 If we met a higher-level leader in the elevator and the leader asked about the project work, we made a "leap-level report”What factors should we consider?
We should try to avoid cross-level reporting in the workplace, but it is inevitable that cross-level reporting will occur at work. What should we do at this time?
First of all, we must respect our superiors, that is, when the leader asks us, we must introduce ourselves in a timely manner. After all, we have crossed a hierarchy, and other leaders may not be able to remember your name. Secondly, make a concise report on the work results. The last and most important thing is to synchronize the content of the skip-level report with your direct leader in a timely manner when you come back. That is, to synchronize the questions asked by the superior leader with Report it to your superior, and then report your answer to your superior. This is very important.
When we report on our work, we may also need to seek help from our leaders during the report, but have you seriously thought about whether we have put forward our needs reasonably?
5. Make reasonable demands to your superiors. Do you really know how to make demands?
When reporting, there are usually at least the following two points that need to be reported. First, the work results will be reported. Second, we also need to report the problems in the progress of the work, but when reporting the problems, we need the support of the leadership, and also It means clearly stating our needs. But can we really make the right demands? I have summarized the following points that need to be paid attention to when making demands.
5.1 Express accurately and use the "I need" sentence pattern
Throw away negative emotions when expressing, describe specific needs objectively and accurately, and use the sentence pattern "I need" a>"" sentence pattern. I need From this statement, the manager is more likely to accept our request. From this request statement, we can extract a pattern and use "Manager, I need a colleague who knows these devices to work with me to find the equipment and check it clearly, because this time we need There are a lot of borrowed equipment, and they are all piled together, and I can only use the equipment during my spare time during development. Time is tight and the task is heavy. Please understand and support me. Adjusted statement: " If I were a manager, I would hear several things from this. The first is that the "emotion" feels like complaining about too much work. The second is that I can get the point of this sentence, which is to let others do it. If we use the following expressions, the other party can better understand your needs.
For example, the original words: "Manager, I don’t have time to get equipment. There is too much work. I also have development and maintenance work on multiple projects. Can you find someone else?"
5.2 Advanced version of the formula, "I need + objective description of the object + the goals that the other party will achieve after participating, and the impact it will bring"
As answered above, you may also be rejected by the manager, because he thinks this is your business and has nothing to do with the manager, so he is likely to reject your request. If we share the pros and cons of this matter with the superior To express, that is to say, the benefits should be shared with the superiors, and the disadvantages should be known to the superiors in advance (these two points are best related to him). We can also adjust the language as follows: " Manager, I need a colleague who knows these equipment to find out the equipment with me and check it clearly, because there are a lot of equipment that need to be borrowed this time, and they are all piled together, and I can only pick them up during my spare time during development. When using equipment, time is tight and the task is heavy. If a colleague helps, we can successfully find all the equipment before leaving get off work today to ensure that this week's business assessment is carried out smoothly. ”
5.3 How do we put forward demands, that is, what demands do we need to put forward to be reasonable?
All our work involves the use of "people, property and time". Next, we will share a classic model, which is also the project management triangle
The only thing that cannot be flinched from any work is Quality cannot be reduced. If a low-cost, low-quality product competes with a low-cost, high-quality product on the same stage, if the time is long enough, as technology iterates, high-quality companies will gradually reduce their marginal costs in the production process. I believe that in the end high quality will beat low quality companies. This is also the reason for the country's industrial transformation in recent years. We can no longer win the market with low-priced and low-quality products. Therefore, the quality cannot be reduced.
When facing tasks assigned by leaders, since the quality cannot be reduced, in order to achieve the goal, the following formulas can be applied:
Cost fixed: Then either reduce it Scope, either increase the time
Fixed scope: either increase the cost or increase the time
Fixed time: either reduce the scope or increase the cost
The above are the points I have summarized that can make reasonable demands.
5.4 What should I do if my request is rejected?
First of all, we must make it clear that all we make are requests, so the request may be rejected. There is no request that cannot be rejected, so it is important to adjust the expectation mentality. What we expect is not necessarily accepted, so even if we are rejected, we will not feel frustrated because of the psychological gap. Secondly, when making a request, don’t expect one-time fulfillment. It needs to be done step by step. Don’t put forward a huge demand at one time that the superiors cannot satisfy at all. We can put forward small demands step by step. Or we adopt an alternative plan, which is to settle for the next best thing. In order to achieve goal A, we propose a larger demand B. When B cannot be satisfied, we fall back to A. In this way, the more likely demand may be satisfied. accept.
In a word, no matter whether our request is accepted or rejected, we must maintain a positive attitude when facing work and cannot be passive and slow down because of rejection.
6. Conclusion
Today we shared the communication skills in upward management. Triggered by its meaning, we recognized its importance. Then we shared how to receive tasks reasonably, how to report tasks correctly, and how to make demands reasonably from other perspectives. Some reference methods, I hope these methods can bring significant results to your work. That’s it for today’s sharing, and we look forward to making progress together.