Mfcttrf

I'm on the verge of being promoted to manager, but first I have to prove that I can actually manage a team. Or something like that. It's a raw deal.

A co-worker that has seniority over me was added to my team. He doesn't want to be a manager, but is micromanaging the new hires. He convinced the higher ups that they need training, but that training is demotivating them according to one-on-one meetings I had with them. A junior engineer left this week, one of the interns already signed that he wants to leave after less than two months and the latest hire is already worrying me.

He's not really working much because he's spending too much time with the training. On top of that, I don't have time to manage properly, since he's not working his due and I'm already overworking to cover for him and for the other workers that left.

I try not to be a slavedriver, but we should at least find some balance. When I was in my (mandatory) vacation he did ZERO of the work he was assigned to.

He's a great guy and a good friend, but frankly I'm getting burned out from the overwork, the lack of sleep and people complaining at me that my team is moving too slow.

Is there anything I could do? I already signaled to my boss and the CEO that he's not working his share, but they're not doing anything, and frankly they're giving me vibes like "be a better manager".

I know I'm far from being good as a manager and a lot of this is my fault, so don't worry about giving me a hard time here.

There is no such thing as a "soon to be manager"

You:

• Have no authority in which to discipline coworkers, especially those senior to you


• Have limited ability to influence this person's behaviour


• His productivity is not your responsibility


• The real managers have signaled that they don't care enough to do anything about it.

You're being handed the classic poisoned chalice. Either get the authority to manage, or don't try to be one. If you carry on this way, you'll either go insane, or damage your career and working relationships.

Edit: He's not forcing training either. He's convinced management that they need it, and it's happening. He was authorized to require the training to be completed.

First work out what you think should be done, what you would do if you were a manager with full authority over your team.

For example, do the new employees need training? If so, what sort of training and how should it be run? If not, why not?

Your senior colleague is failing to complete assigned tasks, and spending too much time on the training. Is it time for a performance improvement plan, or might some less formal discussion help?

Once you are clear on what you would do if you were the manager, go back to your boss and the CEO. Explain that these are the steps you think should be taken. In order to have a fair shot at demonstrating you can manage a team, you either need authority to act yourself, or you need your boss to act on your specific recommendations.