The Modern Manager

Program Overview

Management, especially now, is not something that can be learned in a book. Real management happens through a series of moments, interactions and conversations that shape the relationship and determine outcomes for all involved.

Sometimes you're a supervisor. Sometimes a coach. Sometimes a mediator. Sometimes an inspirational speaker. Often a decision-maker. But each of these roles is also changing with our new normal—there’s been a shift in what it means to supervise, coach, comfort, and learn in today’s context.

Field Manuals

The Modern Manager Program is made up of 5 Field Manuals (our version of an online module). Each one contains a variety of types of content and social exercises culminating in a mini-project, reflection, or debate. Each Field Manual will take you between 30-45 minutes to complete but you can jump on and off at your own pace, as often as you’d like. The deeper learning happens in the discussions with your fellow learners so be sure to check in on the conversations regularly.

• The Supervisor

  In a world deeply changed by hybrid and remote work, managers must adapt. We have to begin by embracing our work as supervisors. This work is less about enforcing productivity than it is enabling performance. Instead of asking whether our teams punched the clock, we need to be asking whether our people are able to pay attention to what matters.

• The Communicator

  As the world of work becomes more—or even fully—digital, the way we communicate as managers must undergo a similar shift. We have to reimagine the way we communicate with our people. Less formal, more frequent. Fewer presentations, more conversations. Less talking, more listening. Getting better at it requires making a habit out of practicing and adapting the way we deliver our messages.

• The Coach

  The most important thing a manager does is enable the people around them to do their best work. That's what coaching is. But the shifting nature of the way we work requires a different approach. Less formal. More continuous. Bidirectional. Coaching is also not only about the individual—working today is a team sport.

• The Decision Maker

  Making decisions is one of the most fundamental responsibilities that managers have. But just because we have to do it doesn’t mean that we’ll automatically be good at it, of course. In fact, sometimes the best way to make decisions is by freeing ourselves of the pressure to make them at all.

• The Learner

  Nobody knows what's going to happen next. Whatever happens, prizes will go to the teams that learn the fastest. And teams that learn quickly have managers committed to learning. That means a commitment to transparency and humility, to questions and feedback, and to celebrating honest mistakes.