POD welcomes all new and existing managers to join a community of staff with management responsibilities. At this briefing event you will be introduced to POD and the support available to you as a manager, meet other managers, discuss common challenges and feel connected to the University management community. You should signpost this as part of the individual’s induction programme. To attend you will need to join the People Managers’ Network on Teams, where the invitations will be shared.
A guide to using the New Managers' induction, pathway and toolkit
Resources and steps for planning the Induction of new managers
As a line manager, you are key to helping us develop the next generation of managers at Oxford. By doing this, you also help you and your team achieve, you will be more likely to reduce the number of problems arising as a result of wrong decisions by your new managers, and you will save yourself time and trouble in the longer run. We hope the New Managers’ Toolkit will help you to do this important part of your role and will support your efforts to take a proactive approach to developing your managers.
We have created a number of online resources to help your new managers get off on the right foot, whether they are new to management, new to managing at Oxford, or both. These resources form part of the New Managers’ Development Pathway, which covers their first 12 months in role and looks like this:
Checklist analysis of needs – a checklist of the contents of the Toolkit so they can, preferably with your guidance, decide which topics are likely to be priorities for them. There may be additional topics depending on their role, that you want them to cover during this period. We envisage the checklist being completed during the first few weeks of them taking up their new role.
New Managers’ Toolkit resources and links – these comprise a number of short guides on topics that senior managers said were important for many new managers. Each guide provides an overview of the topic and links to other guides that may be relevant and to other sources of information or expansion on the topic.
Managing People online course – this course is modular and covers many of the basics such as Managing sickness absence in more depth than can be achieved on two sides of A4.
Application for a POD management course (we suggest our Introduction to Management Skills at Oxford, or Developing Management Skills at Oxford depending on their experience, but other courses may apply such as the Developing Leadership and Management Programme if they are relatively experienced and are at Grade 8 or above). WE suggest an early application as these courses are often booked well in advance.
You should expect the Pathway to be completed during the first year in order to develop and consolidate the basic skills and approach expected from managers at Oxford. During this time, they will meet with you regularly for their one-to-ones to discuss their learning and to learn from you. They will need your support, especially on helping them find time for development – it is all too easy to become completely task focused, especially during the first months, so it is crucial you reinforce the need to find time. They will also need your support and encouragement to take time, reflect and learn from their initial efforts.
What to do
1 Browse the resourcesYou might find it useful to look at the resources, perhaps starting with the Induction resource and then looking at some of the Guides. This will give you a feel for the content and the approach so that you can add your thinking on key topics and answer any questions. There may also be instances where your department or area do things slightly differently to how they are described in the Guides and you can then make sure the new manager knows what the difference is. |
2 Signpost the New Manager Briefing sessions to your induction programmeAs part of the individual’s induction programme, you should signpost the New Manager Briefing sessions. POD welcomes all new and existing managers to attend and join a community of staff with management responsibilities. |
3 Help them with the checklistThe checklist helps them prioritise the guides to look at. Some are fundamental to all managers, such as how to give feedback. Other will depend on the situation they have inherited, their previous experience and the specifics of the role. For example, do the need to know more about Finance? The checklist helps them identify relevant guides and to decide where to begin. |
4 Encourage and supportYou will undoubtedly be meeting with them regularly to check on progress and discuss any challenges and needs. As part of this, check how they are doing against their development pathway. Make sure they are making time for their development and discuss any topics they would like clarification on. When appropriate (probably after three or four months) encourage them to apply for the appropriate initial course at POD. The POD website explains what each course covers, how long it lasts and who the target audience is. If unsure, contact the Organisational Development Adviser who covers your division or area and ask for their advice. |
5 Build on this startHelp the individual to build on their start to their management career at Oxford through your one-to-ones and PDR process. POD has guidance on their website on developing others, Encourage them to take responsibility for their development (again, POD has guidance on this on the Developing yourself section of their website). |
Checklist analysis of needs
To help identify priority areas for development, download the checklist analysis of needs
