Reconciling Expectations: The Unexpected Challenges of Transitioning from Individual Contributor to Manager

When a new manager steps into their role, initial expectations about the job and the tasks associated with managing fall quickly by the wayside. Most new managers must go through a period of unlearning what it means to be an individual contributor before they can fully step into the role of manager. Author Linda A. Hill followed nineteen new managers through their first year, gathering data about the managerial transition. In this chapter, she focuses on their experiences in the first six months, reconciling their expectations of power and control with the realities of day-to-day managerial work and the expectations of their subordinates. This chapter was originally published as Chapter 2 of "Becoming a Manager: How New Managers Master the Challenges of Leadership."