I care about people; not just for their sake, but because I believe if you take care of your employees, they will do a better job for you. I am a teacher at heart and love mentoring. Getting a window into the professional journeys of my direct reports and being able to guide them along their paths has been incredibly rewarding for me over the past 10+ years that I've been a manager.
Developing a good manager-employee relationship starts with building trust. I met with all my reports 1-on-1 on a regular cadence determined by their needs. My discussions would include their immediate workload, medium- and long-term goals, any feedback I gathered from project teams or clients, and anything from their personal lives they wanted to share. I employ a direct and honest approach. I provided thorough feedback and analysis of their progress at annual reviews which rarely contained surprises since both positive and constructive feedback were delivered throughout the year. I set their compensation accordingly and dealt with any negotiations that were necessary.
In addition to individualized management, I ran regular team meetings with my direct reports (who called themselves "Billievers") to build camaraderie. There, the atmosphere was light-hearted and fun. Our discussions often went down random rabbit holes, although if there was particular business to discuss, we'd get that done, too.
"Bill is both an excellent manager and a great technical contributor. As one of his direct reports for several years, he helped me grow as an engineer and navigate challenging projects."
"[Bill] deeply cares about the teams he leads."
"I’ve had the privilege of working with and learning from Bill over the past several years. Bill brings with him an incredible wealth of knowledge and is always willing to share his insights to help others grow."
"You were the best manager I could have hoped for and you really helped me stay on track."