7 reasons IT managers fail to exceed your expectations

Despite the clamor around AI, the top skills IT managers need to succeed are not technical.

Rather, critical thinking, business acumen, innovation, collaboration, and leadership are the skills that make IT managers stand out, says Michael Seals, based on research from the Society for Information Management (SIM).

Unfortunately, many IT managers fall short on those skills, says the retired CIO and chief digital officer who now serves as chair of the SIM Research Institute Advisory Council.

As a result, too few IT managers are stellar at selling a vision of how technology can deliver value for their organizations, cultivating the partnerships needed for success, and driving execution. So despite standout track records as individual contributors and technologists, they’re merely average as managers.

That may be why research shows that CIOs count the credibility of IT and IT leadership among their worries. And it explains why many IT leaders don’t get top marks on performance reviews.

That’s not inevitable or irremediable, though. Here are seven common reasons why IT managers fall short — and proven strategies to address root causes.

1. They’re not trained to be managers

Many IT managers earned their management posts by proving themselves in prior roles, often technical ones. As such, they generally have little to no training on how to manage workers — a longstanding issue in the IT profession.

“They’re not being readied for the role,” says Thomas Phelps, CIO at Esri and Innovate@UCLA chief strategist.

To be fair, the problem isn’t unique to IT. Global recruitment firm Robert Walters found in a survey of European professionals that 35% of managers have received no managerial training. The Chartered Management Institute found that in the managers it studied, 82% rose to their positions having had no formal training.

Consequently, these managers aren’t fully equipped to do their jobs, let alone do them exceptionally well, says Bev Kaye, founder and CEO of employee development, engagement, and retention consultancy BevKaye&Co and author of Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go and multiple other books on employee management.

Formal training can help turn this around, Kaye says. Attention from the managers’ own managers can help, too, by coaching their direct reports on how to engage teams, communicate with staffers, and be more inspiring leaders. This mentoring from senior-level pros provides instructive guidance and it models behaviors that can help managers excel.

So can providing learning experiences and opportunities — such as taking on managerial work on a temporary basis, such as during vacations — before stepping into permanent full-time manager roles, adds Phelps.

2. They lack interpersonal and leadership skills

Even with some management experience and learning opportunities, IT workers often still lack the interpersonal and leaderships skills that would enable them to excel as managers, says Mark Taylor, CEO for SIM.

“When you think about soft skills and emotional intelligence, they’re some of the most impactful skills for managers,” he says. They’re the ones required for leaders to successfully rally resources, present a vision, communicate effectively, and steer teams through complex or contentious situations.

SIM’s Rising Leaders Forums help IT professionals develop such attributes, Taylor says, adding that CIOs can use mentorships and coaching to also help workers develop these capabilities before and once they take on a manager post.

3. They’re not the right fit for the job

Many professionals may be perfectly capable of being superstar managers, just not in the manager role they landed, says Steve Agnoli, lead instructor and coach with the CIO Executive Program at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College.

Making the right match is itself an acquired skill, says Agnoli, a former CIO at law firm Reed Smith who now provides fractional CIO and consulting services as a principal at SWA Executive Consulting.

He advises senior IT leaders to first understand what skills each management position needs and use that to determine which candidates are well-positioned to succeed in that role given the demands of the job. If a job requires a steady, methodical approach, it’s unlikely that a fast-paced let’s-break-the-mold type manager would be a standout in that position.

But Agnoli cautions against expecting even a well-matched candidate to meet or supersede expectations from the start. CIOs and other senior leaders should instead help their managers grow into their roles by identifying where they need additional experiences, training, and mentoring so that they can help that “person meet and hopefully exceed expectations and then move onto the next job,” he says.

4. There’s a lack of clarity around expectations and how success is measured

Another issue that can keep IT managers from earning high marks is a lack of clarity around what’s required to excel.

“What quality metrics will [the manager’s] manager use to determine if the person is meeting or exceeding or not meeting expectations?” asks Kevin Earnest, co-founder and president of the advisory firm Manageable.

IT leaders need to start by creating job descriptions that detail required tasks and responsibilities, how they relate to organizational goals and objectives, the quality metrics to be used to measure performance, and the capabilities required for the role.

“Managers first need to think about job descriptions and write them out really well and then review them with the candidates or incumbents,” Earnest says.

Taking those steps is foundational for success, Earnest adds, noting that he advises leaders to use a system for managing people that’s built on three pillars: Define (clear expectations), Coach (consistent development), and Recognize (meaningful acknowledgment).

5. They want to advance but don’t really want to be managers

IT managers may not really want to be managers but seek out such roles to advance their careers and/or earn more money.

Nyariana Maiko, CIO for the Port of Long Beach, Calif., who has encountered such scenarios, in a prior company addressed the situation by creating a career track that allows technologists to become directors by being “the people who knew the most about technology, the people who we expected to know the latest and greatest.”

She also retained the career track that allows interested professionals to advance into managerial positions. And she had a third path, where workers could advance into managing projects or initiatives yet keep technical responsibilities.

“That really made sure people were in the right places,” she explains.

6. They don’t prioritize responsibilities well

Research firm Gartner has found that managers juggle 51% more responsibilities than they can handle.

Agnoli sees that in IT, too, as many managers struggle to respond to all the demands placed on them. As a result, these managers may have disappointing performances despite their hard work.

That doesn’t have to be the case, Agnoli says. CIOs should help managers prioritize their work by giving them a clear picture of the organization’s goals and the IT work that supports those goals.

“The CIO is the one who is defining direction and the strategy that the directors and IT managers and IT staff are carrying out, so if there is ambiguity or lack of direction there, that’s going to affect those workers down the chain,” he says. “The CIO is responsible for making sure the managers are clear on what is needed.”

Additionally, Agnoli says CIOs and their direct reports need to stay on track and not pile side projects onto managers’ key duties. “Know what demands your managers have and outline the priorities, and if priorities change, then adjust [the managers’ work] accordingly,” he adds.

Managers, too, need to stay on track. They need to push back when requests for extra work come in and learn to say, “Here’s what we agreed to do and when. Has this changed?” or “You gave me these five things. Where do you want me to put this No. 6?”

7. They’re not focused on business outcomes

Longtime IT leaders know it’s possible to deliver a flawless technology solution but still not solve a business problem. New managers, however, may not yet know that distinction, which is another reason some don’t end up meeting expectations.

To illustrate that point, Phelps points to the service desk. A good manager will ensure workers quickly address and close out tickets. A great manager will ensure the technicians are asking a few extra questions and taking some additional steps to know that a user truly has a problem solved. For example, a highly effective manager will train staff that when they aid users struggling to access an app on their laptop to check whether they’re all set accessing it on their smartphones as well; that ensures the user doesn’t need help a second time.

Phelps says CIOs need to educate and train their managers on what business success — not just IT success — entails.

Maiko agrees.

“As CIOs we have to know our CEO’s vision, and for employees to succeed, they also need to understand that vision,” she says. “So as CIO I need to make sure our IT managers are well-versed and trained in everything they need to keep operations going as well as what we as an organization need to do to succeed for the future.”