Management is a Responsibility: Stop Promoting the Wrong People into Manager Roles

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Welcome back to The Lab. Today, we're tackling a leadership decision that shapes culture more than almost anything else, who we promote into management. The Harvard Business Review article, Stop Promoting the Wrong People into Manager Roles, challenges a deeply embedded habit in organizations. And if we're honest, it's one that many of us have participated in. I know I certainly have. We used to joke around at Glaxo when I was there is that we would promote the

best salespeople into management, right? The highest performer. And most of the time, that was a double whammy on the organization because we lost a great salesperson and we promoted someone who wasn't a good manager into that role. So, but we do that often. The top salesperson, the best engineer, the most technically brilliant contributor, the person who delivers results again and again. And we assume that because they excel at doing the work, they'll excel at leading

others who do the work. But here's the hard truth. Individual performance and managerial capability are not the same skill set. And when we confuse them, we don't just risk underperformance, we risk disengagement, cultural damage, and the loss of both the new manager and the team they lead. So let's unpack this. What's the core insight here? The article highlights something critical.

Many organizations reward individual achievement with a management promotion because it feels like the natural next step. But management is not a reward. It's a responsibility. Top individual contributors are often motivated by personal achievement, autonomy, and recognition for their own output. Managers, however, must derive satisfaction from enabling others to succeed, and that's the psychological shift that really matters.

It requires patience over speed, coaching over control, and multiplying impact over owning credit. And not everyone wants that shift. Not everyone is wired for that shift and not everyone is ready for that shift. Promoting someone who doesn't truly want it or isn't prepared for it, the role doesn't elevate performance, it erodes it.

So, when high performers are placed into management roles without elevating leadership capability, they can struggle to delegate because they can do the task faster themselves. They may default to micromanagement instead of coaching. They may avoid difficult conversations because their identity was built on personal competence, not people development. And perhaps most dangerously, they may measure success by their own output rather than the growth of their team. And the result of all of that?

Teams feel unsupported. High performers on the team feel stifled, and the new manager feels overwhelmed and frustrated. And here's the tragedy. Often we lose a great individual contributor and gain a struggling manager. That's exactly what we did at GSK. That's not leadership development. That's talent misallocation.

And so here's some key takeaways for senior leadership. Let's elevate the conversation to the executive level. If you are shaping promotion systems, succession planning, or talent pipelines, here are three critical takeaways. Stop treating management as the only path to advancement. Not everyone needs to manage people to grow in status, compensation, or influence.

Build parallel career tracks. So have a technical career track, a specialist, a principal-level roles that reward excellence without forcing leadership responsibility. When management becomes the only way up, you push people into roles they should not occupy. Number two, elevate motivation, not just performance. Before promoting someone, ask, do they genuinely want to develop people? Do they get energy from helping others succeed? Have they demonstrated coaching behaviors already?

Because leadership is not about ability alone. It's about appetite. Number three, redefine what, quote, readiness looks like. Instead of asking, are they the top performer, ask, have they mentored other people? Have they navigated conflict well? Do peers naturally seek their guidance? Do they elevate the performance of those around them? The best managers are often multipliers long before they hold the title. So here's some actionable tips for managers and aspiring leaders.

If you're listening and you're currently a manager or you aspire to become one, this is where it gets personal. Leadership is not about being the hero. It's about building heroes. Here are some actionable steps you can take starting today. Number one, shift your identity. Ask yourself this question. Do I measure my success by what I accomplish or by what my team accomplishes? If your pride still comes primarily from your own individual output, Begin practicing delegation intentionally.

Hand off meaningful work. Coach through mistakes. Resist the urge to take the task back. Your job is no longer to be the best player on the field. Your job is to build a winning team. All right, number two, practice development conversations weekly. Don't wait for annual reviews, even mid-year reviews. Have short, focused development conversations regularly with your team. Ask these questions. What skills do you wanna grow? What challenges stretch you? Where do you want to be in two years?

Managers who grow people don't do it accidentally. They do it systematically. Number three, get comfortable with discomfort. The article reminds us that managerial effectiveness requires navigating conflict, setting expectations, and giving candid feedback. If you avoid hard conversations, you're not protecting culture. You're weakening it. Courageous clarity builds trust. Silence breeds confusion. Commit to direct, respectful feedback. Your team deserves it.

And I'll just put an asterisk in here. The book Radical Candor is something that you should really get familiar with. If this, get comfortable with discomfort, if that's one of your issues, that's a great book to dive into. And the fourth tip here, build successors early. One of the strongest indicators of managerial maturity is this. Are you developing someone who could replace you?

That was a tenant at Glaxo. You couldn't even have a promotional conversation if you did not have that person that was going to backfill you as soon as you got promoted. You needed to have that. Then you could go ask your boss if you're ready for the next step. So delegate leadership moments. Let others run meetings. Invite them into decision-making discussions. Leadership isn't about protecting your seat. It's about preparing for the next one.

So here's a final reflection. This article isn't just about fixing promotion

systems, it's about redefining leadership. Organizations don't thrive because of superstar individuals alone. They thrive because of leaders who multiply talent. Leaders who see potential in others. Leaders who sacrifice personal spotlight for team growth. Leaders who understand that management is not a trophy. It's stewardship. So here's the challenge. If you're a senior leader, audit your promotion criteria.

If you're a manager, audit your motivations. And if you're an aspiring leader, ask yourself whether you want influence or responsibility. Because true management is responsibility. Responsibility for culture, responsibility for clarity, and responsibility for people's growth and well-being. And when we promote the right people, those who are motivated to serve,

equipped to coach, and committed to developing others, we don't just improve performance. We build organizations where talent flourishes. We build teams that trust. We build leaders who multiply leaders. And that's not just better management. That's legacy. Thanks for listening. I hope that helps. And until next time we meet in the Manager Lab, do good work.