When I recently published the article “New manager, new rules,” several people tweeted they needed that advice a little earlier. New boss, burned bridge? There are ways to try and rebuild.
If you really think the two of you are not seeing eye-to-eye, sit down and talk with the boss. Don’t go in and say we are not seeing eye-to-eye, what should we do? Sit down and say you wanted your new boss to have a few weeks to get settled and would love to know this new manager’s expectations. This gives the person a chance to say what he/she wants from you, and what you are, and possibly are not, providing. It is better to know what the expectation is and take a lump, than keep analyzing and guessing and potentially accumulate several strikes against you. Listen to the manager’s insight and try and do it. After a few weeks ask if the work you’ve done is more along the lines of what this manager wants.
Do some research and find out what this boss implemented in other places. Then try and proactively do some of this. Let’s say, a manager is known for segmenting out story elements. Start implementing some of that in your own work. Face it, if this person has a reputation for some of these techniques, he/she will try them at your station. You might as well support it. Showing you embrace new ideas always helps build bridges.
Most of all, understand that this new person is trying to figure out everyone and everything. All stations run a little differently. Even if this manager has snapped at you, most realize it is better to work with the people who are already there than try and push them out. Show you are willing to be a team player and it just might work out, despite a rocky start.
