Leading Leaders for the First Time: From Running a Team to Running a Function
The jump from managing people to managing managers trips up many strong performers.
You were promoted because you were good at the work and good at leading a team. Now your direct reports lead teams of their own. You are no longer the person who knows every detail. You cannot check everything yourself. And the skills that got you here are not enough on their own.
This is one of the most important transitions in a senior career. Financial Controllers becoming Heads of Finance. Heads of Finance becoming CFOs. Managers becoming General Managers. Get it right and you become a true executive. Get it wrong and you burn out, frustrate your team or stall.
This article covers what changes, the common traps and how to show this skill on your resume.
What changes when your reports are managers
When you lead individual staff, you can:
See the work directly
Fix problems yourself
Set tasks and check them
Be the expert in the room
When you lead managers, you need to:
Set direction and standards, not tasks
Let your managers lead their teams
Judge results, not activity
Build capability, not just output
Spend more time on the business and less in the detail
Your job shifts from doing and checking to leading and enabling.
Letting go of the detail
This is the hardest part for most people. You know the detail. You are good at it. It feels safe.
But if you keep doing your managers' jobs, three things happen:
Your managers do not grow
You run out of time for the work only you can do
Your team becomes dependent on you
Letting go does not mean losing control. It means building the right reports, meetings and standards so you know what is happening without doing it yourself.
Practical steps:
Agree clear goals and measures with each manager
Hold regular one-on-ones focused on results and support
Review key reports rather than every transaction
Step in only when results are off track or risk is high
Setting direction and standards
Leaders of leaders set the direction for the whole function. That includes:
A clear view of what the function is there to achieve
Priorities for the year
Standards for quality, timeliness and behaviour
How the function works with the rest of the business
Write it down. Share it. Refer back to it. Your managers need a clear frame to lead within.
Building your leadership team
Your managers are now your most important team. Invest in them.
Get the right people. If a manager is not right for the role, act. Waiting usually makes it worse.
Develop them. Coaching, stretch projects and feedback.
Build them as a team. Regular leadership meetings where they solve problems together, not just report to you.
Plan succession. Who could step into your role, and theirs?
Strong leaders of leaders are known for the leaders they build.
Common first-year mistakes
Staying too close to the detail. Doing the work your managers should do.
Avoiding hard people decisions. Keeping a manager who is not performing.
Leading managers like individual staff. Telling them how instead of agreeing what.
Neglecting peers. Focusing only on your function and not the wider leadership team.
Not managing up. Your manager and the board need a different kind of update now.
How to show it on your resume
Leading leaders is a key signal of seniority. Make it clear.
Mandate line: "Leads 60 people through five managers."
Achievements:
"Built a leadership team of five, appointing three new managers and promoting two from within."
"Introduced a monthly leadership forum that cut cross-team issues and improved month-end delivery from 8 to 5 days."
"Developed two managers into senior roles elsewhere in the group."
"Restructured finance into three teams with clear accountabilities, lifting engagement scores by 18 points."
See leadership skills on a senior resume for more examples.
How interviews test it
Senior interviews often test this transition directly:
How do you lead managers differently from individual staff?
Tell us about a manager you had to move out of a role.
How do you know what is happening in your function without being in the detail?
How have you built a leadership team?
Prepare specific stories. See leadership style in executive interviews.
Support for yourself
This transition can feel lonely. You are no longer one of the team, and you are not yet sure of your place at the top table. Find support:
A mentor who has made the same move
A coach for the first year
Peers in other businesses at the same level
Many leaders say the first year leading leaders was the hardest of their career, and the most important.
Leading former peers
Sometimes the managers you now lead were once your peers. That adds another layer. Be clear about your role, have honest conversations early and avoid favourites. See leading former peers in finance.
How search consultants assess it
When I assessed senior candidates in executive search, I always looked for evidence that they had led leaders, not just staff. A Head of Finance who had built a team of managers was a very different candidate from one who led eight accountants directly. If your resume shows only team size, add the layer: how many managers, and what you built through them.
A quick self-check
Look at your diary for the past two weeks. How much time did you spend doing work your managers could do? How much on setting direction, developing people and working with peers and the business? If the first is bigger than the second, start shifting the balance this month.
Your profile and LinkedIn
If you have made this transition, say so in your profile. "Finance leader who leads through managers, with a team of 60 across five functions and a record of building strong leadership teams." It tells the reader you are already operating at a senior level.
On LinkedIn, include the leadership layer in your experience entries, not just the team size. Search consultants look for it when filling Head of Finance, CFO and General Manager roles.
When it is not working
Some leaders find they prefer being close to the work. That is a valid choice. If, after a year or two, you find leading leaders does not suit you, think about roles that use your expertise without a large leadership layer, such as specialist, advisory or smaller-business roles. Knowing what suits you is a strength.
The first 90 days
In your first three months leading leaders, meet each manager one-on-one to agree goals, set up a weekly or fortnightly leadership meeting, and write a one-page plan for the function. Share it with your manager and your team. It gives everyone a clear frame from day one.
Measuring your own success
When you led a team, you could measure your own output. Now you measure your success through your managers. Are they hitting their goals? Are they growing? Is the function working well with the rest of the business? Those are your results now, and they are what your next employer will ask about.
Your next step
Write down the three decisions or tasks you still do that your managers should own. Hand one of them over this month, with clear expectations and support.
If you want help positioning your leadership for your next role, my executive positioning work is built for senior leaders across Australia and New Zealand.
If you are stepping into a bigger leadership role, book a complimentary Clarity Session.
