How do you handle changes in management?

Discussions
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1

Over the last 4 years, I’ve had 4 different line managers. Each was the Engineering Manager in the team I was in at the time, over 3 different times, all at the same company.

Friday, I found out my current manager resigned, and within about 2 months time, I’ll be on my 5th manager. And then, it might be a temporary manager while we hire someone permeant.

Over the next two months, I’m intending to do some preparation. Make sure to record any agreements I’ve made with my manager - like being able to attend TestBash 2025! I also intend to try and note some things down that I think my next manager will find useful, both in terms of managing me, but also onboarding into the team.

Whenever I meet a new manager, I’ve got a very important conversation to have. You see, as a Quality Engineer, some of what I do can compliment or overlap with the role of an EM. So, I have a conversation that goes something like this:

"Dear EM,

I can help you in many different ways, across Product, Processes, People and Technical. But I can’t do them all at once. Many of the things I do can compliment or overlap with your role as an EM in the team. So I’d like to work with you, so together we can have the most impact."

I’ve had some success with this thus far, but it’s sometimes been a bit abstract. I intend to do some prep, so I can give some examples of ways I’ve supported in each of these areas within my current eam, so my new manager knows when to call on me, and can let me know where they intend to lead, so I can stand back.

Obviously this isn’t a once and done conversation, but it helps set the scene for collaboration, where our shared goal is the success of the team.

How do you manage your managers? And how do you handle changing managers? I’d love to hear what others do, and maybe learn some more tricks!

2

Reading your mail, I can think of three relationships, the one to yourself, your manager and your company.
Let’s start with the last, keep doing the best job you can during this transition period, keeping your project on track, helps your company and ultimately helps you. The day job still has to be done.
Second, your manager, this person, from the sounds of it is likely to be from outside your organisation. Therefore, they have a lot to understand. So, yes keep your achievements and previously agreed plans, documented and clear. When asked, you can describe the good work you have been doing, and plans for the future. When offering help, make it about them, give your context and let them choose how they want you to help. For example, I have been in the company X years, worked on X projects, etc. etc.
Finally, your relationship with yourself. I am assuming you are looking to build your career as a tester. Therefore, you need to be doing what you can to support your ambitions. People come and go, it is a fact of life. However, 5 managers in less than 5 years, is something I would be looking at and trying to understand.
Hope this helps.

3

This hits close to home. My company went through a split recently, and one part of it became my client-so now I am working on a project that used to be our own team. It’s been a strange shift, especially with leadership changes on both sides.

What helped me is focusing on building trust again from a new angle. Even though I know the people and product, the roles and expectations have changed. I have been more deliberate about documenting things, setting clear boundaries, and having early conversations with new managers about how we support each other.

Change is a bit uncomfortable always, but clarity and open communication with honesty go a long way in making it smoother.
Appreciate you sharing this!

4

Cor this is a good one! I can answer this on both sides of the fence.

This really is all about your own belief in your team and the way you’re working. Good managers, support their teams to make decisions as every decision, process etc. is bespoke. Bad managers come in with what they did previously that worked, and impose it. What happens when they impose change? You take no responsibility for it. So you’re role changes from doing what is right to doing what your manager says and compliance becomes your overriding objective.

So to me, to prep for a new manager:

  1. Most importantly, have belief and faith in the way you and your team work? Keep your principles, they’re not for trading for a new manager.
  2. Prepare as a team to meet your manager, but don’t seek them. Let them seek you. Good managers will want to understand everyones perspective.
  3. Be proud of your achievements and what practices are working, but be ready for the areas you think they could help you. Maybe do a retro style analysis of the team with the team and then as a team take the new manager through it.
  4. For a manager 121, its massively important the message is consistent with the team message. So there are no hidden agendas exposed to the manager. The 121 is about understanding you as professional and as a person.

Now as a manager, if all those were actioned I would be super excited to manage the team because I can see a collective strength. I would be happy to work on your teams agenda of improvements. Yes I may try things to help from my experience, but with your consent. Yes I may be told to do things from my superiors you may not like, but if I’m following the same principles I’ll be pushing back on those that do not support the teams progress.
If a bad manager came in with an agenda, they’re facing a strong principled team and its going to be pretty clear to them they’ll need to change their approach.

5

Thank you for this fascinating insight. I have a lightly different point of view, but this maybe my privilege having had some good managers.

I consider the Engineering Manager for a team, to be part of the team. And, as membership of a team changes, the team becomes a new team, because teams are immutable.

And it’s a collective activity to build the new team, with the new manager and everyone else in the team. I can totally understand the need to build a team who are resilient to poor or bad managers, it feels a akin to a “defensive programming” style. Trust, but. verify… or maybe don’t trust, until it’s earned.

6

Hot damn, it sounds like you work for a seriously strict company O.o

I literally tell them what’s up lol, but then again we are not as strict as you are, we just had a new “head of department” which I have to report too.

And I’m just like “I won’t be here next week Fridays and the week after on Wednesday also in 3 weeks I’m going to a conference” (my previous head of dep didn’t even know this yet) :sweat_smile: and it’s all fine. (They trust me, I mean they are happy with my work & results also so as long as we “get results” it really isn’t a big problem, unless you take a leave for 2weeks + without early notice.

Most of the time I just introduce myself to them and tell them what I do and what I can provide and that’s it really :confused:

7

I had in one workplace, about 6 managers in 5 years.
They tossed the Testing across different departments/unit managers: AVP of Business department, Business sales management, CTO/CIO, PM, Digital transformation manager.
Just because some were managers, didn’t mean they would manage the activity.
Some were ignorant to whatever testers do, others were imposing changes in process tools methodologies of development and testing, others were questioning and pushing other leads to manage the testers, others were empowering the testers.
There was no career, income growth, or training budget available during this period (although I had a couple of them promising it).
I ended up experimenting, being patient, adapting and then severe burnout.
I had 3 waves of colleagues in my team in the roles of development/pm/business/testing that came a few years then most quit (some were fired and a couple went into burnout/medical leave). In hindsight I should have quit earlier instead of waiting.