An Open Letter to The Managers in The Social Media Industry

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To,

The Managers in The Digital Industry,

I’ve been working for over 3 years now and this is my 4th manager.

This blog post is for all the managers and aspiring managers or seniors working in the Digital Media industry. Please understand that:

•  Experience comes from working for some time. It is not an inborn quality that people have.
• Training the executives is IMPORTANT and MANDATORY.
• You were an executive once. Don’t put that past you when you gain some authority.
• No one, and I mean no one, likes to be bullied or harassed.
• Give respect. Get respect.
• Give your employees some space to work and be creative.

There is a thin line between being in power and throwing your weight around just because you have the power. Executives are on a junior level and they might not understand it all. They definitely do not know as much as you do. If there is an executive who knows about something more than you, he/she will not tell you just because either they are intimidated by you or respect you too much. It is your work to make the juniors/executives comfortable within the organization and make them feel welcomed.

Usually people fresh out of college are not supremely confident and are not used to speaking their mind, simply out of fear. It will do well if the seniors/managers can behave human and give some former training to the newbies. Being impatient, mean or rude is NOT going to help. There is a reason why the shelf life of executives in the Digital World doesn’t exceed 2 years with an organization. The scope of growing and learning becomes limited and hence people tend to move on. This is not beneficial for both the organization and the individual looking to make a career in this industry.

For the same reason, it would be great if you can be a better manager and teach the executives what you know. Keep them in the loop. They’re not going to take your place or try to show the world they know more than you do. Being a bully is insane. Belittling the freshers on the job makes them insecure and they start doubting their future within the organization. There should be training for the managers as to “how to treat the executives and behave like humans and not heroes with superpowers”.

Remember the bad ‘ol days when you were an executive too? When your manager or boss used to bully you? When they would ask you to finish a job which simply cannot be done in 30 minutes but you still had to do it? The late nights you stayed back and missed out on parties and your mother’s birthday dinner simply because the manager “didn’t care” and wanted the job done? The working late even on weekends? My bet is you simply loathed that life and vowed to make the life of the executives under you as miserable once you became the higher authority.

Let me emphasize on how it is NOT COOL and NOT FAIR. Just because you had it rough does not give you the right to make it impossible for others. Also, you must’ve guessed by now that I am not a manager or even an MBA, so here is another small piece of advice; your having a Master’s degree in marketing/finance/HR/Operations/Ch*&#*ap does not make you a know-it-all or the king of the world.</p> <p>You might actually be training some really honest and decent executives to be great managers and what’s best? You get credit for training and teaching them what they know. In the end they’ll make jobs. Aspire to be a great manager, a likeable manager, and you’ll at least end up being a good person.</p> <p>I hope not all of you seniors will hate me for this blog but I had to say it out loud. Someone had to! Lastly, I would want to take time out here and thank all the people who helped me climb up the corporate ladder and taught me all I know. I will not be taking names but once they read this post, they’ll know it for themselves.</p> <p><strong>Regards,</strong></p> <p><strong>Junior Executive</strong></p>