Spot on! I use what I call the 4 M’s to assess whether or not a new manager will make it:
Motivators: What motivates this person to succeed at a management career? Or were they just appointed because they were a good, or great, individual contributor?
Models: Do they have good role models to learn from? How accessible are those role models?
Mentors: Do they have a mentor in their corner, who can help them (emotionally and psychologically) get past the many barriers they will face?
Mastery: a 100 metre runner practices for months to perform for only 10 seconds. Sports analogies are unfortunately unhelpful, as sports personalities and teams have far more time to safely practice than the average manager does. Will the organization create “mastery experiences” for the new manager, where they can practice for long periods, under the watchful eye of a coach, without blowing up the team or organization?
Sadly, in many cases, these 4M’s are lacking.
