Global Journal of Management and Business Research, A: Administration and Management, Volume 23 Issue 10

Global Journal of Management and Business Research ( A ) XXIII Issue X Version I Year 2023 49 © 2023 Global Journals the block with a huge mandate. So I had to quickly get all the department managers on board to target their needs, so that we could hire all these wonderful people within a month and a half. [Laughter] […] in the X culture [names healthcare institution], people are often close-minded, there’s a bit of an old-fashioned management mentality. No sooner did I come in all bright and cheery with good ideas that I’d get comments like: “Hey, careful- you know, be careful how you want to handle this.” - Bianca Some managers talked about how the visibility of their management methods differed from those of their colleagues and how this may have complicated their professional integration. For example, Vicky explained that her colleagues criticized her for being too lax with her team, whereas stricter ones were the norm in the industry. In another example, involving promotions, some managers mentioned they had been denied promotion opportunities because they had not “done their time” nor “acquired enough experience to be ready,” as is common practice in their industry, before moving from one position to another: What was very difficult at the beginning was precisely to get other managers to believe in me. When I started, I had the big disadvantage of being young. I’d just joined the company and wanted a management position. In the company mindset, it’s more like you can become a manager once you’ve been here long time. I firmly believe that being a manager is not about being at the top. I understand these are promotions, but you know for me it’s not—it’s not because you’re good at your job that you must be a good manager. And I find that this is a big problem at the company where I’m currently working, because it means that skilled young people who want to be managers are held back a lot. They’re often held back because they think: “No, you’re not ready. You’re too young” [...] nobody has ever been able to tell me why [laughs], they thought I wasn’t ready. – Vicky Strained relationships or conflict in the workplace that may lead to violence Some participants revealed that when entering their role they experienced certain work situations marked by strained relationships or conflicts with colleagues, superiors or supervised staff. These ranged from having to manage tensions or conflicts between staff or partners, repair team dynamics, handle crises, or work through issues with a superior: Because when I got there, the boat was sinking [laughter][…] there were just three employees, including one part-time. So we needed to rebuild the team. It’s a practically all new team. […] the former director who was there before, I think he had reached the end of what he could do for the regions, so there was like some sort of disagreement and the regions tried to split up, but of course if they do that and then create another organization, then there is no point for our organization to exist and they couldn’t do that because of donor funding; they couldn’t split up. So that really created a lot of conflict. Then there was what we insiders called a coup [laughs].In the sense that some of the people in fact stepped forward to join the board of directors. So there was a renewal of the board of directors. At that point, there was a change in methods, the previous director didn’t like it and left. So that’s it. He left. Some employees left because of him during the pandemic. That’s why there weren’t that many people left. So my job was to bring back all the regions, get everyone back to working together, rebuild the team and move forward with it. - Georgia [...] recently, my superior and I were not seeing eye to eye on a certain point and then he came to ask my opinion. I simply gave him my opinion [...] and I disagreed with him. In front of my work colleagues, he lost his cool. He said, “You’re trying to shove it down my throat.” Then he tells me, “Well it’s not going to happen!” “Hey!” I said, “take it easy. I’m not trying to shove anything down your throat. YOU asked my opinion. YOU got my opinion. It’s not the same as yours. The decision is now up to you.” That’s it. You’re not going to make me take the fall for this. I don’t agree with you. - Joyce In other cases, strained relationships or conflict in the workplace arose from the different ways of seeing or doing managerial work, and in competitive relationships between colleagues, among others, for promotions: Colleagues were hiding information. We’d get in front of the boss, and I hadn’t been given the information about a file we were working on together. Then he presented it to the boss and looked good doing it. I looked like I didn’t know what I was talking about, and there I was thinking we had been working as a team, and I said to myself it’s useless, it’s not worth it. I didn’t see it as a way of working, which might be just as efficient, but I truly believe that we work for the citizen first and then for X [mentions name of the organization], not to advance my career by not sharing information. - Fanny Strained relationships or conflict in the workplace also led several participants to doubt their legitimacy as managers. These individuals felt they were not being taken seriously, were talked down to as if they knew nothing, and in some cases, had male colleagues steal their ideas and manage to get credit for them: […] as a female manager, I find that sometimes there are chauvinist comments. There is a great deal of paternalism. I’m a young woman, they all think that I’m their little girl and then they’re like: “But of course, I’m going to explain it to you, my dear!” And I find this APPALLING. Yeah, for sure, there are times when it makes me mad, BUT luckily, I work in the cultural Navigating Early Career Management: Workplace Experiences and Career Impact