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\n\t\tOpinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.\t<\/p>\n
Managing up to executives is one of the most underrated skills in business. Although managing up is tricky at any level, it\u2019s particularly difficult when the person you\u2019re managing up to is a vice president or C-suite leader.<\/p>\n
As an executive coach, I know that influencing is a skill that many leaders want to get better at. It becomes increasingly important as you climb the corporate ladder, yet it\u2019s rarely taught and even more rarely practiced effectively. <\/p>\n
Here are some of the most common missteps professionals make when managing up to executives and a few ways to start doing it better.<\/p>\n
Influencing as a leader is about more than just being a strong communicator. You must deeply understand the goals of the person you\u2019re communicating with if you want your message to land and move them to action. Without that foundation, you\u2019re essentially talking at<\/em> them, not with<\/em> them.<\/p>\n I was recently working with a client who was preparing for a conversation he was going to have with his new skip-level. As we developed his key talking points, he quickly realized that he didn\u2019t actually know what mattered most to his leader, so instead of jumping straight into his agenda, we reframed the entire conversation around learning his executive\u2019s priorities.<\/p>\n When we debriefed during our next coaching session, the impact of our efforts was clear. He discovered that he had been misaligned with his executive, spending energy on outdated KPIs his leader no longer cared about. With that clarity, he redirected his efforts toward work that clearly aligned with his leader\u2019s priorities. That one conversation changed everything.<\/p>\n We all have communication preferences, and it\u2019s natural to default to them when we\u2019re not being intentional. While that can work day-to-day, you don\u2019t want to fall back on your defaults during your limited airtime with executives. You need to tailor your communication to their needs, not the other way around.<\/p>\n One of my clients was working on a high-visibility AI transformation project for her VP. She kept requesting one-to-one meetings that repeatedly got rescheduled or canceled. When we dug deeper, we discovered that the executive strongly preferred brief daily Slack updates over scheduled meetings.<\/p>\n When managing up, your job is to adapt to the leader. The more you understand how your leader likes to receive information, communicate and make decisions, the more influence you\u2019ll have. If you don\u2019t know, ask. It\u2019s a simple question that signals both self-awareness and respect for their limited time.<\/p>\n Senior executives can have hundreds, if not thousands, of direct and indirect reports. When you communicate with them, keep in mind just how much information they are already filtering at any given moment. When you bury your message in context, you risk losing their attention.<\/p>\n A client recently asked me to review their strategy slides before a one-on-one meeting. I was quickly overwhelmed by the volume of content they were presenting. I found myself drowning in details. I knew that if I couldn\u2019t track it, their executive certainly wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Lead with your recommendation. Executives want to know what you need from them and why it matters. Come in with a clear ask and a concise rationale. Save the supporting details for follow-up questions.<\/p>\n Building your influence requires you to keep your executive up to date. Many high performers make the mistake of assuming their leader knows what they\u2019re working on and understands the value they\u2019re delivering. That assumption can be incredibly costly to your career growth.<\/p>\n Some of the strongest contributors go unrecognized simply because they don\u2019t communicate their impact. Humility is generally a leadership asset, but it can backfire come bonus season and promotion cycles if your executive doesn\u2019t have a clear picture of what you\u2019ve accomplished.<\/p>\n One of my clients prided herself on being humble. It was a quality she wore gladly, until it worked against her. Her boss told her she hadn\u2019t led any enterprise-wide projects that would merit a promotion. The truth was, she had, but just never communicated them, assuming her boss was already aware. He wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n This doesn\u2019t have to be a formal update or a polished presentation. Sometimes the most effective approach is subtle: a quick Slack message, a CC on a key email or a brief update during a one-on-one meeting. The key is to communicate the value of your work consistently rather than assuming your executive is tracking it. They\u2019re busy, which means your job is to make it easy for them to see what you\u2019re contributing and why it matters.<\/p>\n Managing up to executives is a skill, and like any skill, it improves with intention and consistent practice. Know your leader\u2019s goals, adapt your communication style to his or hers, get to the point quicker, and make your contributions known. You\u2019ve got this!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Managing up to executives is one of the most underrated skills in business. Although managing up is tricky at any level, it\u2019s particularly difficult when the person you\u2019re managing up to is a vice president or C-suite leader.<\/p>\n As an executive coach, I know that influencing is a skill that many leaders want to get better at. It becomes increasingly important as you climb the corporate ladder, yet it\u2019s rarely taught and even more rarely practiced effectively. <\/p>\n Here are some of the most common missteps professionals make when managing up to executives and a few ways to start doing it better.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n2. Failing to adapt to the leader<\/h2>\n
3. Providing too much context<\/h2>\n
4. Not marketing the value of your work<\/h2>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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