A couple of weeks ago I re-launched our internal Line Management Training Academy, a series of 6 full day sessions, across a 5-month period, built by me and my team to ensure that the ethos of the company is rooted into the messaging, ensuring alignment with our culture and expectations of our management teams. It helped that on session 1 we played with lego!

**This lego model was a visualisation of the type of person this manager was nervous about managing – someone who always puts themselves first, and will fight over others to get to ‘the top’, someone who wasn’t a team player and who would put themselves on a pedastal.

Designed to provide our existing, new and emerging line managers the tools to be able to identify how to empower their teams and unlock their potential, as well as what it means to be a manager (and all the responsibilities that come along with it), the sessions have been well-received and thought provoking – but what it does highlight is that actually, for many, managing people is the go-to progression for someone who is good at their job. 

Being good at your day to day job doesn’t mean you have the immediate skills to manage other people, or even a team, who also do that same job. Being a manager of people is complex, time consuming, challenging, rewarding, frustrating, exciting, overwhelming and certainly not for everyone! 

The skills needed to manage people are numerous, and very few are taught as part of a progression plan / step up – usually people are thrust into management positions with a quick overview of the ‘HR’ version of the HRIS (Human Resource Information System) and sent on their merry way – it’s no wonder so many people in management positions are struggling! 

If you’d like any tips on how to manage tricky situations at work please pop a comment below and we’ll see if we can work through it (baring in mind any support or suggestions made do not constitute legal help or advice) otherwise if you’re a manager of people, I definitely recommend ‘Surrounded by Idiots’ as a starting point for learning to navigate the different types of people you might come across in your management career.

Working closely with your HR partner isn’t just about ticking boxes — it’s about unlocking the full potential of your people and your business. Behind the scenes, HR is doing far more than handling rotas or contracts; we’re analysing costs, forecasting resourcing needs, navigating legal risks, resolving conflicts, and shaping a workplace where people can actually thrive.

When managers and HR work together from the outset — whether it’s for hiring, change management, or team development — you get smarter decisions, faster progress, and fewer surprises. So don’t wait until there’s a problem to involve HR. Make us part of your strategy, not just your safety net.