This can be a hard habit to break, especially if you come up through the ranks from staff to management, but nothing will dilute your authority more and muddy up your communication pathways quicker then to refer to your co-op’s management team as “them” when talking to those you manage.

Saying things like,

“It is not that big a deal to me, but they really want us to do it this way now…”

Or, “Sorry, I’m upset about it too, but it is just how crazy things are with them right now.”

Or, “Hey, they’re the boss and there’s nothing I can do about it”.

No, you’re the boss, supervisor or lead, and half-stepping your authority by giving it away to some “they upstairs” is defeating your personal strength and generating a whole bunch of hassles down the way.

You’re a manager.

It’s “we” not “they”.

“We’re rolling out a new policy on dress code at the first of the month. Here’s how it will roll out.”

“Our expectations are for each staff member on the crew to face an aisle before heading on break.”

“We’ve looked this matter over and are going to move forward this way.”

You’re a manager; there’s no passing the buck anymore. Part of our responsibility is to uphold a unity in our management practices and communication and not throw other team members under the bus when talking to staff.

It a quick way to some really bad management dynamics.

Welcome to the team; we’re glad you’re here.