People Management

How do you manage your top performers differently?

Engineering ManagerML Engineering ManagerData Science ManagerData Engineering Manager

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Answers

Anonymous

4Strong
What I have noticed consistently about top performs in my teams is that they have a greater sense of ownership. They are also more passionate about the problem at hand. What I find helpful to keep this fire lit is to give them more space with the assurance of a safety net. I have this one highly motivated person on my current team. She thrives on creative problem solving. I let her work with our stakeholders directly with periodic check-ins to see if she needs any support or discuss the plan she is building. I also check in with my stakeholders to make sure, work is moving along and they are happy. If all goes well, I let her run things on her own. At the end of major milestones, I will ask her to do a demo or presentation on her project. This has a two-fold benefit: Firstly, she is building her brand as being a business problem solver and secondly, it holds the rest of the team to a higher standard that they see in action. I've seen a few junior or newer team mates take on more ownership having seen her set an example.

Anonymous

3.6Strong
In my Last few roles when i was leading/managing multiple project, i observed one thing about high performer they need complex problems, ownership and freedom to implement approaches which seems impossible.
As a manager, i have to ensure top performers are getting challenging work which keeps them motivated and also helps project to deliver new innovative ideas. In my managing style, i always categorize my team in multiple types, leaders, followers, challengers (top performers). I assign all complex and challenging work to top performers and frequently check with them if they are enjoying work and require any changes in case of feeling overwhelmed.
As a result top performers feel competitive and learn new things which keeps them happy and ahead in their field and this helps project to deliver complex work.

Anonymous

3.6Strong
Managing top performers is a very important work an EM needs to do.
The first thing I do is keeping the high performer motivated. I would have conversations around their career goals, what motivates them, what challenges they want to tackle and etc during our 1:1s. Based on those, I will make plans and assign the high performer to the right projects so they can get challenged , pushing them to grow more and make bigger impact while staying motivated.
The next thing I would do is making sure their work is being recognized. I will try to recognize their work publicly within the team, to stakeholders and leaderships. While this is something I actually do for everyone, I will especially make sure their works are being recognized and called out by stakeholders and leaderships.
One last thing I would do is making sure the high performer is not getting burned out. High performers cannot just keep high performing 100% of the time. I keep my eyes on their projects, their performances, and make sure to remind them manage their time and don't let them selves to burn out.
  • How do you manage your top performers differently?
  • Can you walk me through your approach to managing high-performing individuals on your team?
  • Can you describe how you handle top-performing employees differently from the rest of your team?
  • How do you ensure that your top performers continue to thrive and grow within your team?
  • Can you give an example of how you approach managing top talent on your team differently?
  • I'd love to hear about your strategy for managing top-performing individuals within your team.
  • Can you share your approach to managing and motivating your top employees?
  • I'm curious to know how you cater to the unique needs of your top performers on your team.
  • Can you describe your management style when it comes to handling high-performing employees?
  • How do you ensure that your top-performing employees are reaching their full potential within your team?
  • Can you walk me through how you approach the management of individuals on your team who consistently perform at a high level?
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Interview question asked to Data Engineering Managers, Data Science Managers, ML Engineering Managers and other roles interviewing at Razorpay, SeatGeek, ASML and others: How do you manage your top performers differently?.