Handling another manager

[stevewdewitt]

I am the newest member of the management team but I have been at my employer much longer than the other managers. One manager in particular gets on my nerves. Recently I made a request for work from his team. Usually it is the other way around his team always needs my teams assistance. The request was about a 1/2 day task but it is now going to take more than a month because they want to include my request in their new architecture. I don’t want this in their new architecture as a POC. I just need the job done. I don’t want to show this person how irritated I am but I want to let him know that I need this sooner than later and his priorities are not my priorities. I feel like my request was hijacked by this team and I need to get my job done. What do I do? I want to walk in their office and ask them to fulfill my original request and then migrate my request to their new architecture when it is ready. I also want him to know that he should have consulted me before making his decision.
Thanks,
Steve

[mynewunit]

This is typical thing for a person in a new position to do. You have to see their response from their focus. They are trying to prove themselves. They are trying to trying to create structures they are familiar with. They are trying to fix all the problems they had with the place they left. They don't see the company method, the value adding, or how they make money. They are still learning company metrics, pitfalls and competition.
How do you actually respond to this? First thing I would do is schedule a meeting with the manager. Make it a general check in, ask him how things are going, where he is heading, how he is working with the other teams. Once you get his story from him, let him know that you would like a person of contact for the information you need from his team, even though the "system" will provide it. Then state to him, You know that their team is working on many things, so you don't want to make an unreasonable demand, but can you get the deliverable ahead of the system. Let him choose the deadline, assuming it is 3 to 5 business days. Then check in every day after say 3 days. Once you slide past that date, mention it to the next level of management.
You don't want to crush his ambition or drive, or create an adversarial relationship. Let him "create" as long as he can still deliver regularly. Think of it as giving him a map of the company, rather than trying to force his circle into the square company hole. Maybe you recommend he present the architecture to the upper management to get more light on it, so they understand the undertaking and the value. Then you and the rest of the team, company, can understand and help.