HITS 2 Managing Sideways

Episode 2 — Managing Sideways: Collaboration Without CompromiseYou can manage your boss.You can manage your team.But what happens when the people you need to succeed don't report to you at all?Welcome to the second diary entry from the middle.In this episode of H.I.T.S. — Ham in the Sandwich, we’re talking about managing sideways: navigating colleagues, peers, stakeholders and other teams when you have responsibility for the outcome but not necessarily the authority to make it happen.Because collaboration sounds simple until priorities collide.Your team has one deadline.Another team has another.Everyone agrees the work is important.Everyone has their own version of urgent.And somewhere in the middle, you are expected to make it all work.This is where the politics no one admits begins to matter.Who gets heard?Who gets prioritised?Who owns the decision?Who gets the credit?And what do you do when cooperation suddenly becomes a negotiation?Managing sideways isn't about being agreeable.It's about building influence without relying on hierarchy.It means learning how to negotiate priorities, manage expectations, understand competing incentives, build trust with peers, handle disagreement, and collaborate without constantly giving up what your team needs.Because sometimes the hardest people to work with aren't difficult people.They're simply people whose priorities are different from yours.And when there is no formal authority to fall back on, your ability to influence becomes part of your job.In this episode, we explore what it really takes to collaborate across competing interests without becoming the person who always compromises.Because being a good colleague doesn't mean saying yes to everything.Sometimes, collaboration means finding a way forward without losing sight of what matters.If you've ever had to get something done through people you don't manage, this episode is for you.Follow H.I.T.S. — The Diary of a Mid-Level Management Career Professional for weekly conversations about work, leadership, life, and everything that happens in the middle.Hosted by Stella UwaechueWork. Leadership. Life.Welcome to the sandwich stage. 🥪