Meet Mary
Mary works as the graphic design manager at Fusion GraphiX, which is located in Sydney and specialises in B2B graphic design, web design and marketing services. Fusion GraphiX have a permanent team of 13 people, 2 of which report directly to Mary. It is a busy, creative work environment.
Mary’s duties include:
- Ensuring the studio’s graphic design services are running smoothly and efficiently, while producing high quality work
- Maintaining Fusion GraphiX’s policies, procedures and standards
- Managing her team’s performance, including appraisals and professional development
- Promoting a positive and supportive work culture based around teamwork
Let’s begin by asking Mary three questions about her role.
I like to start by making sure that I understand exactly what the organisation expects of me. I do this by reading through the organisation's documents, such as their policies, procedures, code of conduct, and other documents. These will help me get a feel for the organisation and its values. It’s also vital to have a copy of your position description to know exactly what is expected of your role.
Once I have familiarized myself with the organisation's expectations, I make sure that I consider these in everything I do. I can’t expect my team to follow the rules and maintain standards if I don’t do it myself. Leading by example also provides staff with something to model their own behaviour on. If they don’t know the standard, they can’t live up to it.
I always try to involve my team in the decision-making process. Any decisions have to be within organisational guidelines, but including the team helps them to feel that they are part of the organisation and that they are heard. It also helps them feel that they are part of any changes or decisions, rather than changes being something that is ‘done to them’. Team members are more likely to accept decisions and take ownership of them if they have been part of the process.
