5 Shifts to Go From Unit Manager to District Manager
Many of the skills that make successful Unit Managers are the same skills that could make District Managers fail.
When they get promoted or hired into this new position, these leaders must make these five shifts to succeed as a District Manager, because it is not the same to run a franchise unit and lead team members as it is to manage multiple stores at once and lead leaders.
Let’s explore them.
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Shift #1: From Doing to Delegating
The first shift that District Managers (DMs) must make is from doing to delegating. Usually, Unit Managers get promoted because they can fix anything, do schedules, handle customers, and take care of their team members. However, once they become a District Manager, they must become a delegator.
Because if they are always jumping in and doing things on behalf of the managers that they are now supervising, they are sending two messages:
- “You can't do things as well as I; therefore, I don't trust you.”
- “I'm still a manager, I just have a bigger title.”
None of these is a good message to give to the people who report to you.
The District Manager’s job is not to solve the problem, but to give managers the skills to solve the problems for themselves.
District Managers have to ask themselves:
- Does the manager know how to do it? If they don't, the answer is not to jump and do it, but to train and develop them.
- Have you given managers the authority to do it? They may think that it's up to the DM to do it. District Managers need to officially delegate authority to unit leaders so that they know it is their job to do that task.
- What am I teaching them by doing this work myself? Most likely, they're learning that the DM will always do the work.
I know that the hardest part of delegating is empowering others who can partially do the work as well as you can. But instead of trying to do it for them, District Managers should teach their unit leaders how they did it, develop them, and coach them.
That way, managers will be able to elevate their skills, and who knows, maybe even do the work better than DMs could. Wouldn't that be amazing?
- Delegation is not about assigning tasks; it’s about giving managers ownership of the work.
Only then will they know they are capable and responsible for that job, and feel more secure, competent, and respected in their roles.
Keep learning: How to Turn a Good Manager Into a Great Leader
Shift #2: From One Team to Multiple Teams
The next shift that District Managers need to make is to understand that their new role implies managing multiple teams.
Unit Managers usually know their teams perfectly. They are familiar with their lives and problems, they know what they like and don’t like, and their preferences. However, that doesn't happen when you oversee multiple teams.
District Managers cannot get to that level of detail or know people that deeply. They can only spend a limited number of hours in each unit, so to deliver the expected results, they have to focus not on the team members but on the team leaders.
Think of it as layers:
- The first layer is the Unit Manager, who knows their teams very, very well and is in charge of training, developing, and coaching them, as well as taking care of them.
- The next layer is the District Manager, who is responsible for developing, training, and coaching their Unit Managers so they can become problem solvers.
The first layer is a Unit Manager's responsibility. The second layer is a DM’s responsibility. And you really need to respect the hierarchy of these layers.
A warning sign to look out for is when the District Manager receives phone calls directly from team members, asking to solve problems in their units. This would mean that something is not working as it should.
The best way to handle this is first to ask the team member whether they have spoken with their manager. If they haven’t, DMs should always redirect them to the manager, reminding them that the person responsible for the unit is the Unit Manager, not them. However, DMs should also let employees know that if the unit leaders don’t resolve the issue, they can reach out again.
Don’t miss: Multi-Unit Manager vs. Multi-Unit Leader, Which One Do You Need?
Shift #3: From Daily Ops to Strategic Thinking
The third shift that District Managers must make is to adopt a strategic mindset rather than a day-to-day operations mentality.
Unit Managers are focused on “the Now,” monitoring today's sales, labor costs, cash flow, and the cost of goods, as well as how team members and customers are currently doing. They think more in terms of 12-hour or 24-hour goals.
District Managers, on the other hand, need to have a long-term vision and think about what's happening this week, how that affects the month, and what they need to do or adjust to drive positive change in the quarter's results.
That’s why they have to be strategic about what they're doing and thinking, and how they approach the work they do every day, every week, every month, and every quarter.
Shift #4: From Being Liked to Being Respected
Unit Managers are usually liked by their team members. They spend time together getting to know each other, hang out between shifts, and celebrate milestones with pizza and birthdays with cake. You can say the leaders have personal relationships with employees, and that works for the Unit Manager’s role.
However, the focus for District Managers should not be to be liked, but to be respected. Yes, they need to coach and inspire the team, but they also need to hold them accountable to a higher level.
This is one of the reasons why being promoted to District Manager in the same district where they were Unit Managers is so challenging. Think about it! They go from being peers and friends with the other managers to being their direct supervisor, and it can be very difficult for them to make the transition and be seen and followed as a leader if they are still focused on being liked.
- Being liked is a tool. Being respected, though, is the foundation for everything DMs can do as leaders of a franchise district.
Having the respect of team members and unit leaders means people trust the District Manager’s judgment and are willing to follow their lead, allowing DMs to accomplish the district’s goals.
To hold people accountable, especially when leading leaders, District Managers must be able to have tough conversations. They can’t avoid them just to be liked! Doing so may actually hurt the operations because they’re not giving people the guidance and direction they need to improve their everyday performance.
However, they can turn these difficult conversations into caring confrontations by being direct and kind at the same time, and giving people the opportunity to change behavior or improve performance.
They can say something like: “Hey, I bring this up because I know you want to do a great job, and I have found that this is an area of opportunity for you to really become the amazing manager you can be.”
As you can see, approaching the conversation like this is direct but also kind, and it also lets people know their leader cares for them and that they have the potential to be even better.
- Most respected leaders give honest feedback because they care about their team members or leaders so much that they are willing to tell them what they need to hear to grow.
Shift #5: From Managing Tasks to Developing People
The fifth shift that District Managers need to make is that, instead of managing the daily activities of a franchise unit, they now have to develop and elevate the Unit Managers to the level they reached before being promoted. Doing so will make them a valuable asset to the district.
DMs have to understand that their job is no longer to run operations or to execute tasks across units. The District Manager role is about being the guide, the coach, and the people developer who helps managers acquire and build the skills to become Super General Managers, get promoted, and scale their careers.
- In summary, part of their job is to identify and develop the future leaders of your organization.
That’s why their success metrics include their ability to develop managers and how effectively they share the information, knowledge, and skills these unit leaders need to grow.
Think of them as a development multiplier. If they go in and fix one problem, they’ll resolve one problem. But if they can teach managers to fix their problems, they’ll now be fixing all current and future unit problems because they can resolve them on their own!
I hope that this gave you an idea of what it takes to transition from Unit Manager to District Manager, and the five shifts that will make these leaders more effective.
If you are a franchisee wondering how to develop your Unit Managers into District Managers, or a District Manager looking to take on these five shifts and do them well, I invite you to explore our LEAD Program.
This is a 10-week training program and Multi-Unit Leadership Certification designed to give men and women clarity on their roles, responsibilities, and routines so they can succeed without burning out.
Enrollment opens every quarter, so be sure to follow our communication channels to learn about the upcoming cohort and save a spot!
Reflections:
- Does your District Manager understand the new responsibilities of their role?
- Have they made these shifts, or are they still acting like a Unit Manager?
- Can your top Unit Manager run the district while your District Manager is out?
- How are you helping your District Managers thrive?
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