MANAGING WORK AND FRIENDS

Cara was a young graduate with a Business Management degree employed at Jim’s Barbecue restaurant for a little over a year. She had accepted the role of Assistant Manager after much consideration. While the position came with a significant pay cut, working more hours, and taking on more responsibility, she felt that the role would enable her to practice what she was learning through her MBA courses and help her build out her resume. As her first management position, Cara struggled with her bosses becoming her peers and her coworkers and friends becoming her direct reports. About six weeks into the role, she realized she was having a hard time expressing her improvement-related ideas and as a result was not being taken seriously by the owner, the co-manager, and the employees.