Managing Up Successfully: Build Effective Relationships with Your Boss & Peers
Ethan Evans
Former Amazon VP; 70+ patents; led 800+
Build trust, get clarity, and increase influence with key stakeholders
WHAT TO EXPECT:
6+ total hours of content: This is an evergreen course, meaning, the first class is 3 hours of live core lecture and Q&A with Ethan. Then, every quarter, we will host live Office Hours with Ethan (each ~1 hour) featuring new material and Q&A (see the Syllabus / Schedule). We will do this for at least one year, and if successful, will continue YoY (where you will have lifetime access).
All sessions will be recorded and available via Maven.
Since this is an evergreen course, you may enroll at anytime and catch up via past video recordings.
WHY THIS COURSE MATTERS:
Developing a strong relationship with your boss is a career accelerator when it comes to promotions, reorgs, executive sponsors, stakeholder influence, and succession planning. Build an ethical relationship that works for you and manage up with intent.
SPECIAL DISCOUNT FOR LEVEL UP NEWSLETTER PAID SUBSCRIBERS:
All Level Up Newsletter paid subscribers get $150 off.
If you plan to take this course, it is a no-brainer to become a paid subscriber because the annual cost is $144.
Get the code from the latest member-only newsletter article.
What you’ll learn
Specific actionable steps to create effective and ethical relationships with your manager, skip level, and peers.
Understand your boss: Communication style, preferences and pet peeves, strengths vs weaknesses
Effective upward communication: Clarity and brevity, timeliness, fact vs opinion, active listening, ask sharp questions, lead good 1:1s
Give upward feedback and share your own style and preferences: Choose your battles, ask permission, bring examples (SBI)
Problem solving and decision making: Avoid surprises, ask to be involved, manage emotions, reference preferred style
Conflict resolution: Extreme problems and decisions, leadership & stress management, when to compromise or quit and commit
Managing expectations: Clarify and propose, personal vs team, measurement and reporting, follow-ups, shifting priorities, set boundaries
Intentionally and thoughtfully ask for career support: Get feedback, give permission, ask honest questions, ask for examples
Earn and get investment (growth) from your leaders: Goals and timelines, ask for opportunities, executive mentors
How to navigate remote situations and frequent boss changes
Mange up to your skip level leaders: Important to engage, less time, ally with your boss, escalations
Mange up to senior peers: Leverage expertise and interests, power dynamics, negotiation, collaboration, keep your boss in the loop
Enable people to manage up to you: Publish your preference, psychological safety, favoritism, help your team understand auditing
When managing up becomes unethical or manipulative
Positioning vs lying: Sandbagging, withholding information
Face time
Get your questions answered live
Learn from the questions and situations your fellow students face
Learn directly from Ethan
Ethan Evans
Former Amazon VP (15+ years); 70+ patents; led global teams of 800+
Who this course is for
Individual contributors (ICs) and managers who want to get better at managing up to their boss, senior peers, and skip level leaders
Applicable to all domains: product managers, mkt leads, program managers, engineers, UX designers, operations, analysts, chief of staff
This course is NOT about getting promoted or building and showing executive presence (we have other courses for that)
What's included
Live sessions
Learn directly from Ethan Evans in a real-time, interactive format.
Lifetime access
Go back to course content and recordings whenever you need to and join any future live Office Hours.
Community of peers
Stay accountable and share insights with like-minded professionals.
Certificate of completion
Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.
Maven Guarantee
This course is backed by the Maven Guarantee. Students are eligible for a full refund through the second week of the course.
Course syllabus
Week 1
Mar
1
Class 1: Managing Up Successfully Lecture and Q&A with Ethan Evans
Week 2
Schedule
Live sessions
6 hrs
Core lecture material followed by office hours
Sun, Mar 1
5:00 PM—8:00 PM (UTC)
Wed, May 13
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Wed, Jul 15
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Wed, Oct 21
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Managing Up for Career Success with Ethan Evans & Ella Irwin
Read the takeaways: https://levelupwithethanevans.substack.com/p/how-to-decode-your-manager
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Frequently asked questions
$595
USD